How To Open An MBOX File In Outlook?

MBOX is a container file format used by several email clients, such as Apple Mail, Eudora, Mozilla Thunderbird, and others to store mailbox items, like emails, attachments, contacts, calendar events, etc. On the other hand, Microsoft Outlook supports PST file format.

This means you can’t directly open an MBOX file in Outlook. To open an MBOX file in Outlook, you need to first convert the file into PST format and then import the PST file into the application.

In this article, we will be mentioning a specialized MBOX to PST file converter tool that can help you to convert the MBOX file into PST file format. We will also mention a workaround that can help you open MBOX file emails in Outlook.

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Simplest Way To Open MBOX File In Outlook

As mentioned, to open MBOX file in Outlook, you need to convert it into PST file format. For this, you can use a specially designed MBOX to PST file converter software.

Stellar Converter for MBOX is a powerful DIY software that lets you convert your MBOX file into Outlook-importable PST file with ease.

The software scans the MBOX file, reads its contents, and converts it into the PST file format by maintaining the mailbox structure and folder hierarchy. Apart from PST, the software can convert the MBOX file data to other commonly used file formats, like MSG and EML.

This advanced MBOX to PST converter software supports all major email clients, like Mozilla Thunderbird, Eudora, Entourage, Google Takeout, etc.

Here are some advantages of this MBOX to PST converter software:

Simplifies MBOX to PST conversion process
Saves MBOX file data to MSG, EML, HTML, and PDF formats
No technical expertise is required to use the tool
Ensures 100% accuracy during the conversion process
Filter emails based on date range or sender’s email address
Provides an enhanced preview after conversion to verify the mailbox items
Supports selective mailbox data conversion
Directly migrates MBOX data to an Outlook profile or Office 365 account

Now, let’s see how to convert the MBOX file into PST and import it into Outlook.

Step 1: Convert The MBOX File Into The PST File Format

Here are the steps to convert MBOX file to PST:

Download and install Stellar Converter for MBOX on your Windows PC. Launch it.
You will see the Select MBOX Use the dropdown menu to select the MBOX email client in which the MBOX file was created. The tool will automatically select the default location of the MBOX file.

Note – Click on the Select File button in case you want to select MBOX file stored at another location on your PC.

After selecting the MBOX file, click Convert. The software will begin scanning the selected file.
After the software has finished scanning the MBOX file, it will display all the file items in a preview window. Click on any mailbox item to see its preview.
Select the items you want to save in PST and click on the Save Converted File button in the ribbon.
The Save As window will appear. Choose the Save as PST option and click on Next.
Click on Browse to choose the location on your system to save the PST file.
Click on Save. The software will save the converted PST file at the selected location.

Step 2: Import The PST File Into Outlook

After you have successfully converted the MBOX file to PST file format, follow the steps below to import the PST file into Outlook:

Launch MS Outlook on your PC and go to File > Open & Export > Import/Export.
Select the Import from another program or file option in the Import and Export wizard and click Next.
Select the Outlook Data File (.pst) option and click Next.
Click Browse to choose the converted PST file and then click Next.
Select the folder in the Outlook profile where you want to import the MBOX email items and click Finish.

Now, you can access your MBOX file items in Outlook.

Workaround To Open MBOX File Items In Outlook

If you want to open some emails from MBOX file in Outlook, then a workaround is to save the MBOX file emails in EML files and then drag and drop them in Outlook.

To do this, you will need to use an MBOX-supported email client, like Mozilla Thunderbird, to import the MBOX file into it. Once it is done, select the required emails and save them as EML files. Finally, drag and drop the saved EML files into your Outlook account.

Though the above workaround can help you open MBOX file items in Outlook, it has certain limitations, such as:

The process is time-consuming and lengthy.
It requires to install another software (Mozilla Thunderbird) to open MBOX file.
It is not suitable for moving user accounts from MBOX to Outlook PST in bulk.
Mailbox items, like contacts, calendars, etc., cannot be moved using this method.
EML files, when dropped into Outlook, act as attachments and are not identified as emails by Outlook.

Conclusion

Microsoft Outlook doesn’t support the MBOX file format. Hence, you will not be able to open MBOX file in Outlook directly. The simplest way to open an MBOX file in Outlook is to first convert it to PST format.

For this, you can use Stellar Converter for MBOX – a powerful MBOX to PST converter software to convert MBOX files into PST or various other commonly used formats, like MSG or EML.

After conversion, you can open the PST file in Outlook via the Import/Export wizard and access your MBOX file data.