Importing your .OLM File (Mac)

NOTE: This article is for users who have an Outlook desktop license or have been granted access to the Outlook desktop app by the university. We’ll use Gmail as an example of a personal account when importing the OLM file.

 Part 1: add your Gmail account to Outlook

  1. Open Outlook on your Mac.
  2. At the very top-left of your Mac screen, click Outlook.
  3. Click Settings (or Preferences if that's what your version shows).

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  1. Click Accounts.

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  1. Click + Add Account.

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  1. Enter your personal Gmail address > Click Continue

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  1. A Google sign-in window should open. Sign in to your Gmail account.
    • Click on IMAP/POP

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  • This window will appears, enter your Gmail password > A prompt will appear on the website asking you to confirm your Gmail sign-in > click Done

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  1. Google will ask you to authorize Outlook. Review the permissions and click Allow or Continue
    • When you see this pop-up, click Done..

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  1. Return to Outlook and wait for your Gmail account and folders to appear in the left sidebar.
    • You can also see the Gmail account you added in the Accounts tab.

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Part 2: Import the .olm File

  1. In Outlook, look at the menu bar at the very top of your Mac screen.
  1. Click File > Import.

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  1. Select Outlook for Mac archive file (.olm) > Click Continue.

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  1. Find the .olm file that you previously exported > Select the .olm file.

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  1. Click Import.
  2. Wait for Outlook to finish importing the file.
    • If the archive contains a large mailbox, this may take some time.
    • Do not close Outlook while the import is running.
  3. When the import finishes, click Done or Finish.

 

 

Part 3: Find the Imported Emails

 

After the import finishes, the emails will not automatically appear inside your Gmail account.

Outlook normally places imported .olm data under a section called:

On My Computer

  1. Look at the folders in the left sidebar of Outlook.
  2. Scroll down and look for On My Computer.
  3. Expand On My Computer and look for the imported folders.

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If You Do Not See "On My Computer"

  1. At the top of your Mac screen, click Outlook.
  2. Click Settings or Preferences.

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  1. Click General

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  1. Look for: Hide On My Computer folders
    • Make sure this option is unchecked.

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  1. Return to Outlook. You should now see On My Computer in the left sidebar.

 

Part 4: Copy the Imported Emails into Gmail

Important: Importing the .olm file only restores the emails inside Outlook. To make those emails appear in Gmail.com and on your other devices, you must copy or move them from On My Computer into your Gmail mailbox.

Option 1: Copy an Entire Folder

  1. Under On My Computer, locate the folder containing the emails you want to transfer.
  2. Make sure your Gmail account is visible in the left sidebar.
  3. Click and hold the imported folder.
  4. Drag the folder from On My Computer to your Gmail account.
  5. Drop it under your Gmail account inbox.
    • Outlook should copy the folder and its messages into Gmail.

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  • When you drag a folder from one email account to another, Outlook copies the folder to the other account and leaves the original folder in place.

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  • The OLM file will create a subfolder in the inbox.

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Option 2: Copy Individual Emails

If you do not want to copy the entire folder:

  1. Open the imported folder under On My Computer.
  2. Select the emails you want to transfer.
    • To select multiple emails, hold Command (⌘) while clicking the messages.
    • To select a large group, click the first message, hold Shift, and click the last message.
  3. Drag the selected emails into a folder under your Gmail account.

You may want to create a folder in Gmail first, such as:

BYU-I Email Backup

or

Old Outlook Emails

 

Wait while Outlook uploads the messages to Gmail.

Option 3: Copy to Folder

  1. Open the imported folder under On My Computer.
  2. Select a small test group first, maybe 5–10 emails.
  3. On the Outlook ribbon, click Move.
  4. Choose Copy to Folder.
  5. Search for a folder inside your Gmail account, such as Inbox or a folder you created like Old BYU-I Mail.
  6. Select that Gmail folder and click Copy.
  7. Wait a few minutes, then check Gmail.com to see whether those messages appear.

 

 

Part 5: Confirm the Emails Are in Gmail

Do not delete the .olm archive or the imported Outlook folders yet.

  1. Open a web browser.
  2. Go to Gmail and sign in to the same Gmail account you added to Outlook.
  3. Look for the folder or label where you copied the imported emails.
  4. Open several messages to make sure they transferred correctly.
  5. Confirm that attachments are available if the original messages contained attachments.

If you can see the imported emails in Gmail.com, the messages have successfully synchronized to your Gmail account.

 

Important

For a large mailbox, Gmail synchronization may take some time. Keep Outlook open and connected to the internet until the transfer is complete.

Do not delete the original .olm file until you have confirmed that all required emails have successfully transferred to Gmail.

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