Are you seeking simple and reliable solutions for OST to PST conversion?

OST files are basically the special file formats that are used as a data file in Microsoft Outlook. That means you can access OST files only using the Outlook app. On the contrary, almost every email client allows accessing EML files. You can even access EML messages using your notepad.

As a result, OST to EML conversion is the easiest process for migrating emails from your Outlook email account to any other email clients. Continue reading to understand the comprehensive steps involved in this conversion process.

What differentiates OST files from EML files?

Outlook supports both the OST and EML format files. But these files contain several structural differences. Such as:

Only Microsoft Outlook supports the OST format. But EML files are accessible through almost all email clients.
The OST file contains the entire mailbox data (including emails, attachments, calendars, contacts, etc.). But EML files contain individual emails only.
With only the classic Outlook app, you can open and access OST files. But EML files are quite portable, and you can open them through almost all email clients, even through any text editor.
While you open Outlook, OST files sync with the mail server and show all the available folders and emails. But accessing EML files is quite simple and doesn’t require any synchronization.

Step-by-step guide on how to convert OST to EML manually?

Before you start converting your OST files to EML format manually, make sure you have the following email clients installed on your device: Thunderbird and Classic Outlook.

Step 1: Configure your Gmail account on Outlook

Open any browser and access your Gmail account. Click on the “Settings” icon and then click on the “See all settings” button.

Choose the “Forwarding and POP/IMAP” tab and select the “Enable IMAP” radio button. Then click on the “Save changes” button.

Now, at the top-right corner, click on your profile icon and click on the “Manage your Google Account” option.

In your Google Account dashboard, search for “App passwords,” and when it appears, go to this security option.

Enter any name in the “App name” field and click on the “Create” button.

Copy the password and click on the “Done” button. Before that, make sure to paste the password in your notepad. Because you need to use this password to sign in on Outlook.

Afterwards, open the control panel on your device and click on the “Mail” option to open a Microsoft Outlook profile.

On the “Mail Setup – Outlook” wizard, click on the “E-mail Accounts” button.

Once the “Account Settings” window opens, choose the “E-mail” tab and click on the “New” button.

Choose the “E-mail Account” and click on the “Next” button.

Now, enter a name in the “Your Name” field. In the “E-mail address” field, enter your Gmail address and enter the password (that you have copied from the app passwords) in both the “Password” and “Retype Password” fields.

Outlook will now start establishing connections with your Gmail account.

Step 2: Transfer emails to the Gmail account

On Outlook, open the folder where the emails of the OST files are stored.
Select all the emails by using the “Ctrl + A” shortcut key.
After you select the emails, right-click and copy them.
Finally, open any folder under your Gmail email address and paste the emails.

Step 3: Setup the same Gmail account on Thunderbird

Open your Thunderbird app and click on the “Local Folders” icon.
Under the “Sign Up Another Account” section, click on the “Email” button.
Enter the same Gmail email address (where you have transferred the emails of the OST file) and password, and fill up the other fields. Then click on the “Continue” button.

Step 4: Export emails as EML from Thunderbird

In the Thunderbird dashboard, open the Gmail folder (where you have transferred all the emails of the OST file).
Select all the emails that you want to convert to EML files. Use the “Ctrl + A” shortcut key to select all emails at a time.
After you select the emails, right-click on them, and from the drop-down menu list, select the “Save as” option.

Select the “EML” format. Then specify any destination path on your local device and click on the “Save” button.

Finally, the emails should be saved on your device as EML files.

Professionally convert Outlook OST to EML

Manually converting your valuable Outlook offline data files (OST) isn’t the wise decision. Especially when you need to convert multiple OST files, it’s quite time-consuming. In such cases, the Regain OST to PST Converter can save you time and effort.

First, properly install the Regain OST to PST converter software on your device and run it as an administrator.
Click on the “Add Outlook Files [One or Multiple]” button and select the OST file from your local device. Then click on “Next” to proceed.
After you successfully add the OST file, this software will start scanning and previewing all the available folders and emails. Select any folder as per your needs and click on the “Export” button.
Simply click on the “Browse” button and specify a destination path on your local device. Afterwards, select the “EML” format and click on the “Convert Now” button.

Now, this software will convert all the emails in your selected folder to EML format and save them on your local device.

Conclusion

Only Microsoft Outlook (classic version) and some other third-party tools can access OST files. However, nearly all email clients support EML files. That’s why OST to EML conversion is the easiest way to migrate your existing emails.

For a successful OST conversion, I have described the in-detail manual method in this article. But I don’t recommend this method to everyone. If you have enough time and technical expertise, you can continue. Otherwise, using any professional OST to EMLConverter will be the wisest decision.