The emails you want to keep best stay in a folder you do not see, at least not right away. Find out here how to create an archive folder in Outlook both on Windows and using a Mac.
First, Come for the Theater, Stay for the… Smell?
Vienna’s venerable Burgtheater is one of the oldest and most respected venues for spoken theater in Europe. It is also next to one of Vienna’s most gorgeous rose gardens… and, in a way, inside that garden.
For an intricate maze of vents and tubes sees air straight from amid the blooms outside to just underneath the seats inside the theater. When you next visit the theater in spring and note a scent, you now know whence it comes.
Now, instead of an intricate maze of clicks and choices, how about sending emails from anywhere straight to an archiving folder with Outlook?
How to Create an Archive Folder in Outlook
Outlook for Windows
Time needed: 5 minutes
To set up Outlook for Windows to use an “Archive” folder so you can quickly archive messages in it:
- Click File in Outlook for Windows.
- Go to the Info sheet.
- Select the account for which you want to create the archive folder under Account Information.
- Now click Tools next to Mailbox Settings.
- Select Set Archive Folder… from the menu that has appeared.
No Set Archive Folder…: The option to change the archiving folder is available for IMAP and POP accounts; Exchange accounts do have an archiving folder set up, but you cannot change it.
- Highlight the folder you want to use as the archiving folder in the folder list.
Create a new archive folder right in Outlook: To create a new folder for archiving:
1. Click New….
2. Enter a name for the archiving folder (say,Archive) under Name:.
3. Select Mail and Post Items for Folder contains:.
4. Highlight the folder under which you want the Archive folder to appear.
(At the top: Choose the account root to set up a top-level folder.)
5. Click OK. - Click OK.
Now, you can archive an email quickly—including with a keyboard shortcut—in Outlook.
A growing archive? How to Find Large Attachments in New Outlook
Set the Archive Folder in Outlook for Mac
To set the archive folder in Outlook for Mac:
- Go about archiving an email.
- Click Continue to have Outlook for Mac create a folder called Archive at the top level for the current email account.
Custom folder: Select Choose Another Folder to pick or create (and pick) a different folder for archiving in Outlook for Mac.
No dialog: If you do not get a dialog, Outlook for Mac has identified the archiving folder from the account type and existing folders; it will usually choose a folder called “Archive” or the folder called “[Gmail]/All Mail” for Gmail.
How to Create an Archive Folder in Outlook: FAQ
Can I change the archive folder in Outlook for Mac?
No.
Outlook for Mac offers no settings to adapt the archive folder for an account after it has been set (or chosen by Outlook itself).
(How to create an archive folder tested with Outlook for Windows 2111 and Outlook for Mac 16.75; updated April 2024)