How to Convert Windows Live Mail to MSG File Format

  Kumar Raj
Written By Kumar Raj
Anuraag Singh
Approved By Anuraag Singh  
Modified On July 17th, 2025
Reading Time 7 Minutes Reading

If you’re a user of Windows Live Mail so you might know that it was very popular and widely used in earlier times as an email client, but now it’s outdated and discontinued by Microsoft. And many others have launched in the market as an alternative to email clients like Outlook. But as a result, most of the users are finding to convert Windows Live Mail to MSG file.

So, in this article, we’ll discover how to export WLM to MSG file format using both manual and automated methods, and this step-by-step guide will help to resolve your issue without any data loss. Let’s discuss these file formats quickly:

What are WLM and MSG File Formats?

  1. Windows Live Mail (WLM) is an email client which saves a single email conversation and gives output in EML format.
  2. Message file (MSG) is a file format which used by Outlook to store and save individual messages which including subject, date, and attachments, etc.

But first, we’ll discover why we are converting WLM to MSG:

Why is There a Need to Convert Windows Live Mail to MSG File?

MSG is the Outlook message file format that contains only an individual email message, which can further include metadata, attachments and other formatting. Let’s see reasons why the user wants to convert WLM to MSG:

  1. If a user wants to change the email client so they have to migrate WLM to MSG file, as WLM file data is not accepted by many email clients.
  2. It helps to preserve single email conversation data with its intact structure.
  3. Converting WLM to MSG ensures great compatibility with other platforms like Microsoft 365, Exchange, etc.
  4. Also, it helps to archive and share bulk emails along with a readable and supportive format.

2 Effective Methods to Export WLM to MSG

Unfortunately, there is no basic and direct manual method to convert Windows Live Mail to MSG, but you can also do it by:

  • Using an automated solution or
  • Use manual ways to convert WLM to MSG

Let’s quickly understand their use and working:

Convert Windows Live Mail to MSG Using Automated Tool

If you’re working on a large number of messages, then you don’t need to use manual method as it’s very slow in the conversion process, also you have to do it on your own. So we recommend using SysTools Windows Live Mail Converter, which helps you to export WLM to MSG effectively in few seconds.

Download Now Purchase Now

This professional tool can convert WLM to MSG in a bulk mode, also it keeps your data structure intact, including attachments and formatting as in original file. Let’s explore the benefits of this tool.

Advantages of Using this Alternative Tool

  • It preserves email data structure, remains the same with both attachments and formatting.
  • It doesn’t need any installation like Outlook
  • This tool automatically identifies the EML files from the path directory of Windows Live Mail
  • It mass convert Windows Live Mail to MSG file format.
  • Can work with all versions of Outlook as well as Windows.

You’ll easily understand if you follow these steps:

How to use:

  1. Install and launch this professional software, which helps to export WLM to MSG.
  2. install

  3. Click Add file to upload your files from a folder, then click on Browse option if you don’t have WLM installed on your system.
  4. browse

  5. Press OK after uploading, then to add file.
  6. ok

  7. Click on export, then choose MSG tab to convert Windows Live Mail to MSG.
  8. export

  9. After it chose advanced settings, which will show you many options like date filter, naming, categories, etc
  10. filter

  11. If you add some filters, then save it, after that, browse, which asks you for destination to save the MSG file.
  12. destination

  13. You may also click on OK, or you can make a new folder to store the file.
  14. ok

  15. If you want to apply some filters, you may apply them or just click Export button.
  16. apply

  17. Finally, your file is successfully exported into MSG format. Press OK button.
  18. ok

  19. Now, you can see your converted report by navigating to location where you saved the file.
  20. navigate

Note: As this software is mostly used by professionals, many users now accept using the basic manual method as they are comfortable using this. So, never mind, here’s the quick explanation to operate manual method.

Manual Method to Export Windows Live Mail to MSG

It can be done with manual methods, but as a free option, or maybe you can apply an indirect manual method to convert WLM to MSG. It will be done in different phases as steps are followed:

1: Export your Emails from Windows Live Mail

  • Navigate to WLM and select all emails you want to convert.
  • Drop them into a new folder of EML files.

2: Installation of MS Outlook

  • If you don’t have Outlook, please ensure to install Outlook with all configurations.

3: Drag and Drop EML Files into Outlook

  • Drag .EML files into Outlook’s folder, where Outlook will scan and automatically convert them.

4: Save Transferred Files in MSG Format

  • Open every email in Outlook
  • Navigate to File, click on Save as, then select MSG format for the file.
  • Also, do the same process for each email.

But this method to convert Windows Live Mail to MSG manually has many consequences, quickly check them:

Drawbacks of this Manual Method

  1. This process is very time-consuming, as a user has to repeat the same method every single time.
  2. It doesn’t support any bulk exporting to different file formats.
  3. There is no guarantee that the structure or data of file will remain intact or preserved.
  4. Also, there must installation of Outlook into your system.

To prevent these limitations, you must opt to use an automation solution, as it will help you in many ways and can convert Windows Live Mail to MSG very quickly and easily.

Read also: How to Convert Windows Live Mail to MBOX

Conclusion

In this article, we’ve discussed how to convert Windows Live Mail to MSG file format using both methods. If you want to switch the email client to Outlook, then you need to migrate WLM to MSG files, and this is the only way to access your files in it. As you know that using manual way is very tedious and not great in handling large emails, so you have to use the best alternative solution, which is suggested above, which is a secure, trustworthy, quick and accurate solution to export WLM to MSG files.

FAQs on Converting WLM to MSG

Q.1 Can I convert mass WLM emails into MSG format at once?

A. If you’re using an automated solution, then only you can convert WLM to MSG in bulk; if not, then you can’t able to convert.

Q.2 Do I need Outlook to convert WLM to MSG?

A. No, you don’t need an Outlook installation on your system, as you can use the aforementioned tool, which is standalone and can work independently.

  Kumar Raj

By Kumar Raj

Kumar Raj has more than 14 plus years of expertise in migration technology. He likes to create, edit, and optimize web material on topics conversion of email data, and migration of email data. For the majority of the past ten years, he has been a devoted fan of the technology scene.