How to Convert Outlook Emails to PDFs with Attachments Included
Question details
The user wants to save Outlook email messages as PDF documents without losing or stripping out the original attached files.
- Product
- Microsoft Outlook, Adobe Acrobat
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Archiving, sharing, or documenting email threads along with their associated attachments in a universally accessible PDF format.
- Observed behavior
- The user needs a concrete method or setting to ensure attachments are automatically embedded or appended during the email-to-PDF conversion process.
Ensure you have an active Adobe Acrobat Pro subscription installed on your computer, as the necessary PDFMaker add-in for Outlook is not available in the free Adobe Reader version.
Use the Adobe PDFMaker Plug-in in Outlook
Configure the built-in Adobe Acrobat integration in Microsoft Outlook to automatically embed attachments when converting emails.
If you have Adobe Acrobat Pro installed, it automatically adds a PDFMaker plug-in to Microsoft Office applications. You can adjust its settings directly within Outlook to ensure all attachments are captured during conversion.
Open Microsoft Outlook and locate the 'Adobe PDF' tab on the top ribbon.
Click on 'Change Conversion Settings' from the options provided in the Adobe PDF menu.
In the settings dialog, check the box labeled 'Include all attachments in the Adobe PDF' and click OK.
Select the email message(s) you wish to convert, then click 'Selected Messages' > 'Create New PDF' to start the conversion process.
Combine Emails and Attachments into a Single PDF using WPS Office
If you don't have an Adobe Acrobat Pro subscription, you can easily archive complete email records by saving the email as a PDF using Windows Print, and then using the free WPS Office PDF toolkit to merge the email body with its converted attachments.
- 1. Print Email to PDF: In Outlook, open the email, press Ctrl+P to open the Print menu, and select 'Microsoft Print to PDF' to save the email body as a PDF file.
- 2. Save Attachments: Download and save any attachments from the email to a local folder on your computer.
- 3. Convert Attachments to PDF: Open WPS Office and use the 'PDF' suite to open your attachments (Word, Excel, Images) and export them as PDF files.
- 4. Merge Files Together: In WPS PDF, navigate to 'Page' > 'Merge PDF'. Add your email PDF and the newly converted attachment PDFs, then click 'Merge' to create a single comprehensive document.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is the Adobe PDF tab missing in my Outlook ribbon?
The Adobe PDF tab is powered by the PDFMaker plug-in, which is only included with paid versions of Adobe Acrobat (like Acrobat Pro or Standard). It is not available if you only have the free Adobe Acrobat Reader installed.
Can I convert Outlook emails to PDF with attachments without third-party plugins?
Outlook does not have a native 'Save as PDF with attachments' button. You must use a plug-in like Adobe PDFMaker, or manually print the email to PDF and use a PDF editor like WPS Office to merge the saved attachments into the main file.
What happens to the attachments if I don't select the 'Include all attachments' setting?
If this setting is disabled, the resulting PDF will only contain the text and images present in the email body. The attachments will be completely ignored and excluded from the final PDF document.
