How to Automatically Save Attachments in Outlook

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December 12, 2022

by Alex Shipman

Are you in this scenario? You’ve received several emails containing a PDF attachment that you have to download and save to a specific folder on your computer. You could perform the steps manually by viewing each email, opening the PDF, and saving a copy to a particular folder. If you’re dealing with ten emails, this may take a few minutes of your time. But what if there are hundreds of emails? Or what if the emails are sent every day?

Fortunately, there are several options to save attachments automatically in Outlook. This article introduces two popular options.

Let’s get started:

How to Automatically Save Outlook Attachments Using Data Extraction Kit

What is the Data Extraction Kit for Outlook? Well, it is a third-party tool by Outlook Transfer that offers a quick and effortless way to export, save, and forensically analyze emails from Outlook accounts. It works with all popular versions from Outlook 2007 to Outlook 2019 and later versions.

Get the extraction kit by downloading it from our product page.

* - The unregistered version converts a limited number of messages

After downloading and launching the tool, you’ll see the following interface.

Using the extraction kit doesn’t entail complicated steps. You only need to configure the data export options. Follow the listed steps below.

Step 1: Processing

The settings determine how the extractor tool will process the files and recreate the folders in the specified destination folder.

Step 2: Format

You can export attachments only without email bodies.

Step 3: Filters

The filter settings will allow you to save attachments automatically. Make sure to select Skip Emails without attachments. You can find the right emails by filtering the emails by date or filtering the attachments by size.

Learn How to Save Emails From Outlook for a more extensive guide on using the extraction kit.

Advantages of Data Extraction Kit For Outlook

Why use the Data Extraction Kit for Outlook? Well, it affords users many benefits:

easily extract attachments from an Outlook profile or a PST file;
export attachments with or without email bodies;
export emails within a specific date range;
generate forensic reports;
extract attachments in a few steps and without access to Outlook;
use it for retrieving attachments contained in a PST file saved for archiving;
it’s simple and fast; anyone can use it.

Automatically Save Attachments Via Outlook Rule

Outlook rules allow users to better manage their email messages by setting up automated actions that self-execute once certain conditions are met.

You can set up a custom rule to automatically generate saved attachments. Now, there is no way to do this directly from the Rules Wizard. You’ll need to write a VBA script to enable the Outlook rule to save attachments.

This process will entail three main steps:

enable macros in Outlook security settings;
inject the VBA script;
apply the script by setting up an Outlook rule to save an attachment.

Just follow these steps to save outlook attachments to your specified folder:

Step 1: Enable Macros

1. Click on File> Options.
2. On the Outlook Options dialog box, select Options (the last selection on the list).
3. In the Microsoft Outlook Trust Center section, click on Trust Center Settings.
4. Proceed to select the Macro Settings option > Toggle option to allow Notification for all Macros.
5. Finish by clicking Ok.

Enabling macros at this stage ensures that the script that you’ll add later will run without requiring additional confirmations.

Step 2: Inject the VBA Script

1. Enable Developer tab in Outlook by clicking menu File > Options > Customize Ribbon. Under Main Tabs, enable the Developer checkbox.
2. Select the Developer tab from the top menu or Alt + F11.
3. Next, click on Visual Basic to open the code editor.
4. In the Microsoft Visual Basic window, choose Insert > Module.
5. Type in the code into the editor. P.S. Copy “download the attachment script” below:
6. ```
Save and close the editor window.
```

Remember to change the Save Folder path to your specified folder.

Step 3: Add the Outlook Rule

1. Click on File > Manage Rules & Alerts.
2. In the next window, select New Rule.
3. In the Rules Wizard, select Apply rule on messages receive.
4. The Rules Wizard will then ask for conditions for applying the rule. If you leave the options unchecked, they will apply to all received emails. Or, you can include specific email addresses by configuring from people or public groups or apply the rule to emails with specific words in the subject.
5. Click Next after specifying the conditions.
6. The Rules Wizard dialog box will ask: What do you want to do with the message? From the provided options, select run a script.
  * – Sometimes, the Run-a-script rule may be missing after an update. Here is a Microsoft answer thread discussing potential workarounds.
7. In the same window, and after selecting run a script, you should see Step 2: Edit the rule description. Click on run a script, and in the pop-up dialog, select the script you saved in VBA.
8. Outlook will ask if there are any exemptions. If you don’t have any situations to exempt, leave the options unselected.
9. Click Next, and save the new rule with a new name.
10. Select Finish, and the VBA script will run. Wait a few minutes for the script to run to save Outlook email attachments. You’ll find the files in the folder.

As long as the script is running, Outlook will automatically download attachments.

Frequently Asked Questions

How to Automatically Download Outlook Attachments?

1. Download and run Data Extraction Kit application.
2. Go to Options > FORMAT > Output Format > All Items and select “Export Attachments Only” option.
3. Click Outlook button to export attachments from Outlook profile otherwise click PST File button.
4. Select the target directory to save exported attachments.

How do I download attachments from multiple emails in Outlook?

The quickest way is to use the Data Extraction kit for Outlook. It has robust filters that ensure you’ll find the correct files based on size or date range. You can specify whether to export attachments alone or with email bodies.

How do I save all attachments in Outlook?

If you want to save Outlook attachments to a folder on your PC for easier access or backing up, you can set up a custom VBA script to run as Rule. When it runs, it will save all the attachments in Outlook to the specified destination folder.

Do email attachments automatically download?

Outlook will auto-download attachments. It is to provide a better experience when viewing your emails. While the attachments will be automatically downloaded, they won’t all be available in a specific folder. That’s why creating a rule to save the attachments to a specified destination or use a data extraction kit is crucial.