Importing archived OLM contacts into Outlook for Mac 16.111.2

Question

Importing archived OLM contacts into Outlook for Mac 16.111.2

Tim Richards 0

You said – The.olm file should be imported from Outlook for Mac, not by selecting it as a folder in Finder.

But how can I save the archived folder into Outlook itself? That doesn't make sense! I've EXPORTED it from there from my old V16:43. I'm trying to import it into my new version of Outlook for Mac (16.111.2). There is no IMPORT option in the Tools menu, only in the FILE menu, and when I go to the archive it is greyed out.

Tim Richards 0 Reputation points

2026-08-24T16:18:41.6233333+00:00

I enabled 'SHOW ON MY COMPUTER FOLDERS' - which BTW is not is 'General' but in 'Display' in settings.

The olm.archive contacts file I'm trying to import from the desktop is still greyed out :(
Hornblower409 14,600 Reputation points

2026-08-25T09:38:35.7+00:00

Appears to be a duplicate or continuation of:

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5984124/tryin-to-export-my-contacts-and-folders-from-imac

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5984141/how-to-get-legacy-outlook

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5984171/importing-contacts-to-outlook

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5984202/olm-archive-file-greyed-out

1 answer

Your answer

Tim Richards 0 Reputation points

2026-08-24T16:18:41.6233333+00:00

I enabled 'SHOW ON MY COMPUTER FOLDERS' - which BTW is not is 'General' but in 'Display' in settings.

The olm.archive contacts file I'm trying to import from the desktop is still greyed out :(
Hornblower409 14,600 Reputation points

2026-08-25T09:38:35.7+00:00

Appears to be a duplicate or continuation of:

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5984124/tryin-to-export-my-contacts-and-folders-from-imac

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5984141/how-to-get-legacy-outlook

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5984171/importing-contacts-to-outlook

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5984202/olm-archive-file-greyed-out

Answer 1

.olm files are imported from within Outlook for Mac, not opened directly from Finder as a mail folder.

For Outlook for Mac, the supported import path is:

Open Outlook for Mac.
Use File > Import.
Select Outlook for Mac archive file (.olm).
Choose Continue.
Browse to the .olm file on the Mac and select it.
Choose Import.

After import, the items appear under On My Computer in Outlook.

If the .olm file is greyed out when browsing to it, one supported cause to check is whether On My Computer is hidden. In Outlook, go to Outlook > Settings… > General, then clear Hide On My Computer folders.

Also, Outlook for Mac stores imported archive content under On My Computer. If that section is not visible, the import result can appear missing even when the import path is correct.

A current limitation is that Outlook for Mac cannot import Outlook on the web calendar and contacts, iCloud calendar and contacts, or Google calendar and contacts through this import feature.

References:

Import email messages, contacts, and other items into legacy Outlook for Mac