Windows 11 Users Rejoice! Here are the 10 Best Fixes for ‘Cannot Open MSG Files with Outlook’

Have you ever faced the issue where you try to open an MSG file with Outlook, but it simply won’t open? Well, don’t worry, as you are not alone. Many Windows 11 users have faced this problem and it can drive them crazy. However, the good news is that there are some simple fixes that can help get rid of this issue. In this article, we will discuss the 10 best fixes for ‘Cannot Open MSG Files with Outlook.’

Fix #1: Ensure That You Have the Latest Version of Outlook

The first thing you need to do is to ensure that your Outlook is updated to the latest version. Often, outdated versions of Outlook can face compatibility issues with newer MSG files. So, head over to the Microsoft website and check for any updates.

Fix #2: Check Your Antivirus Software

Sometimes, antivirus software can interfere with the opening of MSG files. So, make sure that your antivirus software is not blocking any Outlook processes. You can try disabling the software temporarily and then see if you can open the MSG file.

Fix #3: Reset the Default Email Client

Sometimes, Outlook may not be set as the default email client, which can cause issues when opening files. To reset the default email client, go to ‘Settings > Apps > Default Apps > Email.’ Here, select Microsoft Outlook and make sure it is set as the default email client.

Fix #4: Repair the Installation of Office

If none of the above fixes have worked, then the issue could be with the installation of Office. You can try repairing the installation of Office by going to ‘Control Panel > Programs > Programs and Features > Microsoft Office > Change.’ Here, select the ‘Repair’ option and follow the on-screen instructions.

Fix #5: Use the Inbox Repair Tool

Outlook comes with an Inbox Repair Tool that can help fix issues with corrupt files. You can use this tool by navigating to your ‘Outlook.exe’ file and then selecting ‘File > Open > Outlook Data File.’ Here, select the file you want to repair and click on the ‘Repair’ button.

Fix #6: Check for File Associations

Another reason why you may not be able to open the MSG file with Outlook is because of incorrect file associations. To check this, right-click on the MSG file and select ‘Open With > Choose Another App.’ Here, select Microsoft Outlook and make sure to check the ‘Always use this app to open MSG files’ option.

Fix #7: Use the Outlook Switches

Outlook has a number of switches that can be used to fix various issues. One such switch is the ‘/cleanviews’ switch, which can help fix issues with Outlook views. To use the switch, go to the Start menu and search for ‘Outlook.exe’ in the search bar. Right-click on the file and select ‘Open File Location.’ Here, right-click on ‘Outlook.exe’ and select ‘Properties.’ In the ‘Target’ field, add ‘/cleanviews’ at the end and click ‘OK.’

Fix #8: Disable Add-Ins

Sometimes, add-ins in Outlook can cause issues with opening MSG files. You can try disabling any add-ins you have installed by going to ‘File > Options > Add-Ins.’ Here, select ‘COM Add-ins’ and click on the ‘Go’ button. Here, uncheck any add-ins you have installed and click on ‘OK.’

Fix #9: Use Third-Party File Viewer

If none of the above fixes work, then you can try using a third-party file viewer to open the MSG file. There are many free and paid options available online, such as ‘MSGViewer’ and ‘PSTViewer Pro.’

Fix #10: Extract the File

Finally, if nothing else works, you can try extracting the contents of the MSG file. To do this, simply right-click on the file and select ‘Extract All.’ This will extract all the contents of the MSG file into a new folder, which you can then access.

In conclusion, ‘Cannot Open MSG Files with Outlook’ can be a frustrating issue for Windows 11 users. However, with the above 10 fixes, you should be able to resolve the issue and open your MSG files with ease. So, try these fixes and get back to using Outlook without any issues!

1. Open MSG File With Same Outlook Version

It definitely doesn’t help that Outlook has so many versions floating around. If you know for sure that the MSG file was created by Outlook 2019, then use the same version to open it too. Maybe you have Outlook 2016 installed? Note that it is not possible to install and run two versions of Office (Outlook is part of Office suite) on the same machine. That leaves you two choices.

Either uninstall the existing version before installing a different oneInstall Office on a different computer and open MSG file with Outlook there

2. Open Manually

Normally, Windows should be able to detect the MSG file format and change the icon to email in File Explorer. Like so: So you can simply double-click to open this file with Outlook as Windows has already associated the MSG file format with the correct app. In case you can’t see the email logo or Windows fails to detect the correct app, right-click on the file and select Open with > Outlook option. Doing so will also instruct Windows to associate MSG file format with Outlook app so you don’t have to right-click in the future. Double-clicking the file should work fine.

3. Set Default App

Sometimes, Windows simply fails to set the default app automatically due to a bug or some other error. And so you cannot open MSG files with Outlook. But you can do so yourself too. Let’s set Outlook as the default app for MSG file type.

  1. Press Windows+I to open Settings and search for Choose a default app for each type of file and open it.
  2. Search for MSG in the search bar and select Outlook below to set it as the default app. In my case, it is already selected.

4. Disable 3rd Party Antivirus

So your trusted antivirus may have flagged the MSG file as a virus, preventing File Explorer from opening it. Did you see a notice or pop-up from the antivirus to that effect? Check Action Center (Windows + A). If that’s the case and you know the file to be safe, whitelist it. If not then scan the file manually once and then open it. Finally, simply disable the antivirus temporarily and open the file.

5. Disable Outlook Add-ins

Outlook add-ins are integrations developed by third-party app developers to help users integrate and use such apps with Outlook. However, such add-ins are known to cause all sorts of issues including the one where Outlook can’t open MSG files on Windows. Disable them all and enable one at a time to find the one that’s causing the conflict.

  1. Open Outlook and go to the File tab > Options.
  2. Select Add-Ins on the left side. Towards the bottom, you should see a Manage option. Select COM Add-Ins in the drop-down menu and click on Go.
  3. Now de-select all add-ins and click OK.
  4. Restart Outlook and check if you can open MSG file with Outlook now. If not, re-enable one add-in at a time.

6. Clean Outlook Temp Files

Deleting temp files saved by Outlook app can give a new life to the app by deleting old, corrupt files that may be causing conflicts.

  1. Press Windows+E to open the File Explorer and enter the path below in the address bar: If the above folder path doesn’t work for you, open Registry Editor from Windows Search (Windows+S) and the press Ctrl+F to open the search window. Copy-paste the below text and press Enter to begin search. Now copy the folder path (something similar to what I shared above originally) that you see in the address bar above in Registry Editor and paste it in File Explorer.
  2. Press Ctrl+A to select all files inside the folder and then press Delete button to delete them. Reboot your computer and check if you can open MSG file with Outlook now.

7. Update Windows and Office

Updating Windows OS and then Office app to the latest version can help iron out several bugs and errors. To update Windows OS:

  1. Press Windows+I to open Settings and go to Windows Update. Check for updates and if any, download and install them. You will then be asked to Restart your computer as you can see in the screenshot below. Automatic updates for Microsoft Office is enabled by default. But if you want to check and update manually:
  2. If you have installed Office from Microsoft Store, simply open it and go to Library to check for updates for all apps installed from Store. If you have installed directly using setup file, you can check for updates for individual Office apps. To do that:
  3. Open Outlook and click on File > Account > Update Options and click on Update Now from the list. To give you an example, I am manually updating Word here but the steps work the same for Outlook and any other Office app.

8. Enable/Disable Unicode Format

How was the Outlook email file saved is also important. Turns out there are two — MSG and Unicode or ANSI where the latter is used by some older versions of Outlook. At the time of saving the Outlook email, you can choose save the file as Outlook Message Format-Unicode (.msg) to Outlook Message Format (.msg) in the Save as type drop-down menu. Ask the sender to resend the file in the other format also. If the email lies in your Outlook, follow the steps below to change the file format from MSG to MSG in ANSI format and vice versa. To change Outlook configuration in 2010 and later versions: Go to File > Options > Mail and enable or disable option Use Unicode Format accordingly in the Save messages section. Make changes and then try opening the file again with Outlook. The file type you use to save and open the email will depend on the Outlook version you are using too.

9. Rebuild Extend.dat File

Extend.dat is a file created by Outlook. It is possible that the file is corrupted leading to MSG file errors. But there is a simple way to force Outlook to recreate the file from scratch.

  1. Close Outlook and all other apps running on your computer. Press Windows+E to open File Explorer and search for extend.dat file using the search bar.
  2. Rename every file that you found to extend.old. Simply select the file and press F2 to do so. Now relaunch Outlook and try opening that MSG file.

10. Repair Office

Windows has a built in function to repair and reset apps that can help several common and sometimes serious issues. Repair your Office version to see if it helps. In my case, it’s 365 version.

  1. Press Windows+I to open Settings and go to Apps > Installed apps.
  2. Search for your installed version of Office app, click on the three-dot icon and select Modify.
  3. In the pop-up that follows, you will have two options — Quick Repair and Online Repair. First try quick repair as it will consume less time and works offline. If Outlook still can’t open MSG file, try online repair which takes more time and needs a stable internet connection. Click on Repair button when done selecting an option. You may need to reboot your computer so save all open work/files.

What’s Your Outlook

Outlook is a complicated app with so many versions floating around the web and multiple file extensions that it works with. But that’s always been the case with Microsoft. They always had two versions of Skype too. Coming back to the MSG file error on Outlook in Windows, the error should have been resolved by now. It’s mostly a case of wrong Outlook client or some bug. But as noted in the opening paragraph, you don’t need Outlook to open MSG file. Take this opportunity to learn how you can change Outlook view or join the dark side.