How to Attach an Email in Outlook (2026)
Attaching an email (rather than forwarding it inline) sends the original message as a self-contained file, preserving its headers and attachments. It’s the tidy way to hand off a thread for someone’s records.
1. Attach an Email (Classic Outlook for Windows)
- Start a New Email.
- On the Insert tab, click Attach Item > Outlook Item.
- Browse to the folder, select the message you want to attach, and click OK.
The email attaches as a .msg file the recipient can open in Outlook.
2. Attach an Email (New Outlook & Web)
- Click New mail.
- Click the Attach (paperclip) menu and choose Browse mail (or Attach item).
- Search/select the email to attach and confirm.
Alternatively, drag the message from your inbox list directly into the body of the new email.
3. Forward as an Attachment
To send a single message as an attachment without composing from scratch:
- Classic Outlook: Select the message, then Home tab > More (…) > Forward as Attachment (or Ctrl+Alt+F).
- New Outlook / web: Open the message, click the … menu > Forward as attachment (where available); otherwise use the drag method above.
4. Attach on Outlook Mobile
The mobile apps have limited support for attaching one email to another. The reliable workaround is Forward the message, or open Outlook on the web in your phone browser to use Attach item.
5. Troubleshooting
Attach Item is greyed out
Make sure you’re in a compose window with the cursor in the body, and that you’re attaching from a connected Outlook mailbox (not a closed data file).
The recipient can’t open the .msg file
.msg is an Outlook format. For non-Outlook recipients, save the email as a PDF and attach that instead.
Dragging the email does nothing
Drop it into the message body, not the subject line, and make sure the compose window is open and visible.
Related Outlook guides: How to save an email as a PDF in Outlook · How to save attachments in Outlook · How to insert a table in an Outlook email · How to schedule an email in Outlook · How to resend an email in Outlook
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