How to move your business email from Outlook.com to Google Workspace

Forward new mail first, then move the old mail with classic Outlook and Google's free migration tool. The route that worked when Gmail's import did not.

Plenty of small businesses started on a free Outlook.com or Hotmail address. Moving to your own domain on Google Workspace should be one button. It is not.

Google's migration service does not list personal Outlook.com accounts as a source. Microsoft now requires a newer kind of sign in for outside apps, and Gmail's own help says an Outlook account cannot be added to Gmail on a computer. When I tried Gmail's import on a real move, it failed.

This is the route that worked, from a move I did for a trades business in September 2026. It goes through Microsoft's own desktop app, and it takes an afternoon, most of which is waiting.

What you end up with

Nothing new goes missing

Forwarding goes on first, so every customer who still has the old address reaches the new inbox from day one.

Old mail in the new inbox

Years of email copied across, with your old folders showing up as labels in Gmail.

A backup you keep

One file holding the whole old mailbox, kept until you have checked everything arrived.

The old address still works

The Outlook.com account stays open and keeps forwarding. Nobody has to be told to update anything.

What you need before you start

  • A Google Workspace mailbox on your own domain, already receiving mail. Send it a test first.
  • A Windows PC. Google's migration tool runs on Windows only.
  • Classic Outlook for Windows, which comes with Microsoft 365 Personal, Family and Business.
  • Your phone, for Microsoft's sign in codes, and the laptop's charger.

The steps

  1. Turn on forwarding in Outlook.com, and test it

    Before touching old mail, stop new mail going astray. Sign in to Outlook.com, open Settings, then Mail, then Forwarding. Turn on forwarding to your new address and tick "Keep a copy of forwarded messages". Save.

    Microsoft may ask you to confirm it is you with a code sent to your phone or another address. Have your phone nearby.

    Then test it. Send an email from any other address to your old Outlook address and check it lands in the new inbox. Do not move on until it does. On the move this guide comes from, the connection dropped right as Save was clicked, and nobody could say for sure it had saved.

  2. Get classic Outlook on a Windows PC

    The Outlook website cannot export your mail. Microsoft’s own route is the Outlook app for Windows. If you pay for Microsoft 365 Personal, Family or Business, classic Outlook is already included. If you do not, Microsoft offers a free trial. Put a reminder to cancel it in your calendar the moment you start it.

    Click Download once. A second click while the first install is running shows error 0-2035, "Microsoft 365 and Office are already being installed". Close it and follow the installer from the taskbar.

    Open Outlook, not Outlook (new). The new one can export too, but Google’s migration tool only works with classic Outlook installed.

  3. Add your account and download all of it

    In classic Outlook, add your Outlook.com account and sign in.

    Now the step that is easy to miss. Classic Outlook may only download the last year of mail, and the export only includes what is downloaded. Go to File, Account Settings, Account Settings, open the account, and set "Download email for the past" to All. Wait until the bottom of the window says all folders are up to date.

  4. Export a backup file

    Go to File, Open & Export, Import/Export, Export to a file, Outlook Data File (.pst). Choose the top of your mailbox, tick Include subfolders, and save it to your desktop.

    That .pst file is your whole mailbox in one file. Keep it until you have checked the new inbox. It is also what the next step loads.

  5. Load it into Google Workspace

    Google Workspace Migration for Microsoft Outlook is a free tool from Google that runs on Windows. Download and open it, and sign in with your new Workspace address. Choose the .pst file as the source, tick email and contacts (and calendar if you use it), and start the migration.

    Mail appears in Gmail as it goes: your inbox to the inbox, sent to sent, every other folder as a label with the same name. On the real move, about 2,400 emails took roughly an hour.

  6. Keep the PC awake until it finishes

    Plug the laptop in. If it sleeps, the migration pauses. The quickest fix is two commands in Command Prompt, which need no admin rights and only apply while the laptop is plugged in:

    powercfg /change standby-timeout-ac 0
powercfg /change hibernate-timeout-ac 0

  7. Check it, then leave the old account open

    In the new inbox, search older_than:30d. Anything that shows up came across in the move. Compare the count with what Outlook showed. Send a reply from the new address to someone outside and check it does not land in spam.

    Then leave the Outlook.com account open, for good. Forwarding depends on it, and old customers will keep using that address for years. Change the address on your website, invoices and listings at your own pace.

    Afterwards, turn sleep back on in Settings, System, Power & battery.

Microsoft's help on forwarding, exporting an Outlook.com mailbox and .pst files, and Google's help on the migration tool. Checked September 2026.

If something goes wrong

What you see What it means What to do
Gmail’s "Import mail and contacts" fails for your Outlook address Microsoft requires a newer kind of sign in that the import cannot use Skip it. Use classic Outlook and the migration tool (steps 2 to 5)
Error 0-2035, "already being installed" The installer was started twice Close the message and follow the running install from the taskbar
Far fewer emails migrated than you expected Classic Outlook only downloaded the last year Set "Download email for the past" to All, export again, run the tool again. It skips what it already copied
The migration tool finds no contacts You rarely saved contacts in Outlook.com Export them from Outlook.com People as a CSV and import that into Google Contacts
The migration stops partway The PC went to sleep or restarted for an update Plug in, run the two commands in step 6, pause Windows Update for a week, and start it again
You are on a Mac The migration tool runs on Windows only Borrow any Windows PC for an hour, or keep old mail in Outlook.com and rely on forwarding

Doing it with someone on a call

Most owners do this with help, and most of the time lost on the real move was the connection, not the email. What I do now:

  • Send links by text or email. Links pasted into a video call chat did not always open.
  • Keep the voice call separate from the screen control, and use a phone call if the audio drops.
  • Use a one time remote support code, and let the owner type every password themselves.
  • Plug the laptop in before anything else.

Rather not spend the afternoon on it?

I set up your Workspace mailbox, forward the old address, move your old email across and check it all arrived. You watch on your own screen and type your own passwords.

Book a call Google Workspace setup

Common questions

Will I lose any email moving from Outlook.com to Google Workspace?
Not if forwarding is on first and you keep the .pst backup until you have checked the new inbox. New mail forwards the moment you save the setting, and the old mail is copied, not moved.
Why does Gmail’s import not work for Outlook.com?
Microsoft now requires modern authentication for outside apps, and Gmail’s own help says an Outlook account cannot be added to Gmail on a computer for that reason. When we tried the import on a real move, it failed.
Do I need to pay for Microsoft 365?
You need classic Outlook for Windows. It comes with Microsoft 365 Personal, Family and Business plans. Without one, Microsoft offers a free trial you can cancel once the move is done.
Can I do this on a Mac?
Google’s migration tool runs on Windows only. On a Mac, borrow a Windows PC for an hour, or keep the old mail in Outlook.com for lookup and rely on forwarding for everything new.
Should I close my Outlook.com account afterwards?
No. Forwarding only works while the account is open, and customers will keep writing to the old address for years.
How long does it take?
Setup is under an hour. The copy depends on the size of the mailbox: about 2,400 emails took roughly an hour on the move this guide is based on.