How to save Gmail emails as PDF

For one email, Gmail's own Print button is all you need. For dozens or thousands, export your mail with Google Takeout and drop the .mbox file in the box below: search for the messages you want and save them as PDF, up to 500 per file. Free, and your mail never leaves your computer.

Drop an .mbox file here

winmail.dat · .eml · .msg · .mbox · .pst · Free · Your files are never uploaded

One email or one conversation: use Gmail

You don't need any tool for a single message:

  1. Open the email in Gmail on a computer.
  2. For one message, click the three-dot More menu next to it and choose Print. For the whole conversation, click the printer icon (Print all) at the top right.
  3. In the print dialog, set the destination to Save as PDF and save.

That works well for a handful of emails. It gets slow when you need fifty messages from one sender, a year of receipts, or every email about a project, because Gmail prints one conversation at a time.

Many emails: export with Google Takeout

Google Takeout gives you a copy of your Gmail as an .mbox file, the standard mailbox format. You can then pick and print messages in bulk here.

  1. Go to takeout.google.com and sign in.
  2. Click Deselect all, then tick Mail.
  3. To export only some mail, click All Mail data included and choose the labels you want. Fewer labels means a smaller, faster export.
  4. Click Next step, keep the delivery method as a download link, and click Create export.
  5. Wait for Google's email saying the export is ready. Small mailboxes take minutes; big ones can take hours or a day.
  6. Download the ZIP and unzip it. The mail is in Takeout/Mail as one or more .mbox files, often All mail Including Spam and Trash.mbox.

Turn the export into PDFs

  1. Drop the .mbox file onto the box at the top of this page, or click Choose files. Even multi-gigabyte exports open, because the file is read in pieces.
  2. Find the messages. Type a name, an address, a subject word or a date in the search box. Tick Search message text too to search inside the messages as well.
  3. Select them. Tick individual messages, or click Select all to select every result shown.
  4. Click Save selected as PDF. A print view opens and your browser's print dialog appears. Choose Save as PDF and save.

Each email starts on a new page, oldest first, with its header (from, to, date, subject) at the top. Picture attachments are printed after the message; other attachments are listed by name, and you can download them from the viewer.

More than 500 emails

Each PDF holds up to 500 messages, because a browser print job with thousands of emails gets slow and unreliable. Work in batches: search by year, sender or subject, select all the results, save, then change the search and save the next batch.

More tips on the MBOX to PDF page.

Your mail stays on your computer

The viewer runs entirely in your browser. Your Takeout file is read on your own computer and is never uploaded to our server or stored. You don't sign in with Google here and we never get access to your account. Only this page and its scripts come from us.

What to expect

Frequently asked questions

How do I save a Gmail email as PDF?
Open it, click the three-dot More menu, choose Print, and pick Save as PDF as the destination.
How do I save many Gmail emails as PDF at once?
Export your mail with Google Takeout, unzip it, and open the .mbox file here. Search for the messages, select them and click Save selected as PDF.
How many emails fit in one PDF?
Up to 500. For more, save in batches: change the search, select all results, and save again.
Do I have to give you access to my Gmail?
No. You download the export from Google yourself. The file is read in your browser and never uploaded.
Are attachments included?
Picture attachments are printed in the PDF. Other attachments are listed by name and can be downloaded from the viewer.
Is it free?
Yes. No signup and no size cap.

Have Microsoft Publisher (.pub) files too? Convert them to PDF and Word.