Fix – Not Able to Open .msg Files Saved with Outlook 2016

Sarabjeet Kaur | Email Conversion File Repair How to's Outlook Software Technology | 3 minutes read | Last updated on February 8th, 2023,
msg file not opening

This blog is focused on some valuable and manual procedure to resolve the problem of not able to open .msg files save with Outlook 2016. Read this blog and get knowledge on some handy facts.

You might be aware of data files i.e. OST and PST, which are related with MS Outlook. Just like them, there is another file you can generate and access through Microsoft Outlook i.e. MSG file. Well, this MSG file is a file format for single mail message format utilized by MS Outlook as well as MS Exchange.

These files are most useful for the purpose of storing, sharing important emails to the users of Outlook. Moreover, the files may be holding just the text message or the message with images and other qualities in HTML format.

But, users may encounter with strange problem sometimes while opening the MSG files into Outlook which comes with some error like “cannot open MSG file”. In this blog, we have described some common difficulties that regularly create problem for the users to open MSG file. Along with this, we have discussed how to resolve or fix MSG file not opening problem with no trouble.

Some Critical Issues for MSG File not Opening

If any one of the below issues is true, then Microsoft Outlook users will be unable to open MSG file in Outlook 2016, 2013, 2010 etc.:-

  • When MS Outlook has not configured accurately
  • When the preview of MSG files produced by Hex editors which is difficult to understand by users
  • When the MSG file is already open in Outlook application and user is trying to open again
  • If users have don’t right to open the MSG file
  • Trying to open MSG file using Outlook 2000/XP or below, that has been generated in Unicode format

Simple Steps to Fix MSG File Not Opening problem in Outlook

Well, there are multiple solutions that can be very helpful to resolve MSG file is not opening in Outlook issue. One of the process is mentioned below:-

Opening the MSG File Created by New Unicode File Format Message in Older Editions of Microsoft Outlook

For accessing the MSG file, you can ask the sender to send the MSG email message again after saving it in ANSI Format before sending it to you.

Easy and reliable Steps Involved to Fix the Error Are As Follows:

To change the .msg file from Unicode to ANSI format, you are required to drag and drop an email message out of Microsoft Outlook into an Explorer folder and change the following settings as below:

Steps for MS Outlook 2003 and 2007

Go to Tools>>Options>>Tab Other>> Advance Options Button>>Disable Option: After the following steps, Use Unicode Message Format when saving messages

Steps for MS Outlook 2010, 2013 and 2016

Go to File>>Options>>Mail>>Section>>Save Message>>Disable Option: Then, use Unicode Format

Note: While saving the MSG file, change its type from Unicode (*.msg) to (*.msg) by going to File>> Save as>> “Save as type drop down list appearing under “Outlook Message Format-Unicode (*.msg) to Outlook Message Format (*.msg)”.

“Using the above methods, you can easily resolve the issue unable to open .msg files in MS Outlook 2016, 2013, 2010 etc. However, if you need to save these MSG files into another secure file format, i.e., PDF, then you can easily do so with the help of MSG to PDF Converter software in few seconds without any trouble.