OST Converter

Extract text from OST files


Drop or upload your .OST file
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How to extract text from your OST file

  1. Click the "Select File" button above, and choose your OST file.
  2. You’ll see a preview, if available.
  3. Click the "Convert file to..." button to extract text information.

Convert OST to another file type

To convert your OST file to another format, you need Microsoft Outlook or other Database software.

  • OST to PST
  • OST to PDF
  • OST to TMP
  • OST to TEMP
  • OST to CACHE
  • OST to LOG
  • OST to BAK
  • OST to OLD
  • OST to NEW
  • OST to PART
  • OST to DOWNLOAD
  • OST to CRDOWNLOAD

Convert a file to OST

To convert other file formats to the "Email Cache" file type, you need software like Microsoft Outlook or a similar tool.

  • DEVICE to OST
  • CACHE to OST
  • SOCK to OST
  • SYMLINK to OST
  • PID to OST
  • MOUNT to OST
  • FIFO to OST
  • LOG to OST
  • PIPE to OST
  • TMP to OST
  • JUNCTION to OST
  • TEMP to OST

About OST files

An .OST file represents the Outlook Offline Data File, a synchronized local cache used by Microsoft Outlook to store copies of items from an Exchange or IMAP server. While essential for working without an internet connection, this format acts as a "black box" for data portability. Unlike PST files, .OST files are rigidly tied to the specific mail profile and computer configuration that created them; you cannot simply copy an .OST file to another machine and open it via File > Open. This proprietary encryption means that if your Exchange account is deleted or your server access is lost, the data inside the .OST becomes inaccessible "orphaned" data. To recover emails, contacts, or calendars from an orphaned file, you must convert the .OST to a portable PST file for re-importing into Outlook. For broader compatibility with other email clients like Thunderbird, converting to standard EML or MBOX formats is recommended, while PDF conversion is ideal for legal discovery and long-term archiving.

Convert.Guru analyzes your OST file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.

Users also converted NST, PST, WFP, TMP, PDF, PRF and OTM files.



The OST Converter Story

The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our OST converter.