How to Export Office 365 to CSV – A Comprehensive Guide

This thorough article explains the motive to export Office 365 to CSV as a common requirement, which enables users and professional administrators to organize and review with the help of many techniques, both manual and automated. Moreover, along with the techniques, we will also be discussing the requirements in each scenario and their pros and shortcomings using certain methods.

Many professionals prefer Microsoft Office 365 as it stores crucial and confidential business documents such as directories, contacts, collaborations, and emails in large volumes. Although such information is safely archived in the cloud storage, there are times when numerous departments need to extract certain data on an urgent basis in an easily accessible and readable format. Therefore, comes the CSV file format.

Users, such as the compliance team and legal bodies, often export Office 365 mailboxes to CSV without needing assistance from a third-party tool due to security concerns. While Microsoft provides built-in methods to export Office 365 contacts to CSV, many users need a reliable method that can help them store data for the long term.

What “Backup” Means to Export Office 365 to CSV?

Often misunderstood by many, “Backup” simply refers to maintaining a copy of data, such as folders, contacts, and emails, on a separate destination. However, the CSV file format cannot export as a full backup. When users export Office 365 to CSV file, it mainly does the following things mentioned below:

• Only exports selected information in tabular format
• Extracts a few data like content fields and meta information
• Does not preserve the restore-ready information.

Such case scenarios take place because the comma-separated value or CSV is not considered a disaster recovery backup but a data extraction output.

How is Export Office 365 to CSV File Useful for Users?

The CSV format usually comes in handy in cases where the importance of data portability and reliability is more crucial than just restoring purposes. Since such a file format can easily be supported on any system, users from both technical and non-technical areas effortlessly analyze records without needing any tool just to convert information into a readable manner.

CSV files are mainly used in the following areas:

• Useful for Human Resources and Investigations to Review Data.
• For regular reporting and auditing to compliance and legal departments.
• Sharing information with users from non-technical backgrounds.
• Keeping a check on inventory and documenting its data regularly.

Why is CSV Format Preferred Over Any Other File Formats?

Individual professionals, business organizations, and departments choose to export Office 365 mailbox to CSV format over any other ones as the very file efficiently favors the requirement when it comes to operational purposes in order to further process information without having the difficulty of converting data files according to certain departments’ needs every time.

• Perfectly compatible with tools like Power BI, Excel, and analytical tools.
• It can be filtered, sorted, and allocated easily due to the tabular formation.
• Consumes less space and weighs less compared to other files.
• Presented in a simplified manner for sharing with other users.
• Easy to store data for the long term, consisting of outdated but useful information.

Traditional Solution to Export Office 365 Mailbox to CSV

Below are some of the guaranteed techniques to export Outlook 365 mailbox to CSV if users are consisting of moderate to less volume of data:

1. Backup Data Using Outlook

Part 1: Configure your Office 365 in Outlook

1. Open Outlook on your system.
2. Go to “File” and click on “Add Account”.
3. Next, enter your credentials.
4. Now, tap on “Next”.
5. You will receive a notification of “Configuration completed.”

Part 2: Export Office 365 to CSV

1. Go back to “File”.
2. Further, select “Open & Export”.
   
3. Select the option of “Import/Export”.
4. Choose “Export to a File”.
   
5. Prefer “Comma Separated Value (CSV)”.
   
6. Next, choose the files you wish to export.
   
7. Press “Next” and click on “Browse.”
8. Add a favorable “Destination” where you want to export the files.
   
9. Finally, hit “Finish” and check out the exported files on the selected destination.

2. Built-in Method to Convert Office 365 Contacts to CSV

1. Open MS 365 and select “All Apps.”
2. Click the “People”.
3. Navigate to “Manage” on the top right side.
4. Now, choose “Export Contacts.”
5. Select the required contacts or “All Contacts” if you wish to send to all.
6. Lastly, hit “Export” and wait for the process to complete.

3. Export mailbox “As an Administrator” using Microsoft Admin Centre

1. Go to “Microsoft Admin”.
   
2. Navigate to “Content Search”.
   
3. Further, create a “New Search”.
4. Mention the criteria for the data you want to export.
5. After the search process is completed, select “Actions”.
6. Go further and select “Export Results”.
   
7. Finally, download the assembled report.
8. The entire report would be summarized in CSV.

Occurrence of Shortcomings while Using Manual Solutions

• Complicated for non-technical users to export Office 365 to CSV file due to the difficult steps.
• Consumes a large amount of users’ time and energy since not all methods support bulk export.
• Involves high chances of human errors, which could further take place as accidental deletion, threats, inaccuracy in data, and many more.
• Requires mandatory installation of Outlook in order to export files, making it a storage concern.
• Does not guarantee the preservation of users’ crucial data after the export process is finished.
• Methods like Purview or Admin Centre ask for technical knowledge, which most departments do not have.
• Causes size constraints in the form of lagging or freezing of the application or the entire screen.
• Steps may vary from version to version, making it complex for users to rely on one method only.

Explore the Modern Features of the Automated Method

• Not only CSV, this solution convert emails to PDF, MBOX, MSG, PST, and plenty of other file formats.
• Has the ability to create backups automatically without putting in any technical effort.
• The tool provides complete support to professionals while they easily export Office 365 mailbox to CSV in batch.
• With advanced encryption and secure technology, users can process even the most confidential data without a hitch.
• Ensures to preserve data integrity of professional’s sensitive information such as metadata, folder hierarchy, formatting, and structure during and after the export process.
• Save an ample amount of user time and minimize human prone errors through its modern technology.
• Provides a detailed and structured log report of all of the user’s data which can be navigated using modern search options.
• Suitable for all kinds of users whether they are from technical backgrounds, beginners, or from other fields.

To Conclude

Having an apt knowledge of how to export Office 365 to CSV regardless of the user’s professional background is essential with the purpose of managing and organizing data. Although MS 365 offers its native solution to export Office 365 mailbox to CSV through the administrative and Outlook, such techniques have their own constraints when it comes to controlling the data.

For business organizations with large data requirements, it is highly advised to take the assistance of a guaranteed and automated tool like our very own advanced backup tool. This solution not only provides an ideal and efficient approach to export Office 365 mailbox to CSV, but also offers complete safety and security of users’ information no matter how outdated they are.

With its free demo version, you can checkout the modern features of the software before purchasing it. In case of any queries, users’ can reach out to our customer support service available 24/7.