How to Export AOL Emails to External Hard Drive?

Jackson Strong | June 26th, 2025 | AOL Mail, Export Emails

Learn how to export AOL emails to external hard drive manually and automatically. This post will step-by-step guide to backup AOL Mail to hard drive with attachments.

AOL (American Online) is a widely used email service. It allows users to send, receive, anfd rganize emails easily. Sometimes, users want to save their AOL emails to external hard drive for backup or offline access. This process safeguard their data from accidental deletion, hacking, or server issues. Whether they want to preserve your emails for future reference, create an archive, or simply move them from AOL to their hard drive, the process can be made simple with the right tools.

Before we begin, let’s look at some of the benefits of saving AOL Mail emails to a hard drive or flash drive.

Why Export AOL Emails to External Hard Drive?

There are several reasons why users want to backup AOL email to their hard drive:

  • Offline Access: Storing your emails on a local drive allows you to access them without needing an internet connection.
  • Backup & Security: Keeping a backup of your emails ensures that your data remains safe, even if there’s a problem with your AOL account.
  • Organization & Archiving: Saving emails and attachments on your hard drive allows you to organize and manage your data in a way that suits you.
  • Space Saving: Moving old emails to your local hard drive frees up space in your AOL account.

Now, let’s look at how to export AOL emails to hard drive, including all attachments.

How to Download AOL Email to Hard Drive Free?

Step 1. Open an email in your AOL Mail account and click Print Icon

save aol email to computer

Step 2. A new window will appear, now click Save button.

save aol emails to pc

Step 3. Choose target location where you want to save AOL email.

save aol email to hard drive

You have to repeat the same process to download each AOL email over and over again.

Limitations

  • Time-Consuming Process for large number of emails
  • No Attachments will be saved
  • You can’t filter or batch-select messages

How to Export AOL Email Folders to Hard Drive Automatically?

Download and install the Advik AOL Mail Backup Tool on your Windows computer. This easy-to-use software allows you to save AOL emails to hard drive or computer, including all attachments. You can download multiple or entire email folders in a single attempt. Also, it allows you to choose selective AOL emails to export based on various email filters such as to, from, subjects, date ranges, etc. Whether you need to backup your Inbox, Sent Items, or custom folders, this tool makes it simple to store your emails safely on your local drive. Plus, you can choose the destination folder on your computer for easy access and organization.

Click on the free download button and check the complete working process.

  

Important: Enable Less Secure Apps/Third Party Access and Generate One Time Password in AOL Mail Security Settings for Signing.

Steps to Save AOL Emails to External Hard Drive

Step 1. Run the software on your PC and Sign in.

Run the software and sign into aol mail

Step 2. Select email folders to export.

Select email folders to export

Step 3. Choose file format to save emails.

Choose file format to save aol emails

Step 4. Select the location to save/export AOL emails to.

Select the location to export aol email

Step 5. Apply Email Filters if Required and click the Backup button.

click backup to export aol emails to external hard drive

Now sit back and relax! Let the program do the rest transfer process.

It will automatically export AOL email to Hard Drive/local drive or any targeted location with ease. No data loss or omission or any information will take place.

Watch How to Backup AOL Mail to External Hard Drive

Why Automated Solution Over Manual Method?

  • Maintain Mailbox Folder Hierarchy: When you export your AOL emails, it’s important to keep everything organized just like it was in your inbox. With this feature, the folder structure (such as Inbox, Sent, Drafts, and any custom folders) is preserved exactly as it was in your AOL account.
  • Export Multiple Emails to Hard Drive: This feature lets you export many emails at once rather than doing it one by one. You can select multiple emails or even entire folders and export them in one go.
  • Multiple File Format Options: When exporting AOL emails, you are not limited to one format. The tool allows you to backup AOL Mail in multiple formats, such as PST, EML, MBOX, PDF, and many more.
  • Advanced Email Filter Option: With the advanced email filter option, you can choose exactly which emails you want to export. You can filter emails by Date Range, Sender or Recipient, Subject, etc.
  • Cloud to Cloud Migration: With this tool, you can also transfer AOL Mail to Gmail, Yahoo, Zoho, or other IMAP-based accounts.
  • Desired Location to Save Emails: This feature gives you the freedom to save exported AOL emails wherever you want on your computer or storage device. Whether you prefer to store them in a specific folder, on your desktop, or on an external hard drive, you can choose the location that works best for you.
  • Lifetime Validity and Free Future Updates: Once you use this tool, you don’t have to worry about extra costs for future updates. The tool comes with lifetime validity, meaning you can use it for as long as you need without needing to buy a new version.

Conclusion

In this blog we have discussed how to export AOL emails to external hard drive using two different method. You can backup AOL Mail to hard drive manually if you have just a few messages. It is slow for larger exports. For bulk export, using a professional tool is the most efficient solution. It saves time and avoid missing data.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. How do I save my AOL emails to an external hard drive?

Ans.  There are two ways – manual and automated to export AOL Mail to external hard drive.

Q2. How do I download my AOL email to my computer with attachments?

Ans. The manual method only saves the email text. With software, you can backup AOL Mail with attachments.

Q3. How long does manual method take?

Ans. With manual method, you can save one email at a time. So, time depends on your mailbox size.

Q4. Can I export all email folders from AOL Mail at once?

Ans. Yes, you can copy or export all AOL email folders to External Hard Drive in one go.

Q5. How do I save only the desired emails, skipping the unwanted emails?

Ans. You can apply filters from the software panel. This option will help you skip unwanted emails.