Share this article
Improve this guide
How to Download Only Headers in Outlook [Quick Steps]
Retrieve emails faster with the header only option in Outlook
4 min. read
Updated onOctober 4, 2023
updated onOctober 4, 2023
Share this article
Improve this guide
Read our disclosure page to find out how can you help Windows Report sustain the editorial teamRead more
Key notes
InOutlook mail, you can download only the headers of your email messages. This can be useful if you have a slow connection and want to read messages quickly.
While this is a straightforward process, someusers are having a problem downloading the headers option only, so we’ll look into it and offer possible solutions in this article.
What does download headers only mean in Outlook?
If you’re pressed for time but also want to keep tabs on all the activities in your life, you’ll need to enable the headers-only option in Outlook. This means that all your emails will only show the header first.
Once you’ve verified the email subject after downloading headers, you can proceed to full items.
This option exists because many large attachments come with emails today, such as video files and large documents.
These attachments can often be hundreds of megabytes and take several minutes to download completely, especially if you haveslow Internet connection speeds.
Still, this is not the only reason you would need to enable the header option only in your Outlook mail. Other compelling reasons include:
How do I download email headers?
It is important to note that this option only exists on Outlook version 2013 and earlier and applies to only POP3 and ActiveSync protocols. Any version from 2010 has to be an IMAP to access this feature.
So if you’ve been wondering,How do I download only headers in Outlook IMAP?You can either go back to Outlook 2010 or switch to a POP3 account.
IMAP and POP3 are two different protocols for accessing email. They serve the same basic purpose of downloading messages from a mail server to your computer but in different ways.
Microsoft probably only allows this feature in POP3 because it is considered less buggy and more reliable than IMAP.
Downloading only headers in Outlook is a big save for most, if not all, people, given all its benefits. It’s especially useful if you get a lot of spam so that you don’t have to dig through tons of messages to find what you need to read.
This way, you canstay productivewhile keeping your inbox clutter-free.
We hope this article helped you learn how to download only email headers in Outlook. If you have any questions about the process, please leave a comment below; we’d be happy to help.
More about the topics:Outlook Mail
Claire Moraa
Windows Software Expert
Claire has a knack for solving problems and improving the quality of life for those around her. She’s driven by rationality, curiosity, and simplicity, and always eager to learn more about Microsoft’s products. With a background in teaching and reviewing, she breaks down complex topics into easily understandable articles, focusing mostly on Windows 11, errors, and software.
User forum
0 messages
Sort by:LatestOldestMost Votes
Comment*
Name*
Email*
Commenting as.Not you?
Save information for future comments
Comment
Δ
Claire Moraa
Windows Software Expert
With a background in teaching and reviewing, she breaks down complex topics into easily understandable articles, focusing mostly on Windows 11 errors.
