Merge Emails into One PDF with a Contents Page

Merging emails into one PDF gives you a single file for a project thread, a client conversation or a set of messages someone asked you to hand over. This tool takes several EML or MBOX files and builds one PDF from them, in the order you added them. The PDF opens on any device, no email client needed.

Merge your emails into one PDF now

What the merged email PDF contains

Page one is a contents page with the number of messages and a numbered list of their subjects. After that, every message starts on a new page, headed "Email 1 of 3" and so on, with its subject and the From, To, CC and Date fields. Below them you get the body text and, if the message had attachments, their names and sizes.

The body prints as plain text with its line breaks. A message with only an HTML body gets turned into text first: in our October 2026 test with a 12 story newsletter, headings came out in capitals and each link kept its address in square brackets after the link text, as in "article on our site [https://example.com/story-1?utm_source=newsletter]".

Those addresses are printed text, so you can't click them, and colors, tables and inline images don't carry over. The newsletter filled 2 pages on its own.

How to merge emails into one PDF

1. Pick your EML or MBOX files; you can choose several at once.
2. Check the list. Use the plus button to add more files, or remove one you picked by mistake.
3. Select Merge to PDF.
4. Download merged-emails.pdf when it's ready.

Messages show up in file list order, which is the order you added the files. You can't drag the list into a new order, so if you want a timeline, sort the files by date before you pick them.

EML and MBOX files in one merge

An .eml file holds one message in the Internet Message Format of RFC 5322, and an mbox file holds a whole collection of messages in one plain-text file. You can mix both in one merge. Each file is read on its own, so a mailbox gets split into its messages right where it sits in the list.

We merged test.eml, then test.mbox with three messages, then test2.eml. The PDF had 6 pages: a contents page listing 5 messages, Test Email first, the mailbox's First, Second and Third Email next, and Second Test Email last.

A single .eml saved with an .mbox ending still comes out as one message here, since a file without mailbox separator lines is read as one email. Merge MBOX to PDF reads such a file the same way but only takes the .mbox ending, so when single messages and mailboxes are mixed, use this tool.

For a single message, our Email to PDF converter is simpler, and one whole mailbox goes to MBOX to PDF.

Reply chains: merge every message or keep the last one

Each reply in a thread usually quotes the ones before it, so merging the whole chain prints the same words several times. In October 2026 we built a five message chain in which every reply quoted all the earlier ones, then converted each file and the whole chain.

The last reply alone held every earlier message as quoted text, in under a quarter of the pages. If the quotes are complete, keep just the last reply. Merge every message when someone may have cut the quoted history, changed the recipients or added attachments along the way, because each page shows its own From, To and attachment list.

You can't add Outlook's .msg format, so save Outlook messages as .eml first, as our guide to saving an Outlook email as a PDF with attachments describes.

Attachments are listed, not embedded

Each message page lists its attachments by file name and size. The attachment files themselves don't get opened or added to the PDF. If you need them, save them separately from your email program, or convert them to PDF and join everything with our Merge PDF tool.

For a formal hand-over, such as legal discovery, keep the original messages next to the PDF. The PDF is a readable copy, and the native record is the email itself. Our guide on exporting emails to PDF for legal discovery explains what to keep.

How many emails fit, and finding one in the PDF

2,000 short plain text emails took up only 2 MB of the 25 MB. Give each one a 100 KB attachment, though, and no more than 186 fit. The 25 MB limit counts the files you upload, and attachments travel inside them even though only their names reach the PDF.

The merged PDF has no bookmarks, and the subjects on the contents page are plain text without links. Use your PDF viewer's search, or work out the page: message n sits on page n plus the number of contents pages, so in our 2,000 message file message 1 was on page 34.

The tool doesn't sort by date either. Three messages added as March, January, February stayed in that order on the contents page and in the PDF, so name or pick the files in date order before you upload them.

Privacy and file limits

All the files of one merge share one 25 MB limit between them, and you don't need an account. The page checks the files in the order you pick them and leaves out any file that would push the total past the limit, with the warning "not added. All files in one merge can be up to 25 MB together." after its name.

A smaller file picked after it can still fit and gets added. The server builds the PDF in memory and sends it straight back, and the uploaded email files are deleted from our server automatically within two hours.

Frequently Asked Questions about Merging Emails into One PDF

How many emails can I merge at once?

There's no fixed message count. All the files in one merge can be up to 25 MB together, which held 2,000 short plain text emails in our test. For a really large collection, merge in batches and combine the PDFs with our Merge PDF tool.

Does the merge keep the order of my emails?

Messages follow the order you added the files in, and the messages inside an MBOX file keep their stored order. To change the order, remove the files and add them again the way you want.

Can I merge .msg files from Outlook?

No. Outlook .msg files get refused, so save each message as .eml first and upload those.

Are email attachments included in the merged PDF?

Their names and sizes are listed on the message page, but their contents aren't added to the PDF.

Are links in the emails clickable in the PDF?

No. In an HTML message the link address is printed in square brackets after the link text, so you can read or copy it but not click it.

Can I merge emails from different email programs?

Yes. Any standard .eml or MBOX file works, whichever program saved it.

Is my email content stored on your servers?

Only briefly. The uploaded files are deleted from our server automatically within two hours, and we don't keep the PDF itself.