Archive Emails: Keep old messages safe indefinitely
Closing an old email account or leaving a job? Instead of losing all your records, you can archive the mailbox locally with Mailriva. Mailriva saves your emails as individual EML files in an organized folder structure on your hard drive — each email directly readable without special software.
When archiving makes sense
Not every old mailbox needs to stay active. But the contents are often too important to delete. When you archive emails, the process is identical to creating a local backup: select your old email account as the source and a folder on your drive as the destination.
Account No Longer Used
Old addresses — archive once, then safely close the account.
Clean Up Without Data Loss
Storage full? Save old emails locally as EML files, then delete them at the provider.
Keep Important Records
Contracts, invoices, correspondence — emails you might need in 5 years.
Before Cancellation
Providers delete inactive accounts after 6-12 months. Archive once for permanent protection.
Archive vs. Backup — what's the difference?
Safety copy for emergencies
You keep the account active but want a local copy as insurance — in case the provider goes down, your account is hacked, or you accidentally delete emails.
More about backupLong-term preservation of old records
You no longer need the account actively. You want to store the emails permanently on your local drive and then close or clean up the online account.
How to archive your mailbox
Download Mailriva
Free for Windows and macOS. No registration required.
Connect your old account
Select your provider and sign in directly in the app.
Choose an archive destination
Select a folder on your hard drive, external SSD, or NAS as the archive location.
Start the archive
Mailriva downloads all emails and folders. Your source mailbox remains unchanged.
Frequently Asked Questions
Start archiving your emails
Download Mailriva and store old mailboxes permanently.