Home » Blog » Outlook for MAC » How to Fix Cannot Open PDF Attachments in Outlook
Outlook for MAC

How to Fix Cannot Open PDF Attachments in Outlook

Jaspreet Singh | Modified: August 10th, 2022 | 5 Minutes Reading

Among many features, Outlook has o.ne more outstanding feature which is the ability to preview email attachments in the Outlook preview pane. This feature provides a feature quick preview of your important attachments. But there are many users who reported that they cannot open PDF attachments in Outlook.

Now, if you are here, then it might be possible that you are facing this issue in your Outlook. So, to fix this issue just keep reading this blog. Because here in this blog, we are going to discuss all the best fixes for this error. But before going towards the techniques let’s discuss the reasons which are responsible for the same.

Table Content 

Reasons For Cannot Open PDF Attachments in Outlook

There are various reasons that are responsible for this issue, but here in this section we are going to discuss some major ones:

  • The very first reason which is responsible for this reasons is the disabled previewer of attachment in Outlook.
  • If you are using Outdated Adobe or Adobe is not installed in your system then you will face this issue in Outlook
  • Sometimes corrupted file formats also generate this can’t open PDF Outlook error.
  • If the file is password-protected, then you will now unable to view your attachments in Outlook preview.

Once we know the reasons, then you can know where we have to work to fix this issue. So, now without ado let’s jump into the techniques.

Techniques to Fix PDF Attachments Not Opening in Outlook

#Method 2: Enable the Preview Option

As we said above, this is one of the major reasons for this error. Because sometimes this option is disabled by default. So, before doing anything else first you have to check the preview is enable or not. Now, to do this follow the below steps:

1. First click on the File option

2. Then choose the Trust Center and open the Trust Center Settings

3. Now, check for the PDF file type is blocked or not if the option is blocked, then uncheck it.

# Method 2: Update Adobe Acrobat Reader

Almost every software company pushes updates for their software. So, if you regularly update your Outlook, then there is also a need to update your Adobe software. Because if yours using the outdated version of Adobe then there is a chance to encounter this error on your system while opening the PDF attachments in Outlook.

So if you are using outdated Adobe, then first go and check the version and if the recent version of Adobe Acrobat Reader updates it.

# Method 3: Password Protection

Sometimes users send sensitive materials, such as bills, invoices, or personal medical and legal histories through attachments, and to keep the file protected they file they put a password and make the file password-protected to prevent the spread of information to unauthorized viewers.

Now, sometimes if the PDF file is password-protected, then Microsoft Outlook may not display a preview of the PD. In that case, you have to download the password-protected PDF file, then enter the password upon opening the file.

# Method 4: Save the Attachment

Moreover, after tying all the above techniques to fix cannot open PDF attachments in Outlook if you are still not able to see the file, then you can still download the attachment to your computer and open it. Now, to download the attachments from Outlook you can go with the manual solution. But the with help of a manual solution you can only save one attachment at a time. This is quite a nice option if you have a fewer number of PDF attachments to download.

Now, to do this follow the below steps:

1. First, open the Mac Outlook on your system

2. Now, open the emails containing the attachment

3. Click on the drop-down arrow and choose Save As All Attachments option

4. This option will give the facility to save all the attachments from that specific email.

So the above solution is for those users who have fewer attachments to download. But what if you have huge numbers of attachments to download? If you have this type of concern then you can try Mac Outlook Attachment Extractor.

Download Now Purchase Now

This attachment management utility tool is well capable to extract multiple attachments from Mac Outlook without any hassle. The tool has one unique feature that makes this software most demanding and that is its extract attachments on the basis of file formats.

It means using this software users can sav only specific file types attachments from thousands of attachments. Along with this, the software offers a wide range of data filter options such as date filter, categories filter, the naming convention for the folder, and for attachments.

Five Simple Steps to Save PDF Attachments from Mac Outlook

1. First, download and install the software on your system

2. Now choose Auto-Locate Mac Outlook 2019/2016/Office 365 Profile option

3. After that choose the destination location to save the attachments

4. Select the File Type radio button along with Include with radio button and enter the file format extension like PDF

5. At last click on the Export button to start the process.

Conclusion

Well, cannot open PDF attachments in Outlook is asked by many Mac Outlook users. So considering the requirement here in this blog we have discussed the top-notch techniques to fix it. In addition after applying all the things if still getting the issue while previewing the attachments then you can go with an automated solution to download multiple attachments from Mac Outlook to preview it.