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New Outlook for Windows keeps a local settings file named UserSettings.json. PCWorld reported on October 8, 2026 that you should keep a copy of it somewhere safe before you reinstall Outlook or move to another PC, and that the copy can be restored by putting the file back in its original folder. The file sits in an AppData folder that Windows hides by default, so most people will never see it unless they go looking. Copying it is a sensible precaution, but it is not a full backup of your mail or your Outlook profile.
Where the settings file is
According to PCWorld, New Outlook stores the file at C:Users[username]AppDataLocalMicrosoftOlk. Replace [username] with your Windows account name. You do not need to type the full path: enter %LocalAppData%MicrosoftOlk in the File Explorer address bar and the folder opens directly, even though AppData is hidden in normal browsing.
Microsoft’s own support documentation does not, at the time of writing, confirm this exact file name or folder. Treat the path as PCWorld’s report and check it on your own PC. If the folder on your machine is laid out differently, stop and check before copying anything.
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- Close New Outlook completely, so the file is not being updated while you copy it.
- Open File Explorer, click the address bar, type
%LocalAppData%MicrosoftOlk, and press Enter. - Select
UserSettings.jsonand press Ctrl+C. - Paste it into a separate location with Ctrl+V. Good choices include an external drive, a cloud folder you control, or a folder that your existing backup software already covers.
- If you use more than one Outlook account, look for additional configuration files in individual user folders and copy those as well. PCWorld says such files may exist, but it does not explain how to restore them account by account.
Keep the copy with a date in its folder name, so you can tell it apart from older copies.
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How to restore the file
- Close New Outlook if it is running.
- Open
%LocalAppData%Microsoftin File Explorer. If there is no folder namedOlk, create one and name it exactlyOlk. - Copy your saved
UserSettings.jsoninto theOlkfolder. Windows may ask you to confirm the copy if a file already exists there; choose to replace it only if you are sure you want the saved version. - Start New Outlook and check whether your settings appear as expected.
PCWorld’s instructions do not promise that the app will accept the restored file. Leave your original backup untouched until you have confirmed the result, so you can retry the copy or use the import route described below.
What copying the file does and does not cover
- Covered: the local settings held in
UserSettings.json, as PCWorld describes it. The article does not list every setting the file contains. - Not established: that copying the file preserves messages, calendar items, contacts, saved passwords, or a complete Outlook profile.
- Mail data is handled separately: Microsoft’s support documentation says Outlook information and data files vary by account type. Some mailbox data is kept on the server, and some local files cannot be transferred to another PC. Check how your account stores its mail before assuming you have an archive.
The other route: importing classic Outlook settings
Microsoft documents a different process. When you start New Outlook, it can import settings from classic Outlook, but only if the classic app’s Store my Outlook settings in the cloud option was selected. That import depends on a cloud setting you must enable in advance, and it is not a way to restore the local file described above.
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| Feature | Copy UserSettings.json |
Import from classic Outlook |
|---|---|---|
| Source of the instructions | PCWorld, October 8, 2026 (secondary report) | Microsoft support documentation |
| Prerequisite | A saved copy of the file made while New Outlook was installed on the original PC | “Store my Outlook settings in the cloud” selected in classic Outlook before the move |
| How you use it | Copy the file back into %LocalAppData%MicrosoftOlk |
Accept the import offered when you start New Outlook |
| Exact file name and path confirmed by Microsoft | Not stated by Microsoft’s support documentation | Not applicable |
| Scope of what is carried over | Local settings in the file, as PCWorld describes them | Not stated in the Microsoft documentation consulted for this article |
If you control both PCs and the classic app is still in use, the cloud import is the route Microsoft documents. If you already have a saved copy of the file, the manual restore is the only option this article covers.
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