Gmail not syncing older emails on Outlook desktop (Office 365) shows only recent 3 months

[Emmawoods]

Working with the Outlook suite in the Office 365 suite on a Windows 11 desktop. I have added my Gmail account through IMAP and it only synchronizes the emails in the last 3 months. Everything can be seen on web Gmail. I opened IMAP settings (Gmail IMAP enabled), turned the Technology, sync slider in account settings, in the Outlook account setting ("Mail to keep offline: 12 months" is the maximum I can enter) and changed it to All in Outlook - Account Settings but the option is not available. I have attempted to delete/re-add the account and Office repair was done. I was also able to use the Gmail application through the windows mail and all is displayed. Is there some registry tweak or settings in the outlook itself to download all mail with IMAP accounts? How to do any safe measures to copy whole history and not to lose labels?

 

[travisscott]

Outlook only shows 3 months of Gmail emails because of its “Mail to keep offline” limit. You can fix it by enabling All Mail sync in Gmail and adjusting some settings.

Here’s what you can do:

1. In Gmail (web), go to Settings → See all settings → Labels, and make sure the “All Mail” folder is visible and accessible through IMAP.
2. In Outlook, go to File → Account Settings → Account Settings → double-click your Gmail → Mail to keep offline, then slide it to All.
3. If the "All Mail" folder still doesn’t show, right-click your Gmail account in Outlook → IMAP Folders → Query, select [Gmail]/All Mail, and click Subscribe.

This should start syncing your entire Gmail history safely without losing any labels or messages.