How to Import a CSV into Outlook Calendar
Outlook is really three different apps, and only one of them still reads CSV. Here's the classic-Outlook wizard start to finish, and the ICS route that new Outlook, Outlook.com and Outlook for Mac require.
Which Outlook do you have?
| Outlook version | CSV import | ICS import |
|---|---|---|
| Classic Outlook for Windows | ✅ Import/Export wizard | ✅ Open or drag |
| New Outlook for Windows | ❌ Removed | ✅ Add calendar → Upload from file |
| Outlook.com / Microsoft 365 web | ❌ Never had it | ✅ Add calendar → Upload from file |
| Outlook for Mac | ❌ Not supported | ✅ Drag .ics onto calendar |
Rule of thumb: if your Outlook has the ribbon and a File menu, it's classic. If it looks like the web app, CSV import is gone and you'll take the ICS route below.
Classic Outlook for Windows — CSV wizard
File → Open & Export → Import/Export.
Choose 'Import from another program or file' → Next → 'Comma Separated Values' → Next.
Browse to your CSV. Pick a duplicates option — 'Do not import duplicate items' is the sane default.
Select the destination: choose your Calendar folder (not Inbox — the wizard defaults oddly sometimes) → Next.
Click 'Map Custom Fields…'. Drag columns from the left (your CSV) onto Outlook's appointment fields on the right: Subject → Subject, Start Date → Start Date, Start Time → Start Time, End Date/Time likewise, Location → Location, Description → Notes. Click OK.
Click Finish. Outlook creates the appointments in the selected calendar immediately.
Gotchas: dates must be in your Windows regional format or the wizard silently misreads them; times are interpreted in the system timezone; recurring events can't be expressed; and there is no undo, so import into a new calendar folder first if unsure.
New Outlook, Outlook.com & Mac — the ICS route
Convert the CSV to ICS with our converter — drag the file in, check the auto-mapped columns, pick the timezone the times were written in, preview, download.
Windows (new Outlook) and web: switch to Calendar view → Add calendar (left panel) → Upload from file → Browse to the .ics → choose which calendar receives the events → Import.
Outlook for Mac: drag the .ics file onto the calendar grid, or double-click it and confirm — events land in the calendar you have selected.
The ICS route also fixes the classic wizard's weak spots: explicit timezone handling, no field-mapping dialog to get wrong, and unique event IDs so a re-import doesn't duplicate everything. Start at the CSV to ICS converter.
CSV to Outlook — FAQ
Can Outlook import a CSV calendar file?
Only classic Outlook for Windows can, via File → Open & Export → Import/Export → 'Import from another program or file' → Comma Separated Values, with a manual field-mapping step. New Outlook for Windows, Outlook on the web (outlook.com / Microsoft 365) and Outlook for Mac dropped CSV import entirely — for those you must convert the CSV to an ICS file first.
How do I import calendar events into the new Outlook or Outlook.com?
Convert your CSV to ICS (the converter on our homepage does this in the browser), then in Outlook's calendar view choose Add calendar → Upload from file, select the .ics, pick the destination calendar and Import. This is the only file-import path the new Outlook supports.
Why are my imported Outlook events at the wrong time?
Classic Outlook's CSV import interprets times in your Windows system timezone, with no way to override it per file. If the spreadsheet's times were meant for a different zone, everything shifts. Converting to ICS first fixes it — the file embeds an explicit timezone with DST rules, which every Outlook version honors.
What is 'map custom fields' in the classic Outlook import wizard?
It's the step where you tell Outlook which CSV column feeds which appointment field: drag Subject to Subject, Start Date to Start Date, and so on. If the Import button produces empty or misdated appointments, an unmapped or mismapped field in this dialog is almost always the cause.
Can I undo an Outlook calendar import?
There's no undo button in any Outlook version. In classic Outlook, sort the calendar list view by Created date to find and bulk-delete just-imported items. The safer plan is importing into a brand-new calendar first, checking the result, then moving events if all is well.
Does the ICS from this site work with Microsoft 365 accounts?
Yes. The converter writes standards-compliant RFC 5545 with CRLF line endings, VTIMEZONE definitions and unique UIDs — the format Exchange Online, Outlook.com and every desktop Outlook expect. UIDs also mean re-importing the same file updates rather than duplicates events on most Outlook versions.