Mozilla Thunderbird is one of the most popular email clients owing to the fact that it provides services like email management, Junk Filtering, client chat, etc. for free ever since it was launched. It is an open-source email client that’s available for Windows, Linux, Ubuntu, and Mac. Although Thunderbird is quite popular amongst its concerned user-base, it somehow lacks in keeping up with users’ expectations due to a lack of community support.
Considering the unparalleled security and advanced features it offers; Microsoft Outlook is understandably a top choice for organizations and individuals alike. It’s like having a personal assistant in the virtual world which manages your entire mailbox data like emails, attachments, contacts, calendar, etc. However, it’s not as easy to migrate Thunderbird to Outlook considering the former email client stores their mailbox data in MBOX format and the latter stores their mailbox data in PST format. Read ahead to know how to successfully export from Thunderbird to Outlook.
Major benefits to migrate Thunderbird to Outlook
There are several benefits that users can avail by shifting from Thunderbird to Outlook. Some of them are:
- Better features and functionality: One of the major reasons for shifting to Outlook is its advanced email management system and easy to use interface.
- Enhanced security features: Outlook offers better security features as compared to Thunderbird. With an email encryption feature, users get an additional layer of security to protect their emails and share sensitive information without worrying about cyberattacks.
- Better compatibility: Outlook is used in the majority of organizations, and it is compatible with a wide range of services as compared to Thunderbird. It is compatible with the Microsoft Office suite as well, which makes it a prime choice for many business firms.
- Advanced spam filter: Outlook has an advanced spam filter that automatically moves the junk emails to the spam folder, making your mailbox clutter free.
Methods to export from Thunderbird to Outlook
Thunderbird uses MBOX format to store its data while Outlook uses PST file format and unfortunately, there’s no direct way to migrate Thunderbird to Outlook. We’ve discussed some workaround methods below to easily migrate emails from Thunderbird to Outlook.Method 1: Migrate Thunderbird to Outlook via Drag and Drop method
Users can easily export emails from Thunderbird to Outlook via the Drag and Drop method. This method is executed in two phases, first Thunderbird files are converted to EML format and then these files are imported to Outlook. Let’s see the step-by-step process:Step 1: Convert MBOX files to EML format
- Open Mozilla Thunderbird and choose the mailbox you want to export from Thunderbird to Outlook.
- Either choose the emails you want to convert individually or select the entire mailbox by pressing Ctrl + A on your keyboard.
- Right click on any email and click on Save As.
- Choose the folder where you wish to save the converted EML files and click on Save.
Step 2: Import EML files to Outlook
- In Microsoft Outlook, create a new folder to save the newly converted EML files.
- Navigate to the folder where all the converted EML files are stored on your system.
- Drag all the files from the folder to the newly created folder in Outlook and drop them there one by one.
Method 2: Migrate Thunderbird to Outlook via Gmail
Users can transfer emails from Thunderbird to Outlook via Gmail by configuring their Gmail account in Outlook and exporting emails from Gmail to Outlook. Gmail is one of the most well-liked email clients in today’s time, used by organizations and alike for efficient email communication mailbox management. After successfully configuring their Gmail account to Outlook, users can utilize the Import/Export feature to export the EML files to PST format for increased accessibility. This process is divided into 2 phases where first we authorize the IMAP protocol in Gmail and then configure the Gmail account in Outlook to export the EML files.
Limitations of manual method
- Individually converting every MBOX file to EML format is a very lengthy and time-consuming process so these methods aren’t suitable for large mailboxes.
- If you have deleted any important email by chance, then you can’t recover it by these methods.
- These methods can get tricky for non-technical users which increases the chances of error.
- Even a single mistake while executing these methods can give rise to corruption in data and subsequent data loss.
Professional method to export from Thunderbird to Outlook
There are no direct ways to migrate Thunderbird to Outlook for free. We’ve talked about a few workarounds to perform this task, but none will be sufficient to get the end result successfully as they have some limitations with them. For an instant solution, try using a third-party professional MBOX to PST converter like Recoveryfix for MBOX to PST.Recoveryfix for MBOX to PST is a top choice of users to convert their MBOX files to PST format. This advanced software can convert multiple MBOX files to various file formats including PST, MSG, and Office 365. Users can migrate their mailbox data from over 20 email clients, including Apple Mail, Thunderbird, Gmail, Eudora, etc. without worrying about data loss.
Conclusion
Many people are steadily shifting from Thunderbird to Outlook considering the advanced features and ease of functionality offered by Outlook. By following the methods outlined in this article, users can export data from Thunderbird to Outlook easily. However, these methods are quite lengthy and require sound technical knowledge and a single error may result in data loss. Hence, it’s essential to avail benefits of a professional tool such as Recoveryfix for MBOX to PST. The robust algorithm of this tool ensures that your files are safely and efficiently migrated to your desired location. Additionally, users can split large sized PST files with the help of this tool.