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MBOX is a popular mailbox file format used by email clients such as Thunderbird, Eudora, PocoMail, etc., for storing user’s emails and data. Apple Mail, an email client of Mac OS X 10.0 or later versions, also uses MBOX for its mailbox files. However, the security standards of this format have been under the radar for quite a while now. And hence, users are switching to a platform that offers better security standards for their data and advanced features to manage it. When shifting to a more reliable platform, Microsoft Outlook is their first choice.
It would be best if you import MBOX to Outlook to keep the communication process going smoothly. This blog is dedicated to the exact cause and will mention a step-by-step guide.
Why do you need to import MBOX to Outlook?
Before importing MBOX emails to Microsoft Outlook, let’s first discuss why it is so important. These are all the possible reasons behind it:
- Microsoft Outlook and PST are widely usable and acceptable platforms and formats.
- Microsoft Outlook has numerous additional and better features, making it the number one choice of many users.
- Microsoft Outlook supports and allows many other items besides emails, like tasks, notes, journals, contacts, and calendars.
- You are facing issues with your MBOX email client and need a modern email client like Outlook.
- The person or organization with whom you want to share it, is not accepting MBOX files.
- Microsoft Outlook complements other Microsoft platforms like Microsoft Exchange Server and Office 365.
- Microsoft Outlook provides password security to its files and hence is much more secure than MBOX.
Can MBOX files be accessed in Outlook 2019, 2016, 2013 & 2010?
The major drawback of MBOX format is that Outlook does not recognize this format. However, there is no direct way of importing MBOX files to Outlook. To open MBOX file with Outlook, we need to convert MBOX files to PST file format for any version of Microsoft Outlook be it 2019, 2016, 2013, 2010 or any other.
The process to import MBOX files to Outlook consists of three parts. We are going to use Thunderbird email client for the process. Here’s the step-by-step procedure of how you can do so, each part is described at length:
Part 1: Enable IMAP settings in Gmail
In the first part, we are going to learn how to enable IMAP settings in Gmail account. To do so, follow the below mentioned steps:
- Login to your Gmail account and go to Settings by clicking on Gear button at top right corner, then click on See all settings.
- Now, go to Forwarding and POP/IMAP option, then look for IMAP status and click on Enable IMAP. Once done, click on Save Changes to implement them.
Part 2: Configure Gmail account in Thunderbird
Moving forward, now configure your Gmail account in Thunderbird email client. You can perform this with the below outlined steps:
- Open Thunderbird and go to the Set Up Another Account option, then click on Email.
- In Account Setup, provide your full name, email address and password and click Continue.
- Enable the IMAP by clicking on checkbox option and choose Manual configuration process option.
- In Incoming Server select protocol as IMAP, hostname as imap.gmail.com, Port: 993 or 143 and connection security as SSL/TLS.
- In Outgoing Server select protocol as SMTP, hostname as smtp.gmail.com, Port: 465 or 25 and connection security as SSL/TLS.
- Once done, create a new folder and move all emails in that.
In this way, your Gmail account is now added to Thunderbird email client. Moving forward, you should backup Mozilla Thunderbird emails to hard drive to avoid data loss risks.
Part 3: Add the same Gmail account to Outlook
After configuring the Gmail account in Thunderbird, now you can export MBOX files from Gmail account. For this, you need to configure the Gmail account in Outlook. Here’s how you can do so (we are using Outlook 2016):
- Launch Outlook and tap on Files then click Account Settings >Manage Profiles.
- Mail Setup – Outlook wizard will open on your screen, click on Email Accounts option.
- In the Account Settings window, click on New.
- Moving ahead, click Manual setup or additional server types and click Next.
- Select POP or IMAP option and click Next.
- Provide all the necessary details and then click Next.
- Outlook will perform a test for the account you are trying to configure.
- Your Gmail account is configured in Outlook and will show on the Home screen.
Why are these approaches not recommended?
Due to a lack of a direct method, individuals have patched specific steps to make the MBOX import to Outlook method work. It brings along some drawbacks, including:
- These lengthy processes require users to invest a reasonable amount of time for each file.
- It requires the installation of multiple email clients.
- Users need to have precise knowledge about what they are doing. These processes are not suitable for novice users.
- Due to several conversions between platforms, the risk of data loss is at its highest.
- One tiny mistake can have a massive impact on the data involved.
Import MBOX to Outlook PST with an innovative approach
MBOX to Outlook transfer is a very tedious task, but you can do this quickly and easily with the help of a MBOX to PST converter tool and make import process easy for you. We suggest using an intelligent and reliable tool named Kernel for MBOX to PST Converter. It provides various advanced features like converting MBOX files in various formats including MSG, EML, PDF, etc. With this tool, you can easily open MBOX files with Outlook.
Conclusion
MBOX files from email clients like Thunderbird can be accessed in the Outlook application only after conversion to the Outlook compatible PST file. The blog included the different reasons for the need for this conversion along with the method. However, the method is not direct and has drawbacks, we suggest using best MBOX to PST converter tool. The recommended tool is designed with advanced algorithms and outstanding features to make the conversion process hassle-free.