How to Migrate Thunderbird Emails to Gmail Account?

Let’s figure out the strategy to migrate Thunderbird to Gmail accounts. Here, we will discuss the approach that could move emails as well as contacts from the Thunderbird account. Since there are numerous techniques to transfer emails, read the write-up carefully and solve the issue right away.

An open-source desktop email client program is Thunderbird. Users can use it for free. All mailbox information and emails are kept in the MBOX file format in Thunderbird. On the other hand, Gmail provides a good amount of storage space, helpful search tools, and global accessibility. By importing it into your Gmail account, you may add all this functionality to your Thunderbird email.

Why Want to Migrate Thunderbird Emails to Gmail?

Thunderbird users want to export emails to Google accounts for various reasons. Below are the major traits of Gmail that make other email clients users to make the transition.

• Offline Usage: Gmail offers the capability to view and compose emails even when you are offline.
• Multi-Device Compatibility: Gmail can sync across multiple devices such as smartphones, computers, and tablets. Therefore, users can access their emails from any device at any time. This is one of the common reasons why users want to transfer their emails to a Gmail account.
• Advanced Search: Advanced Gmail search will enable you to retrieve certain messages immediately by keyword and label search capabilities, among other criteria.
• Integration with Google Workspace: In case you work on other Google services, including Google Docs and Sheets, Drive, and  Gmail, will be well integrated, so you can collaborate on a file and even share it.
• Security: Google puts significant investments into security measures to protect your email data from unauthorised access and threats. Thus, for secure email management, users tend to transition to Gmail.
• Intuitive Interface: Gmail has an interface that is easy to use, making it friendly and easy to navigate even for a newcomer while keeping tabs on emails.

How to Export Emails from Thunderbird to Gmail? 

We have three of the best approaches here. As per the needs, we recommend that users choose any of them. However, all of the approaches below work based on some of the other conditions. After getting an in-depth understanding of the approach, perform the migration. The solutions are as follows:

Method #1: Via Gmail Settings, Connect Thunderbird to Gmail Account

• Log in to your Gmail account and go to the Gear icon.
• Click on the See All Settings Option.
• Go to the Accounts and Import tab. Now, press the Import Mail and Contacts option.
• Enter the Thunderbird Mail email address and password.
• From the options, select the files to import to your Gmail account. Press the Start Import icon.
• Soon, you will get a message: “Your messages are being imported”.

Method #2 Using IMAP to Import Thunderbird to Gmail Account

IMAP access, which Gmail provides, stores your emails on a server. Moreover, it makes email import a straightforward drag-and-drop operation. From Thunderbird, copy your emails to Gmail as follows:

Steps to configure Thunderbird to accept Gmail as an IMAP account.

• Open the Thunderbird Application
• Go to Menu>Account Settings.
• Click on the Account actions and select Add Mail Account.
• Enter the Gmail email address and name of the account.
• Click Next.
• Enter the IMAP server settings
  • Incoming Server: imap.gmail.com
  • Port number: 993 (SSL)
  • Outgoing Server: smtp.gmail.com
  • Port number: 465 (TLS)
• Enable SSL/TLS for both the incoming and outgoing server.
• Click Next.
• Click Finish to complete the account setup.

Limitations of #1 & #2 Methods: To complete the above two approaches, users must follow the steps carefully. We need to check the procedures and then execute them. Moreover, a few files are only allowed to be moved to another email client. Either the Thunderbird application or Gmail is required to work with the above approaches. Thus, to overcome all these loopholes, test the #3 approach.

Transfer Thunderbird Emails to Gmail Instantly

• Launch the software on any of the devices. Choose the option to transfer emails or contacts.
• To add files, choose either the manual or automated file upload option. Hit the Next button.
• Here, the option “Let me select my Thunderbird mailboxes data” is selected.
• Thus, all the files will be listed, choose any file or folder, and again press the Next button.
• Further, click on Gmail from the options, and the tool will give a field to enter the Gmail account credentials.
• Press the login button to move further.
  
• Finally, press the Export button to start the process.

Method #4 – Use GWMMO to Get Thunderbird Emails in Gmail

With the Thunderbird to PST Converter to export the email files in PST format, and then with the help of GWMMO(Google Workspace Migration for Microsoft Office) to import the files into the Gmail Account. First, save the files in PST format.

• Complete the Installation and run the program.
• Enter Gmail account credentials and press Continue.
• Add the PST files and select “Migrate All Data“. Further, press the Next button.
• Finally, press the Next button to start the process.

Limitation: The migration might get interrupted, and you might need to restart the process.

Features of Automated Method over Manual

Here are the functions of an automatic technique to migrate Thunderbird to Gmail, listed in points:

• An intuitive interface that simplifies the technique, requiring minimal technical expertise.
• Option to select particular emails or complete folders for export, providing flexibility in moving favoured content material.
• Ensuring that essential e-mail attributes, which encompass timestamps, sender facts, and attachments, remain intact after the transfer.
• Support for the bulk switch of emails, allowing the proper migration of a large range of emails, saving effort and time.
• Real-time improvement tracking or status updates to maintain clients’ information about the persevering with transfer process.
• Implementation of encryption protocols and adherence to statistical privacy requirements to guard sensitive statistics for the duration of the switch.

These functions together make an automatic technique for exporting emails from Thunderbird to Gmail efficient, dependable, and user-friendly.

FAQs

Q) How do I export all the emails in Thunderbird to Gmail?

A) If you want all the emails from Thunderbird to Gmail, then try connecting Thunderbird and Gmail with IMAP. For selective migration, use the recommended software.

Q) Does exporting Thunderbird emails to Gmail erase all emails in Thunderbird?

A) No, the process is meant to take copies of the emails and then transfer them to the other. All the methods mentioned migrate only the copies.

Q) Will I be able to export only a few folders or labels from Thunderbird to Gmail?

A) Yes, the software mentioned lets you choose the desired folder for a Google account.

Outline Blog 

Now you can choose any method to migrate Thunderbird to your Gmail account. With the right method for the right scenario, perform the migration. However, the software recommended here applies to all situations. Effortlessly move the emails or contacts from Thunderbird profile to Gmail accounts.