How to Export Thunderbird Emails to MBOX Format?

Many people look to export Thunderbird emails to MBOX for several reasons like email migration, data backup and more. However, exporting Thunderbird emails can become a challenging task if users come with a non-technical background. Here, in this article we will address the common issues faced by users while exporting Thunderbird files. We will guide you with manual and automated methods to export Thunderbird emails to MBOX. Let’s first explore the possible reasons for which users convert Thunderbird files to MBOX.

Primary Reasons to Export Thunderbird Emails to MBOX

For several reasons, people might want to convert their Thunderbird files to MBOX format.

• Many users plan to switch from Thunderbird to other Email clients that support MBOX files like Gmail, Apple Mail etc. People might export Thunderbird emails to MBOX to migrate without losing any data.
• A lot of users struggle with inbox space issues for which they create a backup of their emails. Exporting Thunderbird emails to MBOX helps creating an offline copy of emails.
• In organizations, employees might need to share email data with colleagues. MBOX files allow users to access the same set of emails in a standardized way.
• MBOX format is a standard format which makes it suitable for legal and forensics investigations for auditing and legal workflows.
• MBOX files are locally saved on your computers which means users can access them even offline from anywhere.

#1 Export Thunderbird Emails to MBOX Using Add-ons Method

1. First, you need to open the Thunderbird email on your computer.
2. Next, you need to navigate to the 3 Dot icon from the menu and tap on the Add-ons option.
   
3. In the next step, you need to go to the Search bar and search for ImportExportTools plugin, and select the Add to Thunderbird option right in front of it.
   
4. Users who need to export all their email folders can right-click on the Email Account, whereas users who want to export a specific folder can right-click on the desired Email Folder.
5. Next, select the ImportExportTools NG option.
6. Select the Folder Export (mbox) to export the Thunderbird emails to MBOX format.
   
7. Lastly, select the location of your choice to save the exported Thunderbird files.
   

#2 Export Thunderbird Emails to MBOX Using Default Location

You can go to the default location, where Thunderbird stores profile data in MBOX format.

Windows: C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Roaming\Thunderbird\Profiles

Mac OS: ~/Library/ thunderbird

In the below step, we will guide you to export Thunderbird emails using default location:

1. Open the “C ” Drive on your PC
2. After that, navigate to the “Users” option
3. Next, click the “User Name” option
4. Now, go to the “AppData” option from the list
5. In the next step, tap on the “Roaming” option
6. Select the “Thunderbird” option
7. Lastly, you can go to the “Profiles” option and export your Thunderbird emails from there to any location of your choice.

Read Also: Free Tips to Migrate Thunderbird to Apple Mail

#3 Automated Solution to Export Thunderbird Emails to MBOX

In the above section, we discussed the limitations of converting Thunderbird files to MBOX. In order to overcome the drawback of the manual process, our veteran team of developers have designed the MailsWare Thunderbird Converter Toolkit, an advanced software to export Thunderbird emails to MBOX format.

The versatile software can convert Thunderbird files to MBOX as well as over 30 other popular formats, including PST, MSG, EML, PDF, DOC, CSV, and more. One of the most advanced features of this software includes its capability to batch convert Thunderbird files to MBOX format all at once. The fully independent software doesn’t need any supporting applications for installation and can seamlessly export Thunderbird files to MBOX format.

Let’s learn the quick steps to convert Thunderbird emails to MBOX format with the advanced software:

1. Firstly, open the software on your computer.
   
2. The software automatically uploads Thunderbird profile data in GUI.
   
3. Choose the Thunderbird folders you want to convert.
   
4. Then, select the MBOX saving format from the list
   
5. Select the destination path for your converted emails
   
6. Tap on the “Convert” button to start Thunderbird to MBOX conversion.
   

Manual vs. Automatic Methods: A Comparative Analysis

Let’s explore the outstanding features that automated software offers and see how it compares to manual conversion methods.

Criteria	Manual Method	Automated Software
Risk of Data Loss	There is a high possibility of losing data like attachments, sub-folders when exporting large volumes of files, resulting in incomplete conversions.	Capable of maintaining data as original including attachments, sub-folders inline images, ensuring complete conversion even in case of large file size and volume.
Data Corruption Risk	High risk of data corruption is involved in case of any interruptions or human errors while exporting Thunderbird files.	Your data is highly protected with the secured tool and guarantees and corruption-free and smooth conversion of thunderbird emails.
Time Efficiency	The manual steps are lengthy and time-consuming especially in case of large volumes of files as it involves exporting each file individually which can take hours.	Whereas, the automated solution offers bulk conversion allowing to export multiple files at once smoothly and efficiently.
Technical Expertise	Non-technical users might have to struggle with the manual conversion as the process can get complex leading to high chances of making errors.	The user-friendly tool simplifies the conversion process and no technical expertise is required for exporting Thunderbird emails to MBOX.
Email Filtering	The manual method offers no flexible options like filtering emails based on date range, sender, receiver details resulting in unnecessary conversion of emails.	The flexible tool provides the filtration feature for users to select emails they need to export based on specific criteria.
Folder Hierarchy	It doesn’t guarantee to maintain the data integrity and folder hierarchy as original. It might not preserve the essential components of email like CC, BCC, From, subject during the export process.	The tool guarantees to maintain the folder structure and formatting as original without creating any issues with header, attachments, and other email elements.

Conclusion

As we come to an end, in this article we have explored the reasons people might need to export their Thunderbird files to MBOX format. We learnt the manual way of converting Thunderbird emails to MBOX format, which unfortunately comes with the limitations that we discussed in the following article. Understanding the pain-points of users we have come-up with the advanced solution to overcome the challenges of exporting Thunderbird files to MBOX format manually.