Export eMails from Thunderbird to MS Outlook 2016, 2013, 2010 & 2007

Today with this article, I will share some of the manual procedures to export mail from Thunderbird to Outlook PST format. I will also try to mention the limitations and a step by step guide on how to convert Thunderbird MBOX files to MS Outlook format.

Mozilla Thunderbird is an open source email client with lots of features. It is a freeware application which can be used in multiple Operating systems. With features like email management, extension, themes, junk email filtering, compatibility with multiple files it has been one of the most popular email client a few years back.

But with the introduction of Microsoft Outlook, the popularity of this free application has gone down quite a bit. With the kind of features that MS Outlook has it has almost replaced Mozilla Thunderbird. And hence a lot of users are looking to convert or export their mails from Thunderbird to Outlook.

Notes: Mozilla Thunderbird stores your emails and other data in MBOX format whereas Outlook saves your files PST format. So to export mail from Thunderbird to Outlook you need to convert Thunderbird MBOX files into MS Outlook format.
If you want to incorporate Apple Mac or Thunderbird MBOX to Outlook conversion then you need to keep in mind that the conversion process is a little bit complicated. As there are no straight forward methods through which you can easily export Thunderbird MBOX files to MS Outlook format.

Manual Techniques to Export Thunderbird MBOX Files into MS Outlook Format

To convert or export mails from Thunderbird to Outlook PST format, first you need to convert your MBOX files into EML format. After converting the files into EML format there are two more steps which you need to take care off:

• Transferring EML files into Windows Live Mail
• Then Exporting the WLE mails / files into Outlook.

So let’s start the step by step procedure to export mail from Thunderbird to Outlook PST format.
Step 01: MBOX To EML Conversion
In the first step we will convert your Thunderbird MBOX files into EML format:

• Launch Mozilla Thunderbird and browse & locate the files which needs to be converted
• Now select the emails that you want to convert. You can select multiple emails with the help of ‘Ctrl+A’
• Now click on ‘Save as’ after right clicking on the selected emails
• And as soon as you click on ‘Save as’ the files will be saved in EML format

Step 02: EML To Windows Live Mail
Now after the conversion of your MBOX files into EML format, in our second step we will now transfer the EML files into Windows Live Mail. However, you can transfer the EML files into many other email programs like: Windows Mail and Outlook Express. But today, we will transfer it to WLM.

• Launch Windows Live Mail
• Now in Windows Explorer, browse and select the folder where your EML files are stored
• Select the EML files that you want to convert into PST format.

Note: If you have different mail folders then you have to drag and drop it one by one.

• And after selecting the files click ‘Ok’.

And this is how, the files will be converted to Windows Live Mail.
Step 03: Windows Live Mail to Outlook PST Format
After the conversion of the files into Windows Live Mail. The last step that we need to take in conversion of mails from Thunderbird to Outlook PST format is to convert WLM files into PST format:

• Launch Windows Live Mail
• Go to ‘File’ – Export Emails – Email messages
• Now select ‘Microsoft Exchange’ in the ‘Windows Live Mail

Export’ wizard and click ‘Next’

• In the next dialog box, click ‘Ok’
• In the ‘Choose Profile’ dialog box select Outlook from the list and click ‘Ok’
• Now to export or convert Thunderbird MBOX files to MS Outlook format click on ‘Ok’
• Now select the folder that you want to convert and click ‘Ok’. The folder and the files will be converted from Windows Live Mail to Outlook PST format.

Limitations Of Manual Methods To Export Mail From Thunderbird To Outlook

The process of converting emails from Thunderbird MBOX files to MS Outlook format is very lengthy and even a little bit complicated. Plus there are no sure chances that after doing all this, all your files will get converted or not. Plus this process sometimes even keep the integrity of your data on stake. So users may face loss of data and so on.

There is one major issue with this procedure and that is, during conversion of EML to Windows Live Mail user will have to repeat the same process several times for each mail folder, which can be an irritating part of the mentioned technique.

How to Convert MBOX To Outlook PST Format Easily

If the mentioned technique doesn’t work then the only way through which you can convert Thunderbird MBOX files to MS Outlook PST format is through a third party software.
One of the software that I use is Aryson MBOX to PST Converter.
I have been using this tool for a couple of years and really liked it. The interface is very simple and interactive, so that even a non-technical guy can also use it to export Thunderbird MBOX files to MS Outlook PST format. Compatible with all versions Outlook versions and Mozilla Thunderbird MBOX version. The best part is that it doesn’t affect your data integrity, so you can use it to export mail from Thunderbird to Outlook PST format without any data loss.

Note: The above mentioned software is a Windows compatible software so if you have a MAC or Linux operating system then the tool might not work as said.

Conclusion

So here is how you can export MBOX files into PST format. The manual techniques are good but a little bit lengthy and not reliable every time. So incase, the manual procedures doesn’t work…you may go for the tool. As the tool is a far option in terms of conversion, effectiveness and reliability.
Hope now you know how to convert / export mail from Thunderbird to Outlook PST format.

Hope you liked this article.

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