How to Back Up Email in Outlook, Thunderbird, and Mac Mail

How to Back Up Email in Outlook, Thunderbird, and Mac Mail

Having a backup of your emails is essential to protect your information against any eventuality: server migration, hardware failure, accidental deletion, or hosting provider change.

In this guide, you will learn how to generate a complete backup of your emails in the three most widely used email clients: Microsoft Outlook (Windows), Mozilla Thunderbird (Windows, Mac, and Linux), and Mac Mail (macOS).

Before you begin

Regardless of which email client you use, keep the following recommendations in mind before generating your backup:
  1. Sync your mailbox before exporting. If you use IMAP, make sure all emails are downloaded locally. Verify that there are no messages pending download.
  2. Include all folders you need to back up: Inbox, Sent, Drafts, and any custom folders you have created.
  3. Check available disk space before exporting. A mailbox with several years of emails can take up several gigabytes.
  4. Store the backup in a safe location: external drive, USB drive, or cloud storage.

Backup formats

Each email client uses different formats to export messages. It is important to know them to choose the most appropriate one:
  1. .pst (Personal Storage Table) — Format exclusive to Microsoft Outlook. Stores emails, contacts, calendars, and tasks in a single file. Can only be opened with Outlook.
  2. .mbox — Universal format used by Thunderbird and Mac Mail. Stores multiple emails in a single plain text file. Compatible with most email clients.
  3. .eml — Individual file for each email. Compatible with virtually all email clients. Useful for backing up specific messages.

Backup in Microsoft Outlook (Windows)

Outlook allows you to export all your account content to a .pst file that includes emails, contacts, and calendar.
  1. Open Outlook and click the File tab in the upper-left corner.
  2. In the sidebar menu, select Open & Export and then click Import/Export.
  3. In the wizard that opens, select "Export to a file" and click Next.
  4. Select "Outlook Data File (.pst)" and click Next.
  5. Choose the folder you want to export. If you want to back up the entire mailbox, select the main account and check the "Include subfolders" box. Click Next.
  6. Select the location where you want to save the .pst file, assign a descriptive name (for example: email-backup-2025.pst) and click Finish.
  7. Optionally, Outlook will ask you to set a password to protect the file. You can assign one or leave it blank.

To restore the backup in Outlook: go to File > Open & Export > Import/Export, select "Import from another program or file", choose "Outlook Data File (.pst)" and select your backup file.

Backup in Mozilla Thunderbird (Windows, Mac, Linux)

Thunderbird offers two methods to back up emails: individual export in .eml format and full profile backup.

Method 1: Export emails as .eml files

  1. Open Thunderbird and select the email account you want to back up.
  2. Click the folder containing the emails to back up (Inbox, Sent, etc.).
  3. Select the emails you want to export. To select all, press Ctrl + A (Windows/Linux) or Cmd + A (Mac).
  4. Click File > Save As > File in the menu bar.
  5. Choose the destination folder where the .eml files will be saved.
  6. Click Save. One .eml file will be created for each selected email.
This method backs up all emails, accounts, filters, and Thunderbird settings at once:
  1. Close Thunderbird completely.
  2. Locate your profile folder:
Windows: %APPDATA%\Thunderbird\Profiles\
Mac: ~/Library/Thunderbird/Profiles/
Linux: ~/.thunderbird/

  1. Copy the entire profile folder (it has a name like xxxxxxxx.default-release) to your backup location.

To restore: copy the profile folder back to the original location and open Thunderbird. All your emails, accounts, and settings will be restored automatically.

Backup in Mac Mail (macOS)

The macOS Mail application allows you to export entire mailboxes in .mbox format, which is an open standard compatible with other email clients.
  1. Open the Mail application on your Mac.
  2. In the left sidebar, select the mailbox (folder) you want to back up: Inbox, Sent, or any custom folder.
  3. In the top menu bar, click Mailbox > Export Mailbox.
  4. Choose the location where you want to save the .mbox file and click Choose.
  5. Repeat the process for each mailbox you want to back up.

To back up individual emails: select the emails you want (use Cmd + click for multiple selection or Cmd + A to select all), then drag the selected emails to a Finder folder. They will be saved as individual .eml files.

To restore: go to File > Import Mailboxes in Mail, select the "Files in mbox format" option and choose your backup .mbox file.

Recommendations

  1. Schedule periodic email backups (at least once a month) to minimize information loss.
  2. Before migrating your email account to a new server or provider, always generate a complete backup as a preventive measure.
  3. If your mailbox is very large (over 5 GB), consider exporting folders separately to avoid excessively large files.
  4. Verify that your backup is functional by trying to restore some emails before deleting or modifying your original account.
  5. If you use IMAP, emails deleted from the server will also disappear from your client. A local backup is the only way to keep them.
  6. Store your backups in at least two different locations (for example, external drive and cloud) for greater security.

    • Related Articles

    • Email Client Configuration

      This manual will show you all possible configurations —both automatic and manual— to connect an email account created in cPanel with email clients on computers and mobile devices. Note: Before you begin, make sure you have created the email account ...

    • Configure your email account in Microsoft Outlook

      In this tutorial, we'll show you how to set up your Webzi email account in Microsoft Outlook. 1. Open Microsoft Outlook: - Open Microsoft Outlook and go to File > Add account. 2. Enter Account Information: - Enter your email address and check the box ...

    • How to Create an Email Account in cPanel (Step-by-Step Guide)

      This article clearly and thoroughly explains how to create a new email account in cPanel step by step. 1. Log in to cPanel Access your cPanel control panel using your access URL (for example: yourdomain.com:2083) and your credentials. 2. Go to the ...

    • Set Up Your Email Account in Mozilla Thunderbird

      In this tutorial, we will show you how to set up your Webzi email account in Mozilla Thunderbird. 1. Open Mozilla Thunderbird: - Open Mozilla Thunderbird and click on "Email". 2. Enter Account Information: - Enter your name, your email address, and ...

    • Set Up Your Email on iPhone (Mail)

      In this tutorial, we will show you how to set up your Webzi email account on your iPhone using the native Mail app. Add a New Account 1. Open "Settings" on your iPhone. 2. Go to "Accounts" and select "Add Account". 3. On the next screen, select ...