We will walk you through the process of exporting macOS Mail messages to generic mbox files in this article.
How to Export a Mail Folder from macOS to a Mbox File
Your email is secure and searchable in macOS Mail, accessible from any IMAP server, and can be downloaded as a generic mbox file. Mbox files store emails in a straightforward, transferrable format that is easily imported into other email programs and operating systems.
Exporting from macOS Mail is straightforward. To save an email mailbox or folder as an mbox file in macOS Mail, follow these simple steps:
- Launch the Mail application by double-clicking its icon in the Mac Dock.
- In the Mailboxes panel, click the mailbox or folder you wish to convert to an mbox file.
By holding down the Command key and then selecting the individual folders you want to include, you can select multiple mailboxes or folders. To highlight multiple folders in a single row, select the first item, then hold down the Shift key and select the final item; macOS will highlight all items between the two selected items.
- Select Mailbox > Export Mailbox from the Mail menu bar.
- Select a folder for the mbox file’s destination and then select Choose to create a new mbox file in the selected folder.