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How to Convert Thunderbird Emails to MSG Format Swiftly?

  Mark Regan
Mark Regan
Published: May 6th, 2025 • 7 Min Read

Do you also want a reliable solution to convert Thunderbird emails to MSG so that you can easily manage single email files and organize the data in a better way? If yes, then this is the blog made for you only. Here, we cover multiple conventional and professional ways to export Thunderbird to MSG file format so that you can seamlessly explore them and find the one that works for you. Not only this, but we will also highlight a glimpse of the possible reasons behind this conversion as well as the pros and cons of the shared methods to save Thunderbird emails to MSG to open in Outlook, take a backup, etc. Hence, without any further ado, let’s dive in and find a trustworthy method to do this Thunderbird to MSG conversion safely, quickly, and accurately.

Table of Contents Hide
  1. Reasons to Convert Thunderbird Emails to MSG
  2. How to Export Thunderbird to MSG File Manually?
  3. Professional Solution to Convert Thunderbird Emails to MSG Format
  4. Which Solution to Export Thunderbird to MSG is Reliable?
  5. Conclusion

Reasons to Convert Thunderbird Emails to MSG

  • One of the primary reasons to export Thunderbird to MSG is that it becomes easily supportable, accessible, and readable in Outlook.
  • Plus, the MSG file format maintains the originality and authenticity of the Thunderbird emails by keeping the metadata and other intact elements, which assist in legal compliance.
  • In addition to this, the process to save Thunderbird to MSG leads to exporting each email in individual or separate files, which makes accessing and working with particular files easier.
  • Thunderbird files cannot be easily indexed in any DMS, whereas MSG files are a more suitable file format to import into any data set.
  • The MSG file format is considered a standard format that helps users in drills such as digital forensic investigation, legal compliance, and more.
  • Over and above that, the purpose to convert Thunderbird emails to MSG is to help keep a backup of the Thunderbird data for long-term future use.

How to Export Thunderbird to MSG File Manually?

The most prominent method to convert Thunderbird emails to MSG contains multiple phases. It is an indirect solution that is hardly used by any professional due to its limitations. But if you have only a few Thunderbird emails or items, then you can try it once or twice according to its efficiency. Therefore, the multiple steps of this manual way to save Thunderbird files to MSG are as follows:

1: Download and Run the ImportExportTools NG

  1. Start Thunderbird on your device.
  2. Click on Tools and choose the Add-ons and Themes option.
  3. Now, search for ImportExportTools NG in the search bar.
  4. Once found the right match, click on “Add to Thunderbird”.
  5. After this, select the Add-On option and click on Ok in the pop-up notification.

2: Change Thunderbird Data into EML Files

  1. Firstly, select the Thunderbird folder that you want to convert.
  2. Now, right-click on the desired folder and choose the Save As option.
  3. Choose Mail Files (.eml) format and browse the saving location.
  4. At last, click on Save to convert Thunderbird to EML.

3: Change EML File Format to MSG

  1. Go to the location of the converted output.
  2. Right-click on any EML file and choose Open With.
  3. Select Outlook to move and view that file on Outlook.
  4. At last, drag the imported EML and drop it on the local drive to successfully convert Thunderbird emails to MSG format.

Professional Solution to Convert Thunderbird Emails to MSG Format

The conventional way has a lot of limitations that restrict the users’ productivity and risk the authenticity of the files. Therefore, in such a case, using the BitRecover Thunderbird Converter Software is the best alternative. This is because it contains multiple advanced features in the simplest layout and gives quality output the all the Thunderbird file management drills. Plus, this Thunderbird to MSG Converter is very easy to use, creates a summary report, offers a demo version, and has 20+ other export options as well. Thus, all of this makes it a reliable utility to safely export Thunderbird to MSG. Hence, download the tool and follow the steps mentioned below to convert Thunderbird emails to MSG:

  1. Install the Thunderbird to MSG Converter tool.
    install the tool
  2. Follow the default options or click on the Select Files/Folders option for manual Thunderbird data selection.
    choose thunderbird data
  3. Tick the Thunderbird labels or sub-labels that you want to convert to MSG.
    select labels
  4. Now, from the Select Saving Options, choose MSG file format.
    saving option
  5. Further, browse and pick one saving destination and a saving name format.
    naming option
  6. At last, click on Convert to convert Thunderbird emails to MSG file.

Which Solution to Export Thunderbird to MSG is Reliable?

To make the comparison between the two methods to convert Thunderbird emails to MSG easier for you, we prepared a table sharing a glimpse of their pros, cons, and efficiency in this conversion. So, have a look at them and finalize the way that works for you and your professional requirements of Thunderbird to MSG conversion.

Manual Way Automated Way
Very complex to understand and follow by non-tech users. Very easy to understand and follow by tech and non-tech users.
Has multiple phases that consume a lot of user time and resources. Has a few steps only, which assist the user in saving time and boosting productivity.
Not an appropriate choice for bulk Thunderbird to MSG conversion. Supports bulk action and has no file-size or number limitations.
May lose data originality, such as metadata, layout, attachments, and other elements. Keeps all attributes intact even after the conversion. Even helps to extract attachments from Thunderbird.
The user must have access to an active Outlook account and plugins to follow this solution correctly. Completely an independent or standalone solution, which doesn’t require any email client, plugin, etc.
It may not work for old and large Thunderbird files. Supports all types of Thunderbird data so that users can swiftly save Thunderbird files to MSG.
Has no file security, as data corruption due to viruses, malware, adware, etc., can happen. Offers complete security from all viruses and ensures quality output with 99.9% accuracy.

Bonus Point of Thunderbird to MSG Converter: Apart from all the points mentioned above, the best thing is that the user can also try its demo version, which is completely free of cost and supports 25 files from each Thunderbird folder. Not only that, but this tool also has 20+ other saving options as well, which allow the user to convert Thunderbird to Outlook, Gmail, Yahoo, Zimbra, Maildir, PST, MBOX, EML, EMLX, TXT, DOC, RTF, etc., that turn it into an all-in-one Thunderbird solution. Over and above that, it allows the user to choose the desired Thunderbird data and also generates a summary report to evaluate the commanded action. 

Conclusion

In this complete blog post, we highlighted the most prominent ways to convert Thunderbird emails to MSG files and thus came to the conclusion that opting for the Thunderbird to MSG converter is the ideal way. It runs on all operating systems and their versions, which makes it more compatible to work with. Last but not least, setting up this software, converting Thunderbird to MSG, and accessing the output in the most hassle-free way is possible only using this tool since it is tried, tested, and approved by global industry experts.