How to Migrate Gmail to Apple Mail? Step-by-Step Guide

Rollins Duke
Published: October 9th, 2024 • 7 Min Read

Introduction: Several users face problems when they try to migrate Gmail to an Apple Mail client. When users purchase MacBook or iMac devices, they get Apple Mail clients free of cost. Hence, users have a desire to use Apple Mail clients for sending and receiving emails. If you are also one of them who is facing a similar solution, then don’t worry. You need to refer to this blog post that explains the manual as well as professional techniques to import Gmail to Mac Mail.

Why Migrate Gmail to Apple Mail?

Most of the users are using Gmail services. But if we are talking about migration, Apple gives a streamlined experience, especially for Mac OS users. Some of the following reasons to import Gmail to Apple Mail are given below:

Apple Mail integrates smoothly with the rest of the Apple ecosystem, allowing users to sync emails, contacts, and calendars across all devices iPhone, iPad, and Mac.
Apple Mail offers end–to–end encryption for messages received within the Apple ecosystem.
Apple Mail has strong data safety and privacy protection for its users.
Through the Mail drop function, users can send up to 5 GB of the attachments in the Mail.
Apple Mail allows you to add multiple accounts from different providers like Gmail, Outlook.com, Yahoo, etc.

Method 1: Import Gmail to Mac Mail through Google Takeout

To import Gmail to Apple Mail using Google Takeout, you need to complete 2 different stages as mentioned below:

Stage 1: Export Gmail Emails to MBOX

Open the browser and visit Google Takeout.
Login through your Gmail credentials
After that, choose Deselect all option.
Then, scroll down and select Mail option.
Choose All Mail data included and select required Gmail folders.
Now scroll down and click the Next steps button to continue.
Choose the export format accordingly from ZIP or TGZ.
Finally, click Export to your selected destination path.

After exporting the file, you will receive the ZIP or TGZ file in your destination path. After that extract the ZIP or TGZ file you will get the MBOX file.

Stage 2: Import MBOX File to Apple Mail

Open your Apple Mail on your Mac device.
Click on the File > Import Mailboxes.
Select Other in import data from option.
Choose Files in MBOX format option and tap Continue.
Choose items of MBOX and click continue.

Method 2: Add Gmail Account to Apple Mail

You can configure a Gmail account with a Mac Mail client for adding Gmail emails to the Apple Mail client. Just complete the mentioned 2 phases:

Phase 1: Enable IMAP in Gmail

Open your browser and log in to your Gmail account.
Go to Settings> See all Settings> Forwarding POP/IMAP.
Now Enable the IMAP access.
And then click Save Changes.

Phase 2: Add Gmail to Mac Mail

Open Apple Mail
Click on the Mail option in the top menu and choose Account.
Now select the Google option from the list
Sign in with your Gmail credentials and the required permission.

That’s it your Gmail account has been successfully added to your Apple mail account.

Limitations of Using Manual Methods to Migrate Gmail to Apple Mail

Migrating Gmail to Apple Mail is really a tough task also it comes with extra challenges while importing Gmail to Apple Mail. Here are the limitations that are mentioned below:

Time-consuming: Migrating a large number of emails manually can be a time-consuming process. Also, Apple Mail takes time to sync email and additional data.
Multiple Accounts Migration: If users have multiple Gmail accounts and all are required to add to your Apple Mail then you can’t migrate Gmail to Apple Mail in bulk at once.
Human Error: While performing the method, it is common to encounter errors on your side on manual methods.
Advanced Features Migration: The user can’t migrate Gmail to Apple Mail in bulk if they have multiple Gmail accounts, they cannot migrate specific Gmail folders, Date-wise, subject-wise, etc. through manual methods.

Method 3: Import Gmail to Mac Mail through Automated Software

Download and install the Gmail Backup Tool into your Device. It is hard to execute the migration process manual. Here is the tool that can ease your migration process. By using this tool, you can import Gmail to Mac Mail in just a few minutes. Let’s understand how to transfer Gmail to Apple Mail through Automated Software follow the steps given below:

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How to Transfer Gmail to Apple Mail?

Install and Run the software into your device.
Login through your Gmail Account by using your email and password
Select the required folder.
Now Choose the MBOX option in Select Saving Option.
Choose the Destination Path.
On the filter option user can also download files according to the Subject, date, from, and to.
Click on the Backup button
Your Backup will be done within a few minutes.

After Getting the MBOX file from the tool users need to import the file to Apple Mail as we have mentioned above while completing the 2^nd stage of the manual method.

Note: The user can also select multiple Gmail accounts by disabling Google Oath authentication. Then, by selecting the batch mode, a table will appear. Add multiple Gmail accounts in a CSV file and import it into the tool. Using this method, you can migrate to multiple Gmail accounts.

Benefits of Using Automated Methods

The tool makes the migration process from Gmail to Apple Mail easy. It also comes with several functions to simplify the migration process. Some of the benefits are mentioned in the section below. Please read it carefully to understand more about the software.

Migrate Multiple Gmail Accounts: Users can migrate multiple Gmail accounts to Apple Mail by using the batch mode of the tool.
Advance Filter Option: This function helps you to import Gmail to Mac Mail by Subject, date-wise, from and to, exclude attachments, exclude the folder, etc.
Incremental Backup: This function refers to the process of backup of only the new or changed data since the last backup was performed. Instead of migrating all the emails, it identifies those emails and adds new or modified ones in the previous backup.
Import Selective Folders: By choosing this feature user can export specific folders of their Gmail account as per their requirement.

Conclusion

In this article, we discussed three methods Google Takeout, Add Account, and Advance automated method. Manual methods are time-consuming if you have multiple Gmail accounts to migrate but through the automated method, you can migrate Gmail to Apple Mail multiple Gmail accounts. Also, it is safe to perform the process and time-saving. By performing the automated method, you don’t need any kind of technical knowledge to perform the migration process easily.

FAQ

Q1: How to import Gmail signature to Apple Mail?

By using software, you can import Gmail signature to apple mail. After completion of the migration process, you will get the all-email components like header content, body content, and footer content also including the Gmail signature.

Q2: How long does the migration process take?

Manual methods are time-consuming, and you have technical knowledge about the same. But if you choose the automated method, you can do the process within a few minutes.

Q3: Can I access my Gmail labels in Apple Mail?

Yes, you can access your Gmail labels, email subjects, everything that is available in the Gmail email.