Thunderbird for macOS - App Setup




Thunderbird email setup screen on macOS

Automatic Account Setup (Recommended)

Thunderbird for macOS can automatically configure your email account using EZBizMail’s secure Auto-Configuration system. This is the fastest and easiest way to set up your email on macOS.

  1. Open Thunderbird on your Mac.
  2. From the menu, select File → New → Existing Mail Account.
  3. Enter your Name, Email Address, and Email Password.
  4. Click Continue.
  5. Thunderbird will automatically detect and apply the correct server settings.
  6. Review the settings and click Done to complete setup.

Once setup completes, your email account is ready to use on your Mac.

Note: Auto-setup requires your domain’s Autodiscover / Autoconfig DNS records to be configured correctly. If automatic setup fails, follow the Manual Setup Instructions below.

Emails stored in your Inbox and Sent folders are automatically retained for 180 days. Other system folders (such as Trash and Spam) are retained for 30 days to help manage disk usage. To keep messages longer, use POP3 to download and save a local copy, or when using IMAP, move messages into a custom folder such as “Saved Email”.

Manual Setup - Thunderbird for macOS – POP3 or IMAP Setup

Overview

This guide explains how to set up your email account in Thunderbird on macOS. Thunderbird supports both POP3 and IMAP with SSL/TLS encryption and is a great choice if you want full control over your email settings.

Replace {YOUR-SERVER-ID}.ourcontrolpanel.com with the server ID from your welcome email (for example ez22), and use your full email address such as address@example.com.

POP3 vs IMAP – which should I choose?

  • POP3 (recommended if you want long-term local backups)
    • Downloads messages to your Mac and stores them indefinitely.
    • Uses less server disk space.
    • Ideal if you want a local archive of all mail.
    • You can still keep mail on the server for 7–14 days so other devices can download it.
  • IMAP (recommended for multi-device syncing)
    • Keeps mail on the server and synchronizes folders across all your devices.
    • Uses more server storage.
    • What you read, move, or delete on one device is mirrored on the others.

Note: Emails stored in your Inbox and Sent folders are automatically retained for 180 Days and other systems folders (Trash/Spam etc) are retained for 30 days to help manage disk usage. To keep messages longer, use POP3 to download your email and save a local copy or when using IMAP move messages into a custom folder such as “Saved Email”.

Mail server settings

Incoming mail (IMAP)

  • Server (hostname): {YOUR-SERVER-ID}.ourcontrolpanel.com
  • Port: 993
  • Connection security: SSL/TLS
  • Authentication method: Normal password
  • Username: address@example.com

Incoming mail (POP3)

  • Server (hostname): {YOUR-SERVER-ID}.ourcontrolpanel.com
  • Port: 995
  • Connection security: SSL/TLS
  • Authentication method: Normal password
  • Username: address@example.com

Outgoing mail (SMTP)

  • Server (hostname): {YOUR-SERVER-ID}.ourcontrolpanel.com
  • Port: 465
  • Connection security: SSL/TLS
  • Authentication method: Normal password
  • Username: address@example.com

Step 1 – Install and launch Thunderbird

  1. Download Thunderbird for macOS from the official website and install it.
  2. Open Thunderbird.
  3. If the Account Setup window does not appear automatically, click Application Menu ☰ > New > Existing Mail Account…

Step 2 – Enter your name and email address

  • Your name: The display name you want recipients to see.
  • Email address: address@example.com
  • Password: Your email password

Check or uncheck “Remember password” according to your preference, then click Continue.

Step 3 – Manual configuration (choose POP3 or IMAP)

Thunderbird will try to automatically detect settings. Once it shows a configuration summary, click Manual config to verify and adjust the details.

Here you can choose IMAP or POP3:

  • IMAP – for multi-device sync.
  • POP3 – for local archiving and minimal server usage.

Step 4 – Enter incoming and outgoing server settings

Incoming (IMAP or POP3)

  • Server hostname: {YOUR-SERVER-ID}.ourcontrolpanel.com
  • Port: 993 for IMAP, 995 for POP3
  • SSL: SSL/TLS
  • Authentication: Normal password
  • Username: address@example.com

Outgoing (SMTP)

  • Server hostname: {YOUR-SERVER-ID}.ourcontrolpanel.com
  • Port: 465
  • SSL: SSL/TLS
  • Authentication: Normal password
  • Username: address@example.com

Once you have verified the settings, click Re-test, then click Done to create the account.

Step 5 – POP3 users: leave messages on the server (7–14 days)

If you chose POP3, you can control how long messages stay on the server:

  1. In Thunderbird, click Application Menu ☰ > Account Settings.
  2. Select your POP3 account in the left column.
  3. Click Server Settings.
  4. Under Message Storage or Server Settings, find the options for:
    • Leave messages on server – check this.
    • For at most X days – set this to 7–14 days.

This allows other devices to download your mail while still freeing server space after a short period.

Step 6 – Test sending and receiving

  • Compose a new message to your own address and send it.
  • Confirm that the message appears in your Inbox.
  • Reply to verify outgoing SMTP is working correctly.

Troubleshooting

  • Thunderbird cannot connect: Double-check the hostname {YOUR-SERVER-ID}.ourcontrolpanel.com, your ports, and that SSL/TLS is enabled.
  • Can receive but not send: Verify SMTP port 465 with SSL/TLS and “Normal password” authentication using your full email address.
  • Certificate warnings: Confirm the server name matches {YOUR-SERVER-ID}.ourcontrolpanel.com before accepting.
  • Mailbox full / quota warnings: POP3 with “leave messages on server for 7–14 days” helps keep server usage low while still allowing time for other devices to download mail.