Migrate IONOS email to another email provider

1. 1

   Identify your IONOS country server

   Look at the IONOS site you manage your contract on. The country version tells you which IMAP host to use. If you are unsure, the IONOS help page "mail server details" lists the one for your market.

2. 2

   Find the mailbox password

   IONOS has no separate app password for mail: you use the password of the mailbox. If you do not remember it, reset it from the Email section of your IONOS control panel, which does not affect the stored messages.

3. 3

   Check SSL/TLS

   IONOS recommends SSL/TLS on port 993 for IMAP. The tool already uses that. Avoid port 143 without encryption.

4. 4

   Add the mailboxes to the tool

   Open the tool with IONOS selected as the source (it pre-fills imap.ionos.es; for IONOS accounts from other countries, usually imap.ionos.com, .de, .fr or .co.uk, check your IONOS panel and choose "Other IMAP server"), type each full address with its password and test the logins. You can add up to 10 mailboxes in one batch.

5. 5

   Create the destination mailboxes and confirm

   They need to exist at the new provider before you start. Open the confirmation message in each destination inbox and the copy begins.

The tool pre-fills imap.ionos.es when you choose IONOS. For IONOS accounts from other countries, choose "Other IMAP server" and type the server. IONOS publishes one server name per country. We have confirmed imap.ionos.com and imap.ionos.co.uk in their help; for the other countries the names above are the usual ones, so check your IONOS help page if the test fails.

Passwords are used once. They travel encrypted to an isolated job that copies the mail and is deleted afterwards. They are never stored, logged or sent back.

• Authentication failed with the right password

  Make sure the username is the complete address, domain included, not just the part before the @. IONOS also expects SSL/TLS to be on. Retype the password by hand instead of pasting, in case of hidden characters.

• The host cannot be reached

  You may be using the wrong country server. Check the IONOS help for your market, or the mail settings in your control panel, and compare the host name with the table above.

• It works with some mailboxes but not others

  Each IONOS mailbox has its own password. A mailbox created long ago may use an old one, or be an alias or a forwarder that has no real inbox. Only real mailboxes can be copied.

• Too many failed attempts

  Repeated bad logins may make the server pause new attempts for a while. Wait a few minutes after correcting the password, then test again.

IONOS mailboxes are plain IMAP, which makes them a straightforward source: every folder, including those you created, comes across with its messages, dates and read flags. Messages that sit in Spam or Trash are also folders and are copied unless you empty them first. Webmail rules, autoresponders and the address book belong to the IONOS platform, not to IMAP, so recreate them at the new provider. Domains and DNS are separate from the mailboxes and are not touched.

• Free, no signup

  No account and no payment. It copies up to 10 mailboxes per batch.

• Passwords are used once

  They serve that copy and are never stored. Nothing is deleted from the source mailbox either.

• The destination must be yours

  We leave a confirmation message in the destination inbox. The copy starts only when you open it.

• IMAP migration tool

  Any source and destination, with every provider and the limits.

• OVHcloud

  OVHcloud and the MX Plan server.

• GoDaddy

  GoDaddy Workspace Email.

• cPanel / Plesk / ISPConfig

  Hosting with cPanel, Plesk or ISPConfig.

• Professional email at Hostbrid

  If Hostbrid is where the mail is going, see the email plans.