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MBOX EMLX
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Convert MBOX to EMLX

Verified by Adam B.· reviewed by FE Editorial ·updated Jul 12, 2026
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Is it possible to convert MBOX to EMLX?
Yes - MBOX converts to EMLX.

On macOS, open Apple Mail and choose Mailbox > Import Mailboxes, select 'Files in mbox format', and point to your .mbox file. Apple Mail splits the mailbox into individual messages and stores each as a numbered .emlx file in ~/Library/Mail/. This is a macOS-only process because .emlx is Apple Mail's internal per-message format.

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Tested on macOS, Windows & Linux
Last verified Sep 2026

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Why convert MBOX to EMLX?

MBOX is a single-file container that concatenates many email messages; .emlx is Apple Mail's native one-file-per-message format on macOS. Importing into Apple Mail makes messages searchable via Spotlight and accessible through the standard Mail interface. The most common case is migrating a bulk export such as a Gmail Takeout .mbox into Apple Mail.

How to convert MBOX to EMLX

Apple Mail FREE

In Apple Mail, go to Mailbox > Import Mailboxes, select 'Files in mbox format', and choose your .mbox file. Mail imports the messages and stores each as a numbered .emlx file in ~/Library/Mail/.

Mozilla Thunderbird + ImportExportTools NG FREE

Load the .mbox into Thunderbird using the ImportExportTools NG add-on and export as individual .eml files, then drag those into Apple Mail - Mail converts each .eml to .emlx internally.

Programs that convert MBOX

Apple Mail

About these formats

.MBOX Mbox Mailbox (email container)

An MBOX file is a mailbox - a single plain-text file that holds many email messages stored one after another. Google Takeout exports Gmail as .mbox, and Thunderbird and Apple Mail use the…

Open .MBOX details →
.EMLX Apple Mail email message

A .EMLX file is associated with Apple Mail email message, a text file.

Open .EMLX details →

Quality & what to watch

  • .emlx is specific to Apple Mail; for cross-platform use, .eml is the more portable single-message format.
  • The ~/Library/ folder is hidden by default in Finder; hold Option and click the Go menu, or press Cmd+Shift+G and enter the path to access it.
  • If the .mbox uses a variant format such as mboxrd or mboxcl from Thunderbird, it may not import cleanly into Apple Mail directly - use the Thunderbird workaround in that case.

Frequently asked questions

Where are the `.emlx` files stored after importing?
In ~/Library/Mail/ - navigate to the relevant account and mailbox subfolder; each message is stored as a numbered file such as 1.emlx or 2.emlx.
Can I do this on Windows or Linux?
No - .emlx is Apple Mail's internal format and is only created by Apple Mail on macOS.
Can I open `.emlx` files outside of Apple Mail?
.emlx files are primarily used by Apple Mail internally; for portability, export from Apple Mail as .eml instead.
What if Apple Mail fails to import my `.mbox` file?
Try importing into Mozilla Thunderbird with the ImportExportTools NG add-on, then export as .eml files and drag them into Apple Mail.