POP vs IMAP

I use email associated with my website hosted through GoDaddy.


I was able to use a POP server for years, as the option to delete messages from server after retrieving email is only available using POP, not IMAP.


I just bought a new 16-inch MacBook Pro running OS 10.15.7 and went to set up my Apple Mail using my existing email account I'd used for years on my old MacBook running 10.15.4.


Mail won't recognize the POP server but will let me set it up using IMAP. Unfortunately the problem with IMAP is explained above, that it doesn't have the option to delete messages from server after retrieving, which led to my email being "full" this morning (my limit through GoDaddy, which had never been reached before in over 7 years of use).


So, how do I get my Apple Mail on my new laptop to behave the way it always did on my old one? Seems like the OS versions are fairly close, what is the issue here?

Posted on Feb 16, 2021 12:14 PM

Reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Feb 16, 2021 12:27 PM

When setting up the account, enter a wrong password for it so it lets you go into advanced settings when it cannot correctly connect to the server, then you can select the POP3 option. Otherwise it defaults to IMAP.


With that said, IMAP is synced, so if you delete something on one device, it deletes on the server too, and any other devices logged into the same email account. So not entirely sure why you need POP3. What it doesn't do is delete them automatically upon reception as POP3 does.

Similar questions

7 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Feb 16, 2021 12:27 PM in response to VaporDave

When setting up the account, enter a wrong password for it so it lets you go into advanced settings when it cannot correctly connect to the server, then you can select the POP3 option. Otherwise it defaults to IMAP.


With that said, IMAP is synced, so if you delete something on one device, it deletes on the server too, and any other devices logged into the same email account. So not entirely sure why you need POP3. What it doesn't do is delete them automatically upon reception as POP3 does.

Feb 16, 2021 12:36 PM in response to VaporDave

Yes, IMAP syncs. It won't delete them unless you delete them locally. You can of course create a local MailBox in the Apple Mail App and move them there so they remain stored on the Mac and you can then safely delete them from the GoDaddy mailbox.


But as I said, you can still set it up as POP3 if you need to by entering a wrong password so the Advanced settings screen comes up. From there you can select POP3 if you require it, and then enter the correct password to complete the setup.

Feb 16, 2021 12:32 PM in response to Phil0124

Thanks! So you're saying that I have to constantly delete my emails from Apple Mail in order for them to be deleted from the server?


That's a bummer as I like having records of emails going back at least a year, but the way GoDaddy has my email set up my storage got full within a few days after switching to IMAP (and not deleting the emails from Apple Mail).

This thread has been closed by the system or the community team. You may vote for any posts you find helpful, or search the Community for additional answers.

POP vs IMAP

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple Account.