What is IMAP?

What is IMAP? How Does It Work?

IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol) is a protocol that allows you to manage your emails over the internet. Simply put, IMAP lets you access your emails from different devices like computers, phones, or tablets and keeps everything synchronized at all times.

When you use IMAP, your emails stay stored on the server. So, if you delete an email on one device, it’s automatically deleted on all your other devices too. This feature makes IMAP a great choice, especially for people and businesses that use multiple devices.

Today, popular email services like Gmail, Outlook, and Yahoo also support IMAP. By setting up IMAP in email applications (such as Outlook, Thunderbird, or Apple Mail), you can easily manage your entire mailbox.

What’s the Difference Between IMAP and POP3?

POP3 downloads emails from the server and stores them on your device, while IMAP keeps the emails on the server and synchronizes them across all your devices. That’s why IMAP is more commonly used today.

How Does IMAP Work?

• Emails are stored on the server.

• Multiple devices can access the same mailbox.

• Changes made to emails (delete, move) are instantly reflected on the server.

In conclusion, IMAP is the foundation of modern email use. If you want to access your emails from anywhere and on any device, IMAP is the best option for you.