// VIRGIN MEDIA TO GMAIL
How to move your Virgin Media email to Gmail
Leaving Virgin Media, or been told your ntlworld or blueyonder inbox is closing? Here’s the safe, folder-keeping way to move your Virgin Media email to Gmail before the deadline — the DIY steps in plain English, what changed in 2026, and how we can simply do it for you. Rated 4.9 on Google.
- ● Family-run since 1995
- ● 4.9-star Google rating
- ● No-fix-no-fee
/01 — THE QUICK ANSWER
How to move Virgin Media email to Gmail
The reliable way to move Virgin Media email to Gmail is to add both accounts to a free desktop program called Thunderbird using IMAP, then copy your messages and folders straight from one to the other. This works for virginmedia.com, ntlworld.com and blueyonder.co.uk addresses — they are all the same Virgin Media email system, so the method is identical.
You might expect to point Gmail at your Virgin inbox and let it pull everything in, but Google has been retiring that automatic ‘Check mail from other accounts’ (POP) feature, and you can no longer set it up for a fresh move. Thunderbird sidesteps that entirely: it signs in to both mailboxes at once and copies your old post across in a single pass, keeping your folder structure intact rather than dumping everything into one pile.
It is free, it is a one-off job, and once it is done your Virgin emails live safely in Gmail. If you would rather not touch the settings yourself, our email migration service does the whole thing for you remotely.
/02 — WHY VIRGIN IS CLOSING MAILBOXES
Why Virgin Media is closing ex-customer and legacy mailboxes
Virgin Media has been tightening the rules on its email. If you have moved your broadband away from Virgin, your inbox is treated as an ex-customer account, and Virgin has been sending notices that the mailbox will close a set period after you are told — often around 30 days — after which the contents are deleted for good. Long-standing ntlworld and blueyonder addresses have been caught up in the same changes.
The catch is that the warning is easy to miss, and the exact grace period, wording and dates vary from one account to the next. So please don’t rely on a figure you read online — check the actual email or letter Virgin sent you and work to your own closure date.
The bottom line is simple: once the mailbox closes, the emails inside it are gone and cannot be recovered. That is why the safe move is to copy everything out into Gmail first, well before the deadline, so nothing is lost if the account disappears sooner than you expect.
/03 — WHAT YOU NEED FIRST
What you need before you start
A little preparation makes this go smoothly. You’ll want three things ready:
- Your new Gmail account — set it up first if you haven’t already, and know the address and password.
- A Virgin Media Mail app password. Virgin no longer lets other programs sign in with your normal website password. In My Virgin Media, go to your email settings, look for ‘Manage your Virgin Media Mail app password’ and choose ‘Generate new App password’. You paste this one-off code in place of your password when connecting.
- The Virgin server details: incoming server imap.virginmedia.com, port 993, with SSL switched on. Your username is your full email address and your password is the app password above.
On the Gmail side, turn on IMAP so it will accept the incoming copy: click the gear icon, choose See all settings, open Forwarding and POP/IMAP, enable IMAP and save. Menu names shift a little over time, so if a label doesn’t match exactly, look for the nearest wording — the steps are the same. With those in place you’re ready to copy your mail across.
/04 — THE STEP-BY-STEP
Copying your email across with Thunderbird
With both accounts prepared, Thunderbird does the heavy lifting. It’s a free, well-established email program from the makers of Firefox. You add your Virgin Media address to it using the IMAP settings above, then add your Gmail account the same way, and both mailboxes appear side by side in one window.
From there it’s a copy-and-paste job: select the Virgin folder or messages you want, right-click, choose Copy To, and pick the matching folder under your Gmail account. Thunderbird uploads them into Gmail over the internet, so your inbox, sent items and any folders you’ve made all come across with their original dates and structure preserved.
If you have years of email, this can take a while — leave the computer on and let it finish rather than stopping halfway. Once it’s done, check your Gmail on the web to confirm everything arrived. The step-by-step checklist below walks through it in order, and if you’d like it on your phone too, see how to set up email on your phone.
/05 — GMAIL’S OWN IMPORT
What about Gmail's built-in import?
Gmail does still have a built-in ‘Import mail and contacts’ tool, tucked under Settings and then Accounts and Import. It runs as a one-off and can sometimes pull older messages across, so it’s worth knowing about — but there are two honest limitations. First, it works over POP behind the scenes and doesn’t always connect cleanly to Virgin Media. Second, it drops everything into your inbox and won’t recreate your folders.
The bigger point catches a lot of people out: the continuous ‘Check mail from other accounts’ option — where Gmail used to keep fetching new post from your Virgin inbox — is being retired by Google, and you can no longer set it up for a new account. Plenty of older tutorials still tell you to add your Virgin address there. That route is closing off, so don’t waste time on it.
For a clean move that keeps your folders and dates, the Thunderbird copy is more dependable. Gmail’s own import is a reasonable backup if you only want the messages and don’t mind them landing in one place.
/06 — AFTER YOU’VE MOVED
Tell people your new address and update your logins
Copying your email across is only half the job — you also need people and services to find you at your new Gmail address. While your Virgin mailbox is still open, do these before the deadline:
- Set up forwarding or an auto-reply on the Virgin account so anyone writing to the old address is nudged towards the new one.
- Email your key contacts — family, friends, your GP, clubs — from Gmail so they update your details.
- Update your important logins. Banking, shopping and utility accounts often send statements and, crucially, password-reset and security codes to your email. Point them at Gmail, and check anywhere you use two-factor authentication.
This last one matters most. Once Virgin closes the old mailbox, any reset email sent there simply never arrives, which can quietly lock you out of accounts months later. Sorting it now, while the old address still works, saves a real headache down the line.
/07 — LET US DO IT FOR YOU
Rather have someone just do it for you?
If the deadline is close, or you’ve got years of email you can’t afford to lose, you don’t have to gamble on getting the settings right. This is a job we do all the time, and we can do it for you without anyone leaving home.
We connect to your computer over a secure remote link, copy every message and folder from your Virgin Media, ntlworld or blueyonder account into your Gmail, set up forwarding while the old account is still live, and make sure it all works — on your computer and, if you like, on your phone. It’s the same email migration work we handle for people across Bournemouth, Poole, Christchurch and Dorset every week.
We’re family-run from Kinson in Bournemouth, trading since 1995, with a 4.9-star Google rating and a straightforward no-fix-no-fee promise. There’s usually same-day remote help, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. Call 01202 775566, text 07520 615332, or get in touch — and if you’re on Plusnet rather than Virgin, we cover moving Plusnet email to Gmail too.
FAMILY-RUN SINCE 1995 · ★ 4.9 ON GOOGLE · 200+ COMPUTERS UNDER OUR CARE · NO FIX, NO FEE · SAME-DAY REMOTE SUPPORT
// GOOD QUESTIONS
Frequently asked
Will I lose my old Virgin Media emails?
Not if you act in time. As long as you copy your messages out into Gmail before Virgin closes the mailbox, everything is safe. The risk comes after closure — once an ex-customer or legacy account is shut, the emails inside are permanently deleted and can’t be recovered. So the golden rule is simple: copy first, then let the old account lapse.
Are ntlworld and blueyonder addresses the same as Virgin Media?
Yes. virginmedia.com, ntlworld.com and blueyonder.co.uk all run on the same Virgin Media email system — they’re one settings family. That means the same server details (imap.virginmedia.com) and the same app-password process apply to all three, and the same account-closure changes affect them too. Treat an old ntlworld or blueyonder address exactly as you would a virginmedia.com one.
Why won’t Gmail just fetch my Virgin emails like it used to?
Because Google has been retiring that feature. You can no longer set up the automatic ‘Check mail from other accounts’ (POP) option for a new account, so Gmail won’t keep pulling new post from your Virgin inbox on its own. For a fresh move you now need a desktop program like Thunderbird, or Gmail’s one-off import, instead.
What is a Virgin Media app password and why do I need one?
It’s a separate one-off code that lets another program — Thunderbird, Gmail or your phone — sign in to your Virgin mailbox. Virgin no longer accepts your normal website password for this, because app passwords are more secure. You generate one in My Virgin Media under your email settings, then paste it in place of your password when you connect. You can revoke it again later.
Can I keep using my Virgin Media email address?
Usually not for the long term once you’ve left Virgin. The email tends to close along with your broadband, which is exactly why moving to Gmail matters. Some people keep an address while another Virgin service stays active, but the rules change and there’s no guarantee — so check your own notice. We can’t stop Virgin closing an account, but we can rescue everything inside it before it goes.
Will my folders and email dates come across?
With the Thunderbird method, yes. Copying over IMAP preserves your inbox, sent items, any folders you’ve created and the original date on every message, so Gmail looks familiar rather than a jumbled pile. Gmail’s own built-in import is less tidy — it can bring the messages but won’t rebuild your folder structure, dropping everything into the main inbox instead.
Can you just do this for me?
Yes — it’s one of the most common jobs we’re asked to do. We connect remotely, copy every message and folder from your Virgin, ntlworld or blueyonder account into Gmail, set up forwarding, and get it working on your devices, so you don’t have to touch a single setting. We’ll give you a clear price first and it’s no-fix-no-fee. Call 01202 775566 or text 07520 615332.
How long does the move take?
It depends on how much email you have. A few hundred messages can copy across in minutes; years of email with lots of folders can take considerably longer, and it’s best left to run uninterrupted. We don’t promise a fixed time, but there’s usually same-day remote help on weekdays, and we’ll always tell you honestly what to expect before we begin.
Move your Virgin Media email safely — before it closes
We’ll copy every message and folder into Gmail for you, remotely and without the stress. Family-run in Bournemouth since 1995, with a 4.9-star Google rating and no-fix-no-fee.
01202 775566 · help@365techies.co.uk · MON–FRI 9AM–5PM