How to Transfer CenturyLink Email to Gmail? Free and Fast
Users want to know how to transfer emails from CenturyLink to Gmail so that they can gain independence from ISP lock in. In this writeup I will discuss multiple methods that you can use to get emails out of a CenturyLink mailbox and put them inside a Gmail account. After which you will be able to switch internet providers without the risk of losing years of email messages.
At its core every method I am about to cover uses the Internet Message Access Protocol. Think of it as a set of rules that decide how a mail server (which in our case is CenturyLink) sends email messages to your computer. However, if you are in a hurry? get the best solution right away and move messages now.
Let us see what Gmail does differently from CenturyLink and why people select it as their preferred email service.
See Why CenturyLink Mail is Inferior to Gmail
| Parameter | CenturyLink | Gmail |
| Storage | Restricted to just 700 MB of space. Although you can expand the storage, you must pay for it. | 15 GB capacity, even in its free tier. |
| Spam Filters | Lackluster filtering system, allowing many spammy emails to enter and pollute your inbox. | State-of-the-art spam filters so your inbox remains pristine. |
| Secondary Features | CenturyLink calendar and management options, like payment, etc. | 60-plus Google apps and features. |
Also Read: Gmail vs Zoho Comparison Chart
This is just a tiny glimpse of what Gmail offers you. So, change the service providers, follow the procedures explained below.
How Do I Transfer my CenturyLink Email to Gmail via Forwarding
- Step 1. Sign in to your CenturyLink webmail profile.
- Step 2. Open any email.
- Step 3. Click on the Forward arrow icon. Present at the bottom ribbon menu.
- Step 4. Inside the new email Compose window, mention your @gmail.com address in the “To” field.
- Step 5. Press Send
.
Repeat for every other email you also want in your Gmail account. There is a way to automate this forwarding for every new email that arrives in your CenturyLink address from here on now. However, to enable this, you must have a premium-tier CenturyLink account. The basic tier doesn’t have it. The Automatic forwarding is disabled in CenturyLink; this change was made a few years back.
Gmail’s Email Import Setting Method
Note: This is not a direct answer on how to transfer CenturyLink email to Gmail. First you have to create an App Password. You will find the options for it inside the CenturyLink settings menu. Here is what you have to do:
- Step 1. Login to CenturyLink account > go to ‘Settings’ then ‘Security’.
- Step 2. There you should see an App Passwords option click it.
- Step 3. Then, press the ‘Generate Password’ button. complete the rest of the on screen instructions and soon you will receive a unique app password that you can use to transfer CenturyLink email data to Gmail.
Here is what you have to do Next.
- Step 1. Log in to your Gmail account.
- Step 2. Tap on the settings cog at the top right and select See all settings.
- Step 3. On the Settings page, switch to the Accounts and Import tab.
- Step 4. Click on Import mail and contacts, and from here, follow the on-screen instructions.
Check Out: How to Transfer Mail.ru Emails to Gmail for Free?
Use any Desktop Client and Move CenturyLink Emails to Gmail
You can choose your favorite email client, Outlook, Thunderbird, or any other that you use. The steps are as follows:
Step 1. First, set up both your CenturyLink and Gmail accounts on the same email client you will need to use an app password for CenturyLink so make sure you have one.
Step 2. Then open another instance of the same client and arrange both of them in such a manner that they appear side by side on your screen.
Step 3. Now select all of the emails from your CenturyLink email, hold your cursor, move them across to the second instance where the Gmail account is present, and release the emails.
Step 4. Do this as many times as required to complete the transfer of CenturyLink email to Gmail.
The methods I have described up until now each have some major limitations, which is why people don’t use them. If you wish to know the reasons for yourself, check out the section below.
Problems With Manual Migration Methods
You only get to transfer data between two accounts at a time. Users with multiple accounts (which CenturyLink allows for its subscribers), have to repeat the entire process for each account individually.
Moreover, if you decide to forward emails, the metadata present in the emails is altered permanently. If that’s something important for you, don’t use forwarding as your email transfer route.
Even Gmail’s internal account pull mechanism only works if you switch your CenturyLink email to POP3. Although it is possible to change the sheer time and effort involved to first switch a protocol, and perform a manual migration is too much for regular users.
Not to mention the one account at a time limitation still applies so the method is also not ideal for the vast majority.
In case you think the email client method is easy think again. It has a major issue you can’t track what data has been moved and what remains. So you may end up missing important emails or bringing in unwanted data.
Don’t worry, we have a foolproof method that not only addresses these issues but also provides a boatload of features. So let’s see what it is.
How to Transfer CenturyLink Email to Gmail Professionally?
Use SysTools IMAP to IMAP Migration Software and push all CenturyLink mail to Gmail. This tool is incredibly user-friendly and does not require any special training whatsoever. Moreover, with the demo, you can migrate up to 100 emails for free.
You get lots of useful features like the ability to set the exact time span from where to move the emails and multi-account migration. Not only that, but this tool has a special Delta Migration feature, which can detect all the newly arrived data and just move those emails after you complete an initial migration run.
It supports all 16 variations of a CenturyLink email address domain. Next up, I will tell you how to use the tool.
Steps to Use The Tool For CenturyLink to Gmail Migration
Step 1. Load the tool on your PC. The IMAP endpoints are preset, and so is the email workload; there’s no need to change anything. Just apply the date filter if you feel the need for it and press Next.
Step 2. On the Source Screen, toggle the dropdown and select Others. Then, in the IMAP server URL field, put mail.centurylink.net, and next to it, add 993 as the port number. Validate and hit Next.
Step 3. Likewise, on the destination screen, you also need to select an IMAP. Here, pick Gmail (it should be the first option in the list). The tool will fill in the IMAP Server URL and port number on its own. Validate and Hit Next.
Step 4. Then, on the User Mapping Screen, you need to download the CSV template, add the user account credentials to it, and reupload it back on the tool.
Step 5. View the user list in the tool’s UI, mark the check box, and prioritize. Then, Validate and Start Migration.
Conclusion
Here I told you how to transfer CenturyLink email to Gmail in a variety of ways. You can forward your emails, take help of email clients, or use Gmail’s in built import facility to conduct the switch. However, each of these methods brings some drawbacks that I have already told you in this text. To avoid all those problems, I suggest you use the automated utility I have provided. It will help you transition with the least amount of effort.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Do I get to keep my CenturyLink email when I ditch the ISP?
No, CenturyLink revokes account accessibility as soon as you end the service. Moreover, after a set amount of time (depending on the local compliance laws), all of your emails will be purged. That is why it is critical to transfer emails from CenturyLink to Gmail before you cancel your subscription.
Q. Why can’t I see the emails I forward from my CenturyLink account to Gmail?
It happens when Gmail treats your CenturyLink account as possible spam and puts its data in the spam folder. To make sure it doesn’t happen again, add the CenturyLink address to your Google contacts, and also add it to the trusted sender list.
Q. Can I move multiple CenturyLink accounts to a single Gmail ID?
Yes, you can, considering that the total storage capacity of a free Gmail account is 20 times the storage that you get with a CenturyLink account. If you use the tool, you can do so pretty easily by running it multiple times.
Q. Is it possible to move CenturyLink email folders to Gmail without losing hierarchy?
If you forward messages then folder details disappear. Instead do what I tell everyone who is in need to transfer solutions. Use the professional utility.