Last verified: May 2023
Bigpond Email Settings: Does IMAP Work Reliably?
Bigpond email provides IMAP access to Telstra Mail, enabling users to set up their Bigpond/Telstra email accounts on both phone and desktop clients. However, since May 2012, Telstra has been phasing out Bigpond email accounts and advising users to switch to their new Microsoft 365 accounts as a replacement for their current Bigpond accounts. In an additional step of transitioning from Bigpond to Telstra, Bigpond closed down the Bigpond webmailer and asked Bigpond email users to use the Telstra Mail email service instead. This transition has caused significant troubles and downtimes for some Bigpond email users. For instance, a major disruption occurred in December 2022, when many users were unable to receive or, in some cases, send emails, which affected the regular business operations of numerous users.
Telstra/Bigpond attempted to address these issues and claimed that they had been resolved, but numerous user accounts indicate that problems still persist. Therefore, it might seem advisable to switch to a different email provider or use the newer Telstra email accounts instead.
Bigpond Email Settings: IMAP & SMTP
To setup your Bigpond account in your email client (like Outlook, Apple Mail, Thunderbird…) or to initiate a mail migration from Bigpond to a new provider, you need the following settings for Bigpond email:
Settings for Bigpond Email: Incoming Emails via IMAP
Add the following Bigpond email settings in your email client for all incoming emails using IMAP (recommended):
| Bigpond IMAP Server | imap.telstra.com |
| IMAP Port | 993 |
| IMAP Security | SSL |
| Requires Authentication / Encryption Connection | ✅ |
| Username | your email address |
| Password | your Bigpond.com password |
Settings for Bigpond Email: Outgoing Emails
Add the following Bigpond email settings in your email client for all outgoing emails:
| Bigpond SMTP Server | smtp.telstra.com |
| IMAP Port | 465 |
| SMTP Security | SSL / TLS |
| Requires Authentication / Encryption Connection | ✅ |
| Username | your email address |
| Password | your Bigpond.com password |
Bigpond Email Settings: POP
Alternatively to IMAP, you can also use POP to add your Bigpond emails to your email client.
POP3 instead of IMAP
If you’d like to use POP3 to add your Bigpond email account to your email client, add these settings instead of the IMAP settings for incoming emails:
| Bigpond POP Server | pop.telstra.com |
| POP Port | 995 |
| POP Security | SSL / TLS |
| Requires Authentication | ✅ |
| Username | your email address |
| Password | your Bigpond.com password |
What is the difference between POP3 and IMAP?
When setting up your Bigpond email, one decision you need to make is whether to use IMAP or POP for incoming emails.
If you opt for IMAP, any modifications you make to your emails (such as deletions or marking them as read) will be synchronized across all the devices you use to access your email. On the other hand, with POP, changes will only be reflected on the device where you initially downloaded the messages. When adding your Bigpond email settings to your email clients, it’s essential to consider your personal needs and preferences to determine which protocol best suits you.
A general advise is to choose IMAP over POP, as it allows you to access the same emails on multiple devices like smartphones, tablets, and PCs. However, if you have a large mailbox and need to conserve storage capacity, POP becomes the preferable option. With POP, emails are downloaded to your device, freeing up storage space in your mailbox.
Migrate Emails from Bigpond to Another Provider 
Due to the increasing issues with Bigpond email and the gradually phasing out of the Bigpond brand by Telstra, many Bigpond users wish to transfer their email data to another provider.
What sounds like an intimidating task can actually be performed very easily. Here’s how to migrate your emails from Bigpond to another email provider:
Download MailJerry, the email migration tool, or start your migration in your Browser. Start the software and click on “New Migration”. Select the account type and enter the settings of your Bigpond account in the fields for “Existing Address” (see screenshot). Add the IMAP settings of your new email provider in the fields under “New Address”. Click on “Start Migration”.
🎉 That’s it! Your Bigpond emails will now automatically be migrated to your email account.
Say goodby to service interruptions and unreliable email services!
- https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/business-spectator/news-story/telstra-moves-bigpond-mail-to-windows-live/7440e8ead4e84979ecf446ac26c49126#:~:text=Telstra%20will%20move%204.2%20million,will%20be%20stored%20in%20Australia.
- https://www.itnews.com.au/news/telstra-hits-another-nail-in-bigpond-coffin-419710
- https://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/3xv65pmr
