With Apple hardware becoming so must-have in recent years, Apple Mac laptops and desktops are becoming more common as a stylish alternative to traditional Windows-based PCs. Though there are many advantages to owning a Mac, as opposed to a Windows PC, one drawback is having to migrate data from one to the other. Migrating Microsoft Outlook mail to the Mac equivalent (Microsoft Entourage) can be a tricky process unless you are confident and have some patience.

We have listed below the steps required to successfully transfer all of your mail from Outlook to Entourage. So, settle down, run through the checklist and prepare to migrate!

Pre-migration checklist

You will need ...

PC logged in, with Microsoft Outlook closed
Mac logged in, with Microsoft Entourage open
Suitable device for transferring (potentially) large amounts of data from the PC to the Mac
Active connection to the internet on the PC

If you have everything listed above, you are ready to begin

Migration steps

1.Download and install Mozilla Thunderbird for Windows. The installer can be found here.
2. During the setup process, choose Standard setup.
3a. Once the application is installed and first runs, select to import all data from Microsoft Outlook.
3b. If Thunderbird is already installed on your PC, select Tools>Import (Everything).
4. Depending on how much data your Outlook contains, step 3 may take some time. Be patient.
5. Open My Computer and select Tools>Folder Options>View.
6a. In the 'Advanced settings' section, ensure 'Show hidden files and folders' is checked (see Figure 1).
6b. In the 'Advanced settings' section, ensure 'Hide extensions for known file types' is unchecked (see Figure 2). Click OK.