How to Migrate from Gmail to Proton Mail

A complete guide to moving your emails, contacts, and calendars — without losing anything along the way.

March 2026 · 10 min read

Switching from Gmail to Proton Mail is one of the best decisions you can make for your online privacy. But the thought of migrating years of emails, contacts, and calendars can feel overwhelming. The good news? Proton has built excellent tools that make the process straightforward.

This guide walks you through every step — from importing your existing data to setting up automatic forwarding so you never miss an email during the transition.

Step 1: Import Your Emails with Easy Switch

Proton's Easy Switch tool is the fastest way to import your Gmail emails. It connects directly to your Google account and transfers everything automatically.

1. Log into your Proton Mail account at mail.proton.me
2. Go to Settings → All settings → Import via Easy Switch
3. Click Import messages and select Google
4. Sign in to your Google account and grant Proton permission to read your emails
5. Choose which folders (labels) you want to import — you can select all or pick specific ones
6. Choose a start date if you only want recent emails, or leave it blank for everything
7. Click Start import and let it run — large mailboxes can take several hours

You'll receive an email notification when the import is complete. You can also check progress in the Easy Switch settings page at any time.

Step 2: Import Your Contacts

You have two options for importing contacts: use Easy Switch for a direct transfer, or manually export and import a contacts file.

Option A: Easy Switch (Recommended)

1. In Proton Mail, go to Settings → Import via Easy Switch
2. Click Import contacts and select Google
3. Sign in and grant permission to read your contacts
4. Select which contact groups to import
5. Click Start import

Option B: Manual Export & Import

1. Go to contacts.google.com
2. Click Export in the left sidebar
3. Select All contacts and choose vCard (for iOS Contacts) format
4. Download the .vcf file
5. In Proton Mail, go to Contacts → Import
6. Upload your .vcf file

Step 3: Import Your Calendars

Proton Calendar supports importing events from Google Calendar. You can use Easy Switch or do a manual export.

Option A: Easy Switch

1. In Proton Mail settings, go to Import via Easy Switch
2. Click Import calendars and select Google
3. Sign in and grant calendar access
4. Select which calendars to import
5. Click Start import

Option B: Manual Export & Import

1. Go to Google Calendar
2. Click the gear icon → Settings
3. Under Import & export, click Export to download a .zip file of your calendars
4. Extract the .zip to find .ics files for each calendar
5. Open Proton Calendar
6. Click the gear icon → Import and upload each .ics file

Step 4: Set Up Automatic Forwarding from Gmail

During your transition period, you'll want emails sent to your Gmail address to automatically arrive in Proton Mail. Gmail's forwarding feature makes this seamless.

1. Open Gmail and click the gear icon → See all settings
2. Go to the Forwarding and POP/IMAP tab
3. Click Add a forwarding address
4. Enter your Proton Mail email address and click Next
5. Gmail will send a confirmation email to your Proton Mail inbox — open it and click the confirmation link
6. Back in Gmail settings, select Forward a copy of incoming mail to your Proton address
7. Choose what to do with the Gmail copy: keep Gmail's copy in the Inbox is recommended during transition
8. Click Save Changes

As you update your email address across services, you can eventually disable forwarding and fully retire your Gmail account.

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Post-Migration Checklist

After importing your data and setting up forwarding, work through this checklist to complete your migration:

• Update critical accounts first — banking, government, healthcare, and work accounts
• Update subscriptions and newsletters — change your email on services you use regularly
• Notify important contacts — let friends, family, and colleagues know your new address
• Set up Proton Mail apps — install the Proton Mail app on your phone and the Proton Mail Bridge on desktop if you use a mail client like Outlook or Thunderbird.

Bonus: Proton Mail Bridge for Desktop Clients

If you prefer using a desktop email client like Thunderbird, Outlook, or Apple Mail, Proton offers the Proton Mail Bridge application. It creates a local IMAP/SMTP connection that lets your favourite email client work with Proton's encrypted servers.

1. Download Proton Mail Bridge from proton.me/mail/bridge
2. Install and sign in with your Proton account
3. Bridge will display your local IMAP/SMTP settings and a generated password
4. Add a new account in your email client using these settings

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Summary

Migrating from Gmail to Proton Mail doesn't have to be a painful process. With Easy Switch handling the heavy lifting and Gmail forwarding catching anything in transit, you can make the switch gradually and confidently.

The best time to take control of your email privacy was years ago. The second best time is today.

Once you're settled in, explore Proton's full ecosystem — Proton VPN, Proton Drive, and Proton Pass — to extend your privacy beyond just email.