Set up Notifications for New Emails in Mozilla Thunderbird

Turn notifications on (or off)

By
Heinz Tschabitscher
Heinz Tschabitscher
Heinz Tschabitscher
Writer
  • University of Vienna
A former freelance contributor who has reviewed hundreds of email programs and services since 1997.
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Updated on April 26, 2020
Mailbox stuffed with mail

 Tom Kelley / Getty Images

You can configure Mozilla Thunderbird to alert you when new messages arrive and even specify what the alerts show. In this way, you can see right away which emails you need to open now and which ones are spam or messages that can wait.

The following directions apply to Thunderbird running in Windows and Linus. Scroll down to find information pertaining to Thunderbird version 68 in macOS 10.15 (Catalina).

  1. Navigate to Tools > Options. In Linux, go to Edit > Preferences in the menu.

  2. Open the General category in the settings.

  3. Make sure Show an alert is checked under When new messages arrive.

  4. If you'd like, configure the alert's contents and display duration via Customize. Options include:

    • Sender.
    • Subject.
    • Message Preview Text.

  5. Click OK and then Close.

How to Configure Thunderbird Alerts in Thunderbird on a Mac

Thunderbird alerts are controlled through macOS Preferences.

  1. Open System Preferences > Notifications.

    macOS System Preferences

  2. Go to Thunderbird.

    macOS System Preferences > Notifications

  3. Slide the toggle to Allow Notifications from Thunderbird.

  4. Select the appropriate boxes, depending on your preferences.

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