Apple mail location on hard drive

The location of Apple Mail's data files on a Mac's hard drive can vary depending on the version of macOS and the type of account you're using. Here are the most common locations:

For macOS High Sierra (10.13) and later:

• For IMAP accounts (e.g., Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook.com): ~/Library/Mail/V2/MailData
• For POP accounts (e.g., Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook.com): ~/Library/Mail/V2/MailData
• For Exchange accounts: ~/Library/Mail/V2/Exchange
• For iCloud accounts: ~/Library/Mail/V2/iCloud

For macOS Sierra (10.12) and earlier:

• For IMAP accounts (e.g., Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook.com): ~/Library/Mail
• For POP accounts (e.g., Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook.com): ~/Library/Mail
• For Exchange accounts: ~/Library/Mail/Exchange
• For iCloud accounts: ~/Library/Mail/iCloud

For macOS Catalina (10.15) and later:

• For IMAP accounts (e.g., Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook.com): ~/Library/Mail/V3/MailData
• For POP accounts (e.g., Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook.com): ~/Library/Mail/V3/MailData
• For Exchange accounts: ~/Library/Mail/V3/Exchange
• For iCloud accounts: ~/Library/Mail/V3/iCloud

To access these folders, you can use the Finder or the Terminal app:

1. Open the Finder and navigate to the ~/Library folder.
2. Look for the Mail folder and open it.
3. Inside the Mail folder, you'll find subfolders for each type of account (e.g., IMAP, POP, Exchange, iCloud).
4. Within each account folder, you'll find subfolders for each mailbox (e.g., Inbox, Sent, Trash).

Alternatively, you can use the Terminal app to navigate to these folders:

1. Open the Terminal app.
2. Type cd ~/Library/Mail and press Enter to navigate to the Mail folder.
3. Type cd V2 (or V3 for macOS Catalina and later) and press Enter to navigate to the version-specific folder.
4. Type cd <account_type> (e.g., IMAP, POP, Exchange, iCloud) and press Enter to navigate to the account folder.
5. Type cd <mailbox_name> (e.g., Inbox, Sent, Trash) and press Enter to navigate to the mailbox folder.

Remember to be cautious when modifying these folders, as changes can affect your email account's functionality.