Introduction

Learn how to switch the setup of the Xfinity Connect (Comcast) email account on your iPhone from POP to IMAP.

Please note the following:

The instructions contained in this article only apply to users who have already configured their Xfinity email accounts via POP. In addition, this guide assumes that while setting up your email through POP, you chose not to retain emails in the server after downloading them to the email client.
Using third-party email clients (e.g., Outlook, Apple Mail, Thunderbird, etc.) to access your Comcast.net email address can potentially expose your Xfinity ID and password to fraud and other risks. We recommend you access your Comcast email by going to Xfinity Connect and clicking Email, or by using the Xfinity Connect App on your mobile device.

Pre-Setup

Before getting started, on the Account Settings screen, under Incoming Settings, make sure that the Delete from server option is set to Never.
iPhone Account Settings menu.

Switching from POP to IMAP

Visit the Settings menu, and tap Add Account.
Tap Other.
Tap Add Mail Account, and then enter your Comcast email account details. Then, tap Next.
Enable the Mail and Notes options on the next screen (labeled IMAP), and tap Save.

Moving Emails from the POP to IMAP Profile

If the option to delete emails from server was initially chosen during POP account configuration, emails would have been deleted from the mail server as they were downloaded to the email client, so the newly configured IMAP account will not contain these emails.

To avoid losing these emails during the switch from POP to IMAP, you must select the emails contained in the various folders (inbox, sub folders, trash or sent items) on your POP account, and drag and drop them into the respective folder within your newly configured IMAP account. To be safe, you can also move and store these emails in an external folder.

Deleting the POP Profile

After your existing emails have been moved from your POP account to their corresponding newly configured IMAP folders (and after ensuring that no emails are missing), you can delete the existing POP-configured profile and its respective folders from your mail client. Then, continue using Xfinity Connect through your new IMAP profile.