POP stands for Post Office Protocol and IMAP stands for Internet Message Access Protocol. Hence both the protocols are mailing or messaging protocols allows you to access mail in offline and in online mode. Before discussing the difference between POP3 and IMAP in tabular form or POP3 vs IMAP, let’s understand the basic concept of both the protocols and their functions.
Functions of POP3 Protocol
- POP stands for Post Office Protocol
- The POP port number is 110 and 995 (SSL)
- This protocol is not in sync with the web server
- To read the mail it has to be downloaded first.
- Mails can be accessed only from a single device in which POP is configured.
- The user cannot organize mails in the mailbox of the mail server.
- The user cannot create, delete or rename mailboxes on a mail server.
- Any changes you make in the mail client (Outlook, Thunderbird) is not going to replicate to the web server.
- Mails are download in local PC and can be accessed locally without internet.
Functions of IMAP Protocol
- IMAP stands for Internet Message Access Protocol
- IMAP port number is 143 and 999 (SSL)
- This protocol is always in sync with the web server
- To read the mail it need not to be downloaded, as you can access it online from the web server.
- Mails can be accessed from any device as you need to login to the web server.
- The user can organize the emails on the server.
- The user can create, delete or rename mailboxes on the mail server.
- Any changes you make in the mail client (Outlook, Thunderbird) it always replicates to the web server.
- Mails are always on the server and it required internet to access them.
Difference between POP3 and IMAP in tabular form
POP3 |
IMAP |
| POP stands for Post Office Protocol | IMAP stands for Internet Message Access Protocol |
| POP3 port number is 110 and 995 (SSL) | IMAP port number is 143 and 999 (SSL) |
| This protocol is not sync with web server | This protocol is always in sync with the web server |
| To read the mail it needs to be downloaded first. | To read the mail it need not to be downloaded as you can access it online from the web server. |
| Mails can be accessed only from a single device. | Mails can be accessed from any device as you need to login to the web server. |
| The user cannot organize mails in the mailbox of the mail server. | The user can organize the emails on the server. |
| The user cannot create, delete or rename mailboxes on a mail server. | The user can create, delete or rename mailboxes on the mail server. |
| Any changes you make in the mail client (Outlook, Thunderbird) is not going to replicate to the web server. | Any changes you make in the mail client (Outlook, Thunderbird) it always replicates to the web server. |
| Mails are download in local PC and can be accessed locally without internet. | Mails are always on the server and it required internet to access them. |
What is Port Number in networking and its uses
