How to Fix Thunderbird Emails Not Displaying Correctly?
Users often complain that “Thunderbird email is not displaying correctly“. The issue may be related to illegible email content, formatting, image distortion, or even email headers not showing properly in the message page. Here are the troubleshooting steps to fix Thunderbird not showing message content correctly.
Why Thunderbird Email Content is Not Showing Properly?
Often, a basic Thunderbird restart clears it up. In some cases, though, the message content keeps displaying incorrectly for a long time on both Thunderbird Mac and Windows. It can be due to:
- Use of the legacy Thunderbird version.
- Add-ons interfering with Thunderbird email content.
- Modification in toolbar, view and appearance settings in Thunderbird.
- Worst-case scenario, profile or folder data corruption.
Due to this, you may find it difficult to access emails and even consider switching to another email application.
Resolution to Thunderbird Email Not Displaying Correctly Issues
Here we have listed the troubleshooting steps for both Mac and Windows. Follow these steps in the given order as they are listed based on the ease and common cause of the issue.
Method 1: Launch Thunderbird in Troubleshoot Mode
Troubleshoot Mode lets you access Thunderbird without the additional features and add-ons that can interfere with the UI.
Note: To access Thunderbird in safe mode, you can start the application by holding the Shift key. Or you can follow the steps below:
- Go to Menu (three lines on the top-right).
- Choose Help >> Troubleshoot Mode.
- Restart Thunderbird.
If the issue resolves in the Thunderbird Troubleshoot Mode, you can disable unnecessary add-ons to permanently fix the issue.
Go to Menu >> Add-Ons & Themes >> Extensions tab and toggle off unnecessary extensions.
Method 2: Update Thunderbird to the Latest Version
An outdated Thunderbird installation carries bugs and rendering faults that newer builds have already patched. Updating the app is the quickest way to rule those out.
- Open Mozilla Thunderbird on your computer.
- Click on Menu >> Help >> About Thunderbird. (Mozilla Thunderbird will automatically fetch the details about the availability of any update.)
- Click on Update and restart Thunderbird.
Method 3: Set Thunderbird to Original HTML View
Thunderbird gives you three modes to view emails with HTML formatting, which are Original, Simple and Plain. It often gets reset to Plain after an update, which may lead users to think that Thunderbird is not displaying emails properly.
To resolve Thunderbird HTML email not displaying correctly, follow the steps below:
- Open Mozilla Thunderbird on Mac or Windows.
- Click on View (on the toolbar) >> Message Body As.
- Select Original HTML mode.
- Open emails inside Thunderbird message folders (Inbox, Sent, Draft, etc.) to check if the issue is resolved.
Method 4: Restore Thunderbird Toolbar to Default
In rare cases, heavy customization of the toolbar settings is what stops Thunderbird from displaying correctly. Thunderbird stores UI layout, display controls and some message-view settings together, so minor corruption or overlap in that file can break message formatting.
- From the Menu bar at the top, select View.
- Choose the Toolbar option >> Customize.
- Click on the Restore Default button on the bottom-left.
Method 5: Repair Index if Thunderbird Email Not Displaying Correctly
Sometimes the Thunderbird inbox turns blank and stops showing email headers properly, even though the messages still exist and open fine one by one. That points to a damaged index file for the folder, which you can rebuild.
- Select the Folder under which Thunderbird email content is not showing properly.
- Right-click and choose Properties.
- Click on the Repair Folder button.
Method 6: Modify Thunderbird Appearance Settings
Using special fonts in Thunderbird can cause issues with interpreting HTML formatting.
- Click on the Menu icon and go to Settings.
- Open the General Tab.
- Type Language and Fonts in the search bar.
- Go to Advanced.
- Disable Allow messages to use other fonts.
When Thunderbird Email Display Issues Cannot Be Fixed
Thunderbird email not displaying correctly issues cannot be fixed if caused by corruption of profile data. In such cases, you must restore the last available Thunderbird backup.
Another sign is when emails display correctly in webmail but appear improperly formatted in Thunderbird. There you can consider migrating Thunderbird to another email client like Outlook, Apple Mail or Betterbird. Get the 4n6 Thunderbird Migration Tool to move bulk Thunderbird emails to other email clients with attachments and folder hierarchy, in a secure offline way. Try out the free version of the tool today.
FAQs: Thunderbird Not Displaying Message Content Correctly
Q1: Is there any risk of data loss if I restore Thunderbird to default toolbar settings?
No, the setting only affects the UI of the tool while emails and other data are stored in the Thunderbird profile folder separately.
Q2: Can my antivirus be the cause of Thunderbird’s broken message formatting?
Yes, if your antivirus software isn’t updated, Thunderbird may not function correctly, leading to the issue.
Q3: Why are emojis or special characters showing as illegible text in Thunderbird email?
This happens due to a different encoding standard used by the sender.
