In the ten years I’ve used iCloud on my numerous iPhones, I’ve written down almost 2,000 notes. I write down everything, including scripts, poetry, short tales, bills, and grocery lists. I’ll use my notes to make a list of all the locations I want to see if I’m in a foreign nation. I’ll take note of any solid movie recommendations. You guessed it: whenever I feel the need to spend hours researching a topic, I write it down!
Don’t forget to use the Notes app on your iPhone to have private conversations.
I value each and every one of these notes, and I recently considered how I would feel if I were to lose access to them all. That would require me to lose my iPhone and iCloud to abruptly vanish, but I’m not sure how that would happen. Still, the thought of losing all those messages broke my heart.
I decided to export all of my notes, but it turns out that this is not an easy task.
Regardless of whether you’re using AirDrop, email, or text messaging, Apple restricts you to exporting just one note at a time from the Notes app. I couldn’t export all of my hundreds of notes in a reasonable amount of time, even if I wanted to. It would be too boring. Simply put, there is no way.
As it happens, you can simply request that Apple export all of your iCloud notes. Here’s how. For additional information regarding iCloud, see how to quickly remove duplicate images from your iCloud and how to determine whether Apple’s new iCloud storage plans are worthwhile.
Are You Aware of These 17 Undiscovered iOS 17 Features?
+15 Additional
View every picture
How to request that all of your notes be exported from Apple
Open Safari or your preferred web browser on your iPhone, then navigate to appleid.apple.com. Use Face ID, Touch ID, or your login information to access your iCloud account. Next, select Privacy by tapping the arrow located to the left of the sign-out button at the top of the screen.
Accessing the Apple ID website
If you have the same Apple ID on both devices, you can also complete this process on your computer.
Aguilar Nelson/CNET
After swiping down, select “Manage your data” under “Your Data.” You might need to re-enter your Apple ID credentials.
requesting a copy of the Apple ID website’s data section
A copy of your data can also be moved to another service, such as Google Photos.
Aguilar Nelson/CNET
You can request that Apple send you a variety of data, including your calendar, contacts, and Safari bookmarks, on the following page. Additionally, you can download your Drive documents, files, emails, and pictures, albeit those can take a while to arrive.
Since this story is about notes, check the box next to iCloud notes, then click Continue after scrolling to the bottom of the page.
Data options that Apple allows you to export
Additionally, you can export repair requests, AppleCare support history, Apple Pay Later data, wallet activity, and more.
Aguilar Nelson
If you would rather download smaller files rather than one very large one, then select the maximum file size you wish to get. You have a choice between 1GB and 25GB. Hit “Complete request” at the end.
Details on how long it will take to export your data
As soon as you submit the request, you ought to receive an email alerting you of it.
Aguilar Nelson/CNET
How to extract every message from your Apple email
An email with a download link will be sent to you when your data is prepared. Act quickly because you have a limited amount of time to download your content. I had a little more than two weeks to get my notes.
on the Apple email to be sent to the Apple ID website. After entering your login information, click the download button next to your notes to start downloading the ZIP file containing all of your notes.
Apple sent you an email with a link to download your notes.
The download size for almost 2,000 notes was just 36.45 MB.
Aguilar Nelson/CNET
Each of your notes, which will be in text document format, will have its own folder within the ZIP folder. If the letter includes attachments like documents, sketches, or images, the folder can also contain other files.
Download Notes via the iPhone’s Files app.
Your notes can be exported to any external hard drive or your computer.
Aguilar Nelson/CNET
Be patient; it may take up to seven days to get the email from Apple containing the download link. To view and verify the status of your download request, visit privacy.apple.com/account.
See all the methods for backing up your iPhone and the 17 hidden settings and features in iOS 17 for additional information.