Obviously, Google Chrome stores bookmarks in the browser itself.

Despite the fact that you can easily sort and access bookmarks from the browser directly, it’s good to know that Chrome stores all bookmarks in a single file.

Therefore, you can access, backup, and restore bookmarks from your desktop. But many people don’t know where to locate them in the file system.

If you are unable to find the bookmark file, it can be due to the following reasons:

• You are searching for it in the wrong folder.
• The user path is incorrect.

You should keep in mind that the bookmarks file always resides in the same folder, however, the location may be different depending on the OS you use, such as Windows, macOS, and Linux.

In this article, we are going to look to search for the bookmarks stored on your desktop (or local hard drive).

Important Things

Before we move ahead with how to view bookmarks on your desktop, you should first remember about the below things:

• Do not modify or delete bookmark files unless you are completely sure about it.
• If you want to transfer bookmark files from one desktop to another, then sync your Google account on Chrome.
• If you are a single user using the browser, then you can locate bookmark folders through “Profile 1” (which we will discuss in the next section).
• If there are multiple users using the Chrome browser, then the storage path will differ. For example, for another user, the folder will be “Profile 2” instead of “Profile 1”.

Where are Google Chrome Bookmarks Stored on Windows?

On Windows, Bookmark files are stored in a hidden folder, i.e, AppData. To find that folder, follow the steps below:

Step 1: Open File Explorer and navigate to C:/Users.

Step 2: If you are the only user, then click on the folder with your username, otherwise, you need to click on that folder of which you want to look for bookmarks.

Step 3: Now, you need to select the folder named AppData. By default, the folder is hidden, so you cannot access it without permission.

(If you are an administrator on your desktop, then you can change the settings to allow access).

To allow access to the hidden folder, click on “View” and checkbox the “Hidden items” as shown in the below image.

Now, you will be able to see the AppData folder.

Step 4: Navigate to AppData > Local > Google > Chrome > User Data > Profile 1/Default.

(On some desktop, instead of Profile 1 you will see Default. Although if there are multiple users, you will see Profile 1, Profile 2, and so on.)

Step 5: Scroll down and look for the “Bookmarks” file. Here, you can copy, delete or backup the file.

Where are Google Chrome Bookmarks Stored on macOS?

On macOS, Bookmark files are stored in the Application Support directory. Like AppData in Windows, it is also a hidden folder by default.

So, you need to first allow access to the Application Support directory. But, it’s not as easy as it is in Windows.

To view the hidden files on your macOS, follow the steps below:

• Open Terminal app by navigating to Go > Utilities > Terminal.
• Enter the command “defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles YES” in the terminal window and hit enter.
• Lastly, type command “killall Finder” and hit enter again.

Now, you can view the Application Support directory.

To view the bookmarks, navigate to Users/YOUR USERNAME/Library/Application Support/Google/Chrome/Default

Similar to Windows, here also you will see Profile 1, Profile 2, and so on, in case of multiple users on your browser.

Where are Google Chrome Bookmarks Stored on Linux?

Before you start searching for bookmarks files, you should know that you may have Google Chrome or Chromium (an open-source browser) installed on Linux.

Therefore, the user path will differ slightly for both the browsers.

To access the bookmarks file, follow the steps below:

Step 1: Open the Application bar and search for the terminal. You can also open a terminal by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T.

Step 2: In the terminal window, type the user path.

For Google Chrome: : /home/YOUR USERNAME/.config/google-chrome/Default/

For Chromium: /home/YOUR USERNAME/.config/chromium/Default/

Step 3: Hit enter.

Now, you will be able to access the bookmarks files.

Import and Export Bookmarks as an HTML File

If you want a hassle-free action to view your bookmarks instead of navigating through hidden files, then you can export Chrome bookmarks to an HTML file.

Although exporting the bookmarks is done directly from the Google Chrome web browser, so the process will remain the same for every OS.

To export bookmarks in an HTML file, follow the below steps:

Step 1: Open Google Chrome.

Step 2: On the top right corner, click on the three vertical dots icon (also known as more option).

Step 3: Hover over the “Bookmarks” and select the “Bookmark manager”.

Step 4: On the top right corner, click on the “Organise” icon (three vertical dots icon).

Step 5: Lastly, click on the “Export bookmarks”. Then you will be asked where to save the HTML file.

In case you want to import bookmarks to Google Chrome (for another user), you should follow steps 1-4. And, then select “Import bookmarks” instead of “Export bookmarks”.

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If you are unable to export the HTML file as mentioned above, you can post a query on Google Support.

Now, you know where the Google Chrome bookmarks are stored. Whether you use Windows, macOS, or Linux, you can easily modify, delete, backup, and restore the bookmarks on your desktop.

Sometimes, you will not be able to access the hidden files, but at that time, you should try restarting your desktop and try the above process once again.