How to export your Character.ai chats (and keep them somewhere useful)

Character.ai offers a data export in its mobile app: open Settings, find the privacy section and choose Export data. You receive a download link by email; the ZIP contains JSON files with your messages. You can keep it as a backup, or import the conversations into a Throughline Self, where you choose which ones come in.

1. Request the export in the app

At the time of writing the export option is in the Character.ai mobile app rather than the website: Settings → Privacy (sometimes labeled Legal & Privacy) → Export data. Menu names can change between app versions. Request it once; repeated requests queue separately and do not speed it up.

2. Wait for the email and download it promptly

The export is prepared in the background and can take from about an hour to a few days. The email can land in spam. Download links expire after a limited time, so save the ZIP somewhere safe as soon as it arrives.

3. What is inside the ZIP

Recent exports contain a folder with JSON files such as user.json (your account details), character.json (characters) and message.json (the messages, with the text in a field called raw_content). Older exports and browser-extension backups use other JSON layouts. Keep the original file unchanged.

4. Bring the conversations into a Self

In Throughline, open Import chats, choose the Self and upload the ZIP or the JSON file. You see how many conversations and messages it contains and their dates, then pick what to import. Each imported conversation is kept as a record from another app: your Self can search and recall it, but it does not change its personality or rules. Your account details from user.json are not imported.

ChatGPT works the same way

In ChatGPT, open Settings → Data controls → Export data. The email contains a ZIP with conversations.json (large accounts may receive several conversations files). Upload the ZIP, or the JSON files, to Import chats.

Common questions

Does importing copy my character’s personality?

No. Imported chats are kept as history you can look up. The Self keeps its own character, and changes to how it behaves still need your confirmation.

How many conversations can I import?

Each conversation uses one memory. Free keeps 500 memories per Self, Pro 20,000 and Alive 100,000. If you pick more than fits, the most recent ones are imported first and nothing you already have is deleted.

Is the file stored?

No. The file is read to build the preview. Only the conversations you choose are saved, and you can retract or export them later.

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