Where Are Notes Stored on Mac

Several files and folders can lead to clutter on your Mac without you realizing, and over time, not taking action to remove them could result in a worse computer performance. As a result, you could struggle to complete your day-to-day tasks more effectively. Knowing where notes are stored on your Mac will help you clear more space, and today, I’ll show you precisely how to find them.

Before we start:

While you can clear notes saved on your Mac manually, doing so is a time-consuming process. Using third-party tools, such as MacKeeper’s Safe Cleanup, will help you remove these with minimal effort required on your part. Moreover, you can remove everything based on their individual categories—ensuring that you only remove files you actually want to delete.

Follow these steps to use MacKeeper’s Safe Cleanup tool:

1. Download MacKeeper.
2. Navigate to Cleaning on the left-hand side and select Safe Cleanup.
3. At the bottom of the next window, click on Start Scan.
4. Wait for MacKeeper to scan your computer.
5. Tick the boxes next to each category you want to remove. If needed, you can go into each area and tick/untick programs as needed.  

Where are notes saved on Mac

Your notes are stored within a container on your device. Go to Finder > Go to Folder ~/Library/Group Containers/group.com.apple.notes.

Other places where you’ll find notes saved on your Mac are:

1. Local storage
2. iCloud storage
3. Database files
4. Hidden files

1. Local storage

The easiest way to find your computer’s notes is by going to your local storage. This method should work for any that you’ve made on your device and those that you AirDrop from iPhone to Mac. To find your local storage, you just need to open the Notes app on your computer.

2. iCloud Storage

If you want to recover notes on your Mac that have been accumulated from all of your Apple devices, iCloud is your best option. Here, you can find everything that you’ve created on your iPhone and iPad, in addition to your computer. If you need to downgrade macOS because of usability issues, this is an ideal way to recover notes on your Mac.

Follow these instructions:

1. Navigate to the iCloud website.
2. Press Sign In and enter your Apple Account details (or log in with Touch ID). If needed, verify your identity on another device.
3. Navigate to the Notes tab.
4. Select Notes and find what you’re looking for. Alternatively, you can create a new one by selecting the pen and paper icon; doing so will automatically sync it to your Notes app.

3. Database files

Navigating to your database files will help you access caches and numerous other files. Here’s how to find them:

1. Open Finder and select Go > Go to Folder in the toolbar at the top.
2. Enter this prompt: ~/Library/Group Containers/group.com.apple.notes and hit the Enter key.
3. Within group.com.apple.notes, you’ll find your relevant local storage. Browse these to find the things you need.

4. Hidden files

You can browse hidden files if you want to find metadata associated with your notes. To access these, you’ll again need to go into the Finder app. Navigate to ~/Library/Group Containers/group.com.apple.notes once more and look for com.apple.containermanagerd.metadata.plist.

You may see the file grayed out, as shown below.

How to recover notes on Mac

Knowing how to back up your Mac is vital for ensuring that you can later recover files if needed.

You should first try finding your content within the Notes app on your computer. After opening this app, go to the Recently Deleted tab on the left-hand side. After clicking on this, you’ll then see all of the notes you’ve deleted within the past 30 days. If this folder is empty, it’s because your device has already removed them.

The other ways to restore your files are:

• Use Time Machine
• Recover deleted notes from iCloud

1. Use Time Machine

Time Machine is one of the best ways to recover content on your device, and if you’ve already backed up previous versions of macOS, I recommend this as a starting point. Below are the instructions you’ll need to follow.

1. Open Migration Assistant on your device. If you can’t find it, search for the app in Spotlight and click when you see it.
2. Enter your computer login details. You’ll then be signed out.
3. Tick the circle next to From a Mac, Time Machine backup or Startup disk under How do you want to transfer your information?
4. Select Continue.
5. Pick a backup on your Time Machine. On the next window, tick everything you wish to transfer to your device.
6. Select Continue.
7. Wait for the files to transfer to your Mac.

2. Recover deleted notes from iCloud

From personal experience, I think that iCloud is the easiest way to recover deleted notes. In the same way that you’ll find a folder for them on your computer’s app, you can also access them again from the iCloud website.

1. Log into your Apple Account on the iCloud website.
2. Navigate to Notes and select Recently Deleted on the left-hand side.
3. Select Recover next to each note you wish to add back to your main device.

A note from our experts: 

Recovering notes works if you’ve deleted something outright, but it may not be the best option when you’ve accidentally selected Undo in Notes. Time Machine is a better option in these circumstances.

Easy steps to find stored notes on your Mac

Finding stored notes on your computer is very straightforward; going to your dedicated app or opening iCloud are your two best options. Beyond that, though, you can also recover your recently deleted ones and find databases.

If you need to clear out your device and want to get rid of your notes (along with other files and folders, MacKeeper’s Safe Cleanup is the most effective and hands-off option.

1. Open MacKeeper and go to Cleaning > Safe Cleanup.
2. Select Start Scan.
3. Tick the boxes next to everything you wish to remove and click on Clean Junk Files.
4. Wait for the software to delete your files and folders.