Safari Bookmarks to HTML

Drop Safari's Bookmarks.plistBinary or XML plist, from ~/Library/Safari or a backup. A ZIP holding it works too.

On this page, the file is read in your browser. It is not uploaded, and nothing is sent to iCloud.

Options

Include Reading ListSaved pages from Safari's Reading List, written as a folder of their own.

Keep empty foldersFolders with nothing in them stay in the file. Off leaves them out.

Where is Bookmarks.plist?

On a Mac, Safari keeps its bookmarks in one file in your user Library:

~/Library/Safari/Bookmarks.plist

Copy it out first: in Finder choose Go > Go to Folder, enter ~/Library/Safari and copy Bookmarks.plist to the Desktop. macOS protects the Safari folder, so a browser's file picker may not be allowed to read it in place.
On a Time Machine backup or an old Mac's disk, the same file sits under Users, your user name, then Library/Safari.
A copy converted with plutil -convert xml1 is read the same way as the binary file.
If Safari still runs, File > Export Browsing Data to File saves a ZIP that includes your bookmarks. Drop that ZIP here and its bookmarks file is offered as it is.

Drop a Bookmarks.plist to see its folders and bookmarks here.

bookmarks.html

The bookmarks.html appears here

How to Convert Safari's Bookmarks.plist to HTML

Find Bookmarks.plist

on the Mac it is ~/Library/Safari/Bookmarks.plist; in a backup it is under your user folder's Library/Safari. Copy it somewhere your browser can open, such as the Desktop.
Drop the file on the page

The binary and XML forms are both read, and so is a ZIP that holds the file.
Choose whether to include the Reading List and keep empty folders, and check the preview
Download bookmarks.html and import it in Chrome, Edge or Firefox as an HTML bookmarks file

Common Use Cases

Recovering Safari bookmarks from a Time Machine backup onto a Windows PC or another browser

Moving bookmarks off a Mac that no longer starts, using a copy of its user folder

Bringing Safari's Reading List into Chrome or Firefox as a folder of bookmarks

Checking what a Bookmarks.plist holds before restoring it, through the preview table

Why Use Safari Bookmarks to HTML?

Safari stores bookmarks in Bookmarks.plist, a binary property list other browsers cannot read. While Safari runs, its own export menu gives you an importable file. When all you have is the file itself, from a Time Machine backup, a dead Mac's disk or a copied user folder, the usual route is the command line: plutil to turn it into XML, then an XSLT script to rebuild HTML. A generic plist to JSON converter leaves you with nested WebBookmarkType dictionaries, still not something a browser imports. This page reads the plist and writes the Netscape bookmarks.html that Chrome, Firefox and Edge import, keeping Favorites, the Bookmarks Menu, your folders and, if you want it, the Reading List.

Safari on macOS keeps bookmarks in ~/Library/Safari/Bookmarks.plist, normally a binary property list (a file that starts with bplist00). Its root is a WebBookmarkTypeList whose children are the History entry, the BookmarksBar (shown as Favorites), the BookmarksMenu and the Reading List (com.apple.ReadingList). Folders are WebBookmarkTypeList dictionaries with a Title and Children; bookmarks are WebBookmarkTypeLeaf dictionaries with a URLString and a URIDictionary title.

This page reads the binary form, or the XML form that plutil -convert xml1 writes, with the same property list reader as the Plist JSON Converter, walks that tree in order and writes a Netscape bookmarks.html. Favorites becomes a folder marked with PERSONAL_TOOLBAR_FOLDER, the Bookmarks Menu and your own folders keep their names and nesting, and Reading List items carry the date they were added. The History entry is skipped. Icons, Reading List preview text and iCloud sync data are not carried over.

A property list that is not Safari's bookmarks file, such as an app's Info.plist or a .webloc shortcut, is refused with what it looks like. A ZIP is opened in the tab: a Bookmarks.plist inside it is converted, and a bookmarks HTML file inside it is offered as it is.

How it compares

When Safari runs, its own export is the simplest route. Without it, the alternatives are plutil plus a community XSLT script on a Mac, or a generic plist to JSON converter, which leaves Safari's internal dictionaries rather than an importable file. Bookmarks JSON to HTML reads Chrome and Firefox files but not Safari's plist. This page reads the binary or XML plist directly, keeps the folder tree and the Reading List, and needs no Mac or command line.

Tips for Converting Safari Bookmarks

Safari's Favorites bar is written as a Favorites folder marked as the bookmarks toolbar, the same marker Chrome and Firefox write on their own bar folder.
The Reading List becomes a Reading List folder, with the date each page was added. Turn Include Reading List off to leave those pages out.
To clean the result up, run it through Dedupe Bookmarks, or merge it with another browser's export in Merge Bookmarks.
For the raw contents of the plist, every key and value, use the Plist JSON Converter instead.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I open a Safari Bookmarks.plist file?

Drop it on this page: the file is read as a binary or XML property list and its folders and bookmarks are shown in a preview, then written as a bookmarks.html you can download. A text editor shows a binary plist as unreadable bytes, which is why it needs a converter.

Where is Safari's Bookmarks.plist?

At ~/Library/Safari/Bookmarks.plist in your home folder on the Mac. In a Time Machine backup or a copied disk it is under your user folder, then Library/Safari. Copy it to the Desktop before dropping it here, because macOS protects the Safari folder.

Can I import Safari bookmarks into Chrome without a Mac?

Yes, if you have the Bookmarks.plist file. Convert it here on any computer, download bookmarks.html, and import it in Chrome as a bookmarks HTML file. Folders and titles come across as they were in Safari.

Is the Reading List included?

Yes, by default, as a folder named Reading List with the date each page was added. Turn Include Reading List off to leave those pages out; the summary says how many were left out.

Does it read binary and XML plists?

Both. Safari writes a binary plist, and a copy converted with plutil -convert xml1 is XML; the result is the same bookmarks.html either way.

Why was my file refused?

It is not Safari's bookmarks file, or it is damaged. The message names what it looks like, for example an app's Info.plist or a .webloc shortcut. A damaged or cut-off binary plist is refused with the reason, and a bookmarks.html file is refused because browsers already import it as it is.

Should I use this when Safari still runs?

You do not need to. Safari's File > Export Browsing Data to File saves a ZIP that includes your bookmarks, and browsers import those directly. This page is for the plist on its own, from a backup or another disk. It also opens that ZIP and offers the bookmarks file inside it.

What is not carried over?

Icons, Reading List preview text and iCloud sync data. Folder names, nesting, bookmark titles and addresses, and Reading List dates are kept. The History entry Safari stores among the bookmarks is skipped.

Is my Bookmarks.plist uploaded?

Not on this page. The file is read and converted by JavaScript in your browser tab, and nothing talks to iCloud. A bookmarks file can reveal accounts, internal tools and reading habits, which is why it stays in the tab. The REST API and MCP tool are a separate path: a call sends the input you include to FindUtils over HTTPS, where it is processed and the result returned. FindUtils does not store that input, and logs the request without its content.

Run it from code

$ curl -X POST \
  api.findutils.com/api/tools/safari-bookmarks-to-html/execute \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -d '{"input":"<?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"UTF-8\"?>\n<plist version=\"1.0\">\n<dict>\n\t<key>Children</key>\n\t<array>\n\t\t<dict>\n\t\t\t<key>Children</key…'

$ claude mcp add findutils \
  --transport http https://mcp.findutils.com/ \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"
# then call findutils:safari_bookmarks_to_html

Running a tool needs an API key. Keys are not for sale yet: ask for early access. About API keys

The REST API and the MCP tool are a separate path from this page: a call sends the input you include to FindUtils over HTTPS, where it is processed and the result returned. FindUtils does not store that input, and logs the request without its content.

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