---
url: https://findutils.com/guides/bookmarks-json-to-html
title: "Convert Chrome's Bookmarks File (JSON) to bookmarks.html"
description: "Turn the Bookmarks file from a Chrome, Edge or Brave profile, or a Firefox JSON backup, into a bookmarks.html any browser can import. Runs in your browser."
category: converters
content_type: guide
guide_type: subtopic
cluster: bookmarks
locale: en
read_time: 6
status: published
author: "olgunozoktas"
published_at: 2026-09-23T12:00:00Z
excerpt: "An old computer's profile folder, a backup drive, or a copy of a user data directory: the bookmarks are there, but in a JSON file called Bookmarks that no browser imports. Converting it to bookmarks.html makes it importable again."
tag_ids: ["bookmarks", "browser", "backup"]
tags: ["Bookmarks", "Browser", "Backup"]
primary_keyword: "chrome bookmarks json to html"
secondary_keywords: ["convert chrome bookmarks file to html", "restore chrome bookmarks from backup", "import chrome bookmarks file", "firefox bookmarks json to html", "chrome bookmarks file location"]
tool_tag: "bookmarks-json-to-html"
related_tool: "bookmarks-json-to-html"
related_tools: ["bookmarks-json-to-html", "merge-bookmarks", "dedupe-bookmarks", "bookmarks-html-to-csv", "csv-to-bookmarks-html"]
og_image: "/images/content/guides/bookmarks-json-to-html-cover-20260923.webp"
image_alt: "A tangle of curly-bracket-shaped wire on a desk next to a small wooden card box holding tidy blank index cards with coloured tabs."
updated_at: "2026-09-23T12:00:00Z"
---

To move bookmarks out of a Chrome profile when you have no export, convert the profile's `Bookmarks` file to `bookmarks.html` and import that. FindUtils [Bookmarks JSON to HTML](/convert/bookmarks-json-to-html/) reads the `Bookmarks` file from Chrome, Edge or Brave, or a Firefox JSON backup, and writes a bookmarks.html that every browser imports. The file is read in your browser and not uploaded.

This guide covers where the file is, which JSON shapes the tool reads, what survives the conversion, and how to import the result.

## Why Is There No bookmarks.html in the Profile?

Chrome, Edge and Brave do not keep bookmarks as HTML. They keep them in a JSON file named `Bookmarks`, with no file extension, inside the profile folder. The browser's own export writes bookmarks.html, but the export needs the browser running with that profile.

That leaves a gap in common situations:

- **A dead or wiped computer** whose disk you can still read.
- **A backup** of the user data folder, restored somewhere else.
- **A second profile** you do not want to sign in to just to export.

In all three, the `Bookmarks` file is there and the export button is not.

## Where Is the Bookmarks File?

The file sits in the profile folder, usually called `Default`. These are the default locations, from the browsers' own documentation and source code:

| Browser | System | Path |
|---|---|---|
| Chrome | Windows | `%LOCALAPPDATA%\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default\Bookmarks` |
| Chrome | macOS | `~/Library/Application Support/Google/Chrome/Default/Bookmarks` |
| Chrome | Linux | `~/.config/google-chrome/Default/Bookmarks` |
| Edge | Windows | `%LOCALAPPDATA%\Microsoft\Edge\User Data\Default\Bookmarks` |
| Brave | Windows | `%LOCALAPPDATA%\BraveSoftware\Brave-Browser\User Data\Default\Bookmarks` |
| Brave | macOS | `~/Library/Application Support/BraveSoftware/Brave-Browser/Default/Bookmarks` |
| Brave | Linux | `~/.config/BraveSoftware/Brave-Browser/Default/Bookmarks` |

A second profile uses its own folder name instead of `Default`. In a running Chrome, `chrome://version` shows the profile path. Copy the file first, then work with the copy.

## How to Convert It

### Step 1: Open the file in the tool

Open FindUtils [Bookmarks JSON to HTML](/convert/bookmarks-json-to-html/) and upload the copied `Bookmarks` file, drop it on the input, or paste its text. The upload dialog shows every file, because this one has no extension.

### Step 2: Check what was found

The tool names the format it detected (a Chrome, Edge or Brave profile file, a Firefox JSON backup, or a simple JSON tree) and counts the root folders, folders and links, plus any entries skipped for having no address.

### Step 3: Choose what to include

Three options, all on by default: include the Mobile / synced bookmarks, include Other bookmarks, and keep the date each bookmark was added.

### Step 4: Download and import

Download `bookmarks.html` and import it with your browser's bookmark import.

## Which Files Does It Read?

| Input | Where it comes from | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Chromium profile file | The `Bookmarks` file of Chrome, Edge or Brave | Bookmarks bar, Other bookmarks and Mobile bookmarks become top-level folders |
| Firefox JSON backup | Firefox Library, then Import and Backup, then Backup | Toolbar, Menu, Other and Mobile become top-level folders; separators are left out |
| Simple JSON tree | Your own export or script | Objects with `title` or `name`, `url`, `uri` or `href`, and `children`, or an array of them |

Firefox's automatic backups are compressed `.jsonlz4` files. They are not plain JSON, and this tool does not read them; use Backup to write a plain `.json` file instead.

## What Survives the Conversion

| Carried over | Not carried over |
|---|---|
| Titles (a link with no title gets its address as its title) | Favicons |
| Addresses | Descriptions, Firefox tags and keywords |
| Folders and their nesting | Folder dates |
| The date each bookmark was added | Separators and empty folders |

Chromium stores the added date in microseconds since 1601, and Firefox in microseconds since 1970. Both are converted to the Unix seconds bookmarks.html uses. A date that falls outside 1990 to 2100 after conversion is left out rather than written wrong.

Root folders are written as ordinary folders. After importing, the old bookmark bar arrives as a folder called Bookmarks bar, not as the browser's own toolbar; move its contents where you want them.

## Practical Examples

**Rescuing bookmarks from an old laptop.** Copy `Default/Bookmarks` from the old disk, convert it, and import `bookmarks.html` into the new browser.

**Two profiles into one browser.** Convert each profile's `Bookmarks` file, then combine the two with [Merge Bookmarks](/convert/merge-bookmarks/) before importing once.

**Moving to Firefox without Chrome installed.** Convert the copied `Bookmarks` file and import it in Firefox with Import Bookmarks from HTML.

## Common Mistakes

**Looking for a .json file.** Chrome's file is named just `Bookmarks`. Next to it there may be `Bookmarks.bak`, an older copy.

**Uploading a Firefox .jsonlz4 backup.** It is compressed and is refused as not JSON. Make a plain backup from the Library window.

**Expecting a live sync.** The converted file is a snapshot of the JSON you gave it. Nothing connects to a browser account, and no link is opened.

## Tools Used in This Guide

| Tool | Use |
|---|---|
| [Bookmarks JSON to HTML](/convert/bookmarks-json-to-html/) | Convert a profile Bookmarks file or Firefox backup to bookmarks.html |
| [Merge Bookmarks](/convert/merge-bookmarks/) | Combine several converted files into one |
| [Dedupe Bookmarks](/convert/dedupe-bookmarks/) | Remove duplicate links before importing |
| [Bookmarks HTML to CSV](/convert/bookmarks-html-to-csv/) | Review the converted bookmarks in a spreadsheet |

## FAQ

### Where is Chrome's Bookmarks file on Windows?

By default at `%LOCALAPPDATA%\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default\Bookmarks`. A second profile has its own folder instead of `Default`, and `chrome://version` shows the profile path of the one you are using.

### Why can't I find the Bookmarks file in the upload dialog?

It has no file extension, so dialogs that filter by type hide it. Bookmarks JSON to HTML's upload shows every file. On a Mac, the profile folder is inside the hidden Library folder; in the file dialog, Command-Shift-G opens a path directly.

### Does it work with Edge and Brave?

Yes. Both are built on Chromium and keep bookmarks in the same `Bookmarks` JSON format as Chrome.

### Can I convert a Firefox bookmarks backup?

Yes, a plain JSON backup made with Library, then Import and Backup, then Backup. The compressed `.jsonlz4` automatic backups are not read.

### Is my bookmarks file uploaded?

No. The file is read and converted in the browser tab, and no request carries it.

## Next Steps

Copy your profile's `Bookmarks` file and convert it with [Bookmarks JSON to HTML](/convert/bookmarks-json-to-html/). To combine it with other exports, use [Merge Bookmarks](/convert/merge-bookmarks/).