Guides & how-tos

Everything about JW Library backups, in plain steps: merging devices, moving to a new phone, rescuing notes, and getting more out of the library you already have. Every tool mentioned runs free in your browser — your files are never uploaded.

Getting started

• How to Merge JW Library Backups from Two DevicesCombine the notes, highlights, bookmarks and tags from two or more JW Library backups into one .jwlibrary file — free, private, in your browser.
• How to Sync JW Library Between Multiple DevicesJW Library has no built-in sync between devices. Here's a simple, private routine to keep notes, highlights and bookmarks identical on your phone, tablet and computer.
• How to Transfer JW Library Notes to a New PhoneMoving JW Library notes to a new phone is a backup and a restore, and the app handles it in about two minutes. Here are the steps — plus the one case it cannot handle, when the new phone already has notes of its own.
• Move JW Library from Android to iPhone (Keep All Notes)The .jwlibrary backup format is identical on Android and iOS. How to move your notes, highlights and bookmarks across platforms — and merge if both devices have notes.
• How to Back Up JW Library the Right WayA 30-second backup routine: what a .jwlibrary file actually holds, where to keep it, and why a current one is worth having even when nothing has gone wrong.
• What Is a .jwlibrary File and How Do You Open It?A .jwlibrary file is your JW Library backup: a single file holding every note, highlight, bookmark and tag. Here's what's inside it and how to open and read it.
• Back Up and Merge JW Library on a Windows PCHow to back up JW Library on Windows, and how to merge a PC backup with your phone and tablet so notes, highlights and bookmarks stay together on every device.

Sharing scenarios

• Share Only the JW Library Notes Under One TagSend one topic, one project or one student's worth of notes instead of your whole library — and your tags travel with them, so they arrive organised on the other side.
• Share JW Library Notes with a Bible StudentSend the notes for a lesson — scriptures, illustrations, the points you prepared — straight into the other person's own JW Library, without touching anything they have written themselves.
• Share Meeting Notes with Your Family or HouseholdSomeone was sick, working or away — send them the week's notes as a small file they can add to their own JW Library, without either of you losing anything.
• Someone Sent Me JW Library Notes — How Do I Open Them?You were sent a shared-notes file or a block of shared text. Here's how to preview it and add it to your own JW Library backup without losing a single note of your own.
• Share Research Notes with a Study GroupOne file, many people: send a set of research notes to everyone studying the same subject, and gather what they send back into a single, combined set of your own.
• Hand Off the Research Behind a Talk or AssignmentYou did the digging for a talk, a part or an assignment. Here's how to hand the research to whoever needs it next — as real notes in their library, or as plain text for a document.

Everyday scenarios

• Prepare for the Meeting Using Notes You Already WroteYou've studied this material before. Here's a short weekly routine that surfaces your old notes, highlights and fill-in answers on the same publication before you prepare again.
• How to Print Your JW Library NotesJW Library has no print button. Export your notes as text or Markdown, paste them into any document, and print — a study journal, a set of notes for someone without the app, or an archive.
• Clean Up Duplicate and Empty JW Library NotesRestored a backup twice, or imported the same notes again? Library Doctor scans your .jwlibrary file in the browser, finds duplicates and empty notes, and produces a clean copy.
• Back Up JW Library Before a Factory Reset or RepairA reset wipes JW Library's notes with everything else, and phone-transfer tools don't carry them. Make a backup, verify it actually opens, then reset with nothing at risk.
• Help a Family Member Move Their JW Library NotesYou're the one who gets asked to fix the phone. Here's the shortest reliable path to move a relative's JW Library notes to a new device — including how to do it without reading their notes.

Fixing problems

• JW Library Restore Replaced Your Notes? How to Get Them BackJW Library's restore is a full swap, not a merge — notes made after the backup date seem gone. If you still have both backup files, nothing is lost. Here's the fix.
• Fix a Corrupted JW Library Backup That Won't RestoreJW Library refuses to restore your .jwlibrary file? Library Doctor scans the backup in your browser, repairs common problems, and produces a clean copy that restores.
• How to Recover JW Library Notes After a Lost or Broken PhoneLost your phone or had it reset with JW Library notes on it? What you can recover depends on your backups. Here's exactly how to get your notes back — and what to do next time.
• Same Note Edited on Two Devices? Handling Merge ConflictsWhen you edit the same JW Library note differently on two devices, merging has to choose a winner. The Conflict Reviewer shows both versions side by side so you decide — nothing is lost.
• JW Library Notes Missing After an Update or ReinstallYour notes vanished after updating, reinstalling or signing in again. What to do first, what not to do, and how to get them back without losing anything you've written since.

Power tools

• View and Edit JW Library Notes in Your BrowserOpen any .jwlibrary backup in your browser to browse, search, edit, retag, recolour and bulk-clean your JW Library notes, highlights and bookmarks. Nothing uploaded.
• Search JW Library Notes by Meaning — Ask Your LibrarySemantic search for your JW Library notes: find that half-remembered note by describing it, even when you can't recall its exact words. On-device, offline-capable, private.
• See Your JW Library Study Stats: Streaks, Heatmaps & AwardsTurn a JW Library backup into private study analytics — totals, activity heatmap, streaks, Bible coverage across 66 books, a study personality profile and ~200 awards.
• How to Share JW Library Notes with a FriendSend selected JW Library notes (and their highlights) to a friend as a small file — no server, no account. The receiver merges them in without overwriting their own notes.
• A Daily Bible Reading Plan with Your Own Notes Beside ItA private daily Bible reading schedule that shows the notes and highlights you made on today's chapters. Pick your pace, keep a streak, watch the 66-book grid fill in.
• How to Import Markdown Notes into JW LibraryTurn .md files from Obsidian, Notion or any Markdown editor into real JW Library notes, placed on the right verse — free, private, in your browser.
• How to Write a Markdown File That Imports into JW LibraryWrite a note in Notepad, TextEdit or Obsidian and have it land on the right verse in JW Library. The exact lines to type, and everything you can leave out.
• How to Export JW Library Notes to Text or MarkdownGet your JW Library notes out of the app: copy or export them as Markdown/plain text for use anywhere, or extract a selection into a new .jwlibrary backup. All in your browser.
• How to Organize and Clean Up JW Library TagsTags multiply over years of study. Rename a tag across every note, merge duplicates, and remove ones you no longer use — in bulk, in your browser, with full undo.
• How to Manage and Recolour JW Library HighlightsBring order to years of JW Library highlights: change colours in bulk, give your colour code a consistent meaning, and browse every highlight in one place. In your browser.
• View and Edit Your JW Library Fill-in Study AnswersYour typed answers to study-article and workbook questions are hidden in your backup. Study Explorer's Study Answers tab lets you read, search and edit them all at once.
• Extract JW Library Notes from a Date Range into a New BackupPull just the notes from a specific period — a service year, a convention, a study project — into their own clean .jwlibrary backup. Entirely in your browser.
• See How Your JW Library Notes Connect — Study MapStudy Map turns your JW Library notes into an interactive web, linking them by shared scriptures, shared tags and similar wording — so you can see the themes running through your study.
• How to Review Your Old JW Library Notes (So They Stick)Notes you never revisit are notes you forget. Resurface shows what you wrote on this day in past years and builds a gentle spaced-repetition review, so past study keeps working for you.
• JW Library Study Streaks, Levels and AchievementsSee your study streaks, climb 60 levels across 12 tiers on your Study Journey, and unlock around 200 achievements — all read privately from your own JW Library backup.
• How to Share Convention and Assembly Notes from JW LibraryPass your convention, assembly or meeting notes to family and friends as a small file — without handing over your whole library or overwriting theirs. A practical use of note sharing.