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@samuelsmal
Last active February 27, 2025 21:53
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how to export notes and highlights from kobo

Steps

  1. connect kobo to your device
  2. open a file browser and navigate to the mounted kobo folder
  3. navigate to the hidden folder .kobo/Kobo
  4. open the file Kobo eReader.conf
  5. navigate to the section [FeatureSettings], if it doesn't exist, create it.
  6. add the line ExportHighlights=true and save
  7. disconnect the device
  8. now you can long press on a book and export the note file into a .txt file which will be saved alongside your books. to get it connect your ereader.

Tested on

Working

  • Kobo Clara HD
  • Kobo Libra
  • Kobo Libra 2
  • Kobo Nia
  • Kobo Glo

Not Working

  • Kobo Elipsa (not necessary, default functionality)
  • Kobo Libra Colour

Source

https://www.matteopezzi.com/how-to-export-annotations-on-kobo-aura/

Further reading

See also Export-Kobo.

@kinower
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kinower commented Dec 19, 2024

Kobo Libra Color does work

@hi-upchen
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Thank you for this comprehensive script. As a fellow Kobo lover, I’ve tried many of these methods, but I often found them either too complicated or requiring additional installations. Inspired by these challenges, I built a simple web app to make exporting Kobo highlights and notes easier: Kobo Note Up. https://kobo-up.runawayup.com/

With this tool, there’s:

  • No software to install: Everything works directly in your browser.
  • No hidden file hunting: Just connect your Kobo device, select the folder, and the app will automatically locate the database.
  • Organized output: Export notes and highlights combined with section headers, available in TXT or Markdown formats. Markdown makes it easy to import directly into Notion!

I’d love for you to try it out and see how it compares to the methods in the article. It’s free and designed to save time for anyone who enjoys using their Kobo for knowledge-rich reading. Let me know if you have any feedback to improve it further! 😊

@mamvangils
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Hey I made a tool to export highlights from an ereader and made it available for free on www.kobohighlightsexport.com. Let me know what you think :)

@uzluisf
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uzluisf commented Feb 27, 2025

Nice job, @hi-upchen and @mamvangils. Is your code open source by any chance? If it is, it'd be cool if you could link to the repos in your comments.

Edit: hi-upchen's project: https://github.com/hi-upchen/kobo-up

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