Guide

How to download Facebook data: export your information to HTML or JSON

Here is how to download Facebook data from Accounts Centre, whether you want to read it or move it. Facebook's export lives in Accounts Centre, under Your information and permissions, and you can take it as HTML to read or JSON to move to another service.

1. Find Export your information

Facebook's help page gives this path: your profile picture, then Settings and Privacy, then Settings, then Accounts Centre, then Your information and permissions, then Export your information and Create export.

2. Pick the profile and the destination

Choose your profile, then Export to device or Export to external service. With an external service you pick it and follow its authentication prompts.

3. Choose the format and options

HTML is the easy-to-view format: a ZIP file with an index you open in your browser, including images and videos. JSON is machine-readable and suits moving data to another service.

You can also set the information categories, a date range, a notification email and the media quality. Higher quality makes the file larger.

4. Start the export and download it

Click Start export. For an export to your device, Facebook gives you 4 days to download it from the Available downloads section.

If you run a Page for someone else

This export is about your own information. For results on a client's posts, a report by client and period is more useful than an archive.

Dripost insights for Facebook show reactions, comments and shares, and each client's reports sit under that client. Reports are on the Pro plan.

Sources

Facebook Help: download a copy of your information

Questions

HTML or JSON?

HTML is for reading in a browser; JSON is for moving the data into another service.