Where apps hide your files

Finding Firefox's bookmarkbackups folder

Updated 2026-10-28 · 5 min read

Firefox writes automatic backups of your bookmarks into a folder called bookmarkbackups, inside your profile in Library. You can open it, see which backup still has your bookmarks, and restore it from the Library window.

The location

Firefox keeps its automatic bookmark backups in a folder called bookmarkbackups inside your profile:

~/Library/Application Support/Firefox/Profiles/<random>.default-release/bookmarkbackups/

<random> is a different eight-character string on every Mac, so a real folder looks like abcd1234.default-release. Match it with a wildcard, or let Firefox open the folder for you (next section). The backups are the .jsonlz4 files in that folder.

Open the right profile folder

Many Macs have two profile folders, an old default one and a default-release one, and only one of them is in use. The reliable way to find it:

1. In Firefox, choose Help > More Troubleshooting Information (or type about:support in the address bar).
2. In the Application Basics table, find Profile Folder and click Show in Finder.

Finder opens the profile in use. bookmarkbackups is inside it. You can also check ~/Library/Application Support/Firefox/profiles.ini: the [Install...] section names the default profile for your copy of Firefox.

From Terminal, list the backups (names and sizes only):

ls -la ~/Library/Application\ Support/Firefox/Profiles/*/bookmarkbackups

What the backup files are

Backups are named like this:

bookmarks-2026-10-02_525_<hash>.jsonlz4

Part	Meaning
2026-10-02	The date the backup was made.
525	The number of bookmarks in it, so you can spot the backup from before a mass deletion.
<hash>	A fingerprint of the contents.
.jsonlz4	Bookmarks as JSON, compressed with LZ4. Not readable in a text editor.

Firefox keeps up to 15 by default. That limit is the browser.bookmarks.max_backups preference: the browser's own defaults file sets it to 15, overriding a lower toolkit default of 5, and the folder on the Mac used for this guide held six backups. Firefox makes at most one backup a day, while the browser sits idle, so days you did not use it leave gaps (months apart in places on that Mac). Past 15, it deletes the oldest.

The count in the filename is the quickest way to pick a backup. If you lost bookmarks, choose the newest file that still shows the higher number.

Restoring bookmarks from a backup

Restoring replaces every current bookmark with the backup. Take a fresh backup first if your current set has anything you want to keep.

1. Choose Bookmarks > Manage Bookmarks to open the Library window.
2. Click Import and Backup in its toolbar.
3. Choose Restore. Firefox lists its automatic backups by date, with the file size and bookmark count. Pick one.
4. Confirm the prompt that says it will replace all of your current bookmarks.

To restore from a file that is not in that list, for example a backup you copied from another Mac, choose Import and Backup > Restore > Choose File… and select it. If Firefox says "Unsupported file type." or "Unable to process the backup file.", the file is not a Firefox JSON backup, or it is damaged.

Making a backup you control

The automatic files are good for accidents, but a backup you make on purpose is easier to keep and move:

• Import and Backup > Backup… saves a .json file wherever you choose, such as an external drive or cloud folder.
• Import and Backup > Export Bookmarks to HTML… saves a .html file that other browsers can import. Use it to move bookmarks to another browser; for Firefox itself, the JSON backup is the one Restore reads.

To bring an HTML file into Firefox, use Import Bookmarks from HTML… in the same menu. That adds bookmarks to what you already have, instead of replacing them.

Moving bookmarks to a new Mac

Three routes, from simplest:

1. Use Backup… on the old Mac and Restore > Choose File… on the new one.
2. Copy one .jsonlz4 file from bookmarkbackups into the same folder in the new profile and restore it from the Restore list. Quit Firefox before copying.
3. Sign in to your Mozilla account (formerly Firefox account) and let sync carry the bookmarks, if you already use it.

Do not copy places.sqlite out of a running profile. That file is the live database of bookmarks and history, and it is accompanied by -wal and -shm files while Firefox is open, so a copy taken then can be inconsistent.

Space and safe cleanup

Each backup is small. The ones on the Mac used for this guide ranged from about 1 KB to about 67 KB, so the folder never matters for disk space. There is no reason to delete files from it, and the 15-file limit means it stays tidy on its own. If you want fewer files, change browser.bookmarks.max_backups on the about:config page rather than deleting by hand.

Do not delete places.sqlite or favicons.sqlite to "fix" a bookmark problem. They hold your live bookmarks, history and site icons, and removing them loses data that a backup may not have.

Why Finder and Spotlight searches do not show them

The profile lives under ~/Library, and Spotlight and Finder searches leave results from there out, so a search for "bookmarks" shows nothing from this folder.

Finding them again later

Typing bookmarks-2026 or just bookmarkbackups into Everywhere lists every backup file with its date and bookmark count in the name, across every Firefox profile on the Mac, including the old default one you may have forgotten. Press ⌘↵ to reveal one in Finder. It searches file names only, so it cannot tell you what is inside a backup. The Restore menu in Firefox does that.

Common questions

Where are Firefox bookmark backups stored on a Mac?

In ~/Library/Application Support/Firefox/Profiles/<random>.default-release/bookmarkbackups/. In Firefox, Help > More Troubleshooting Information > Profile Folder > Show in Finder opens the right profile.

How do I restore Firefox bookmarks from a backup?

Choose Bookmarks > Manage Bookmarks, then Import and Backup > Restore, and pick a dated backup. Restore > Choose File… lets you pick a backup file from elsewhere. Restoring replaces all current bookmarks.

How many bookmark backups does Firefox keep?

Up to 15 by default, set by the browser.bookmarks.max_backups preference. Firefox makes at most one a day and removes the oldest once there are more than 15.

Can I open a .jsonlz4 bookmark backup in a text editor?

No, it is JSON compressed with LZ4, so it looks like binary. Restore it from Firefox, or use Backup… to save a plain .json file you can read.