Where apps hide your files
Reminders keeps its lists in SQLite database files, one set per account, and the folder they sit in has moved between macOS releases. Here is where to look, what the files are, and why the safe backups all go through the app or iCloud.
On macOS Sequoia (checked on 15.6), the stores are in a group container:
~/Library/Group Containers/group.com.apple.reminders/Container_v1/Stores/Some Macs and earlier releases keep the same Container_v1/Stores layout in a plain Library folder instead:
~/Library/Reminders/Container_v1/Stores/On the Sequoia Mac checked, ~/Library/Reminders existed but held only a DataAccess folder, and the real stores were in the group container. If one path is missing or empty, look in the other.
Inside Stores you will see files named Data-<long identifier>.sqlite, each with companion -shm and -wal files and a hidden support folder. There is roughly one set per account Reminders knows about (iCloud, On My Mac, Exchange and so on), so several sets is normal. The identifier is generated and does not tell you which account a set belongs to.
Go > Go to Folder (⇧⌘G), then paste the path. Or in Terminal:
open ~/Library/Group\ Containers/group.com.apple.reminders/Container_v1/StoresTo confirm which location your Mac uses, list both. These commands only read names:
ls ~/Library/Group\ Containers | grep -i reminders
ls ~/Library/Reminders| File | Role |
|---|---|
Data-<id>.sqlite | The lists and reminders for one account |
Data-<id>.sqlite-wal | Recent changes not yet merged into the main file |
Data-<id>.sqlite-shm | Shared memory index for the database |
.Data-<id>_SUPPORT | Hidden support folder for that store |
Next to Stores in the group container you may also see Files, MLModels and Stores-StagedMigration. Apple does not document them. The names suggest attachments, on-device suggestions and a migration between storage formats, but treat that as a guess and leave them alone.
The database files belong together, and they are never truly idle. A background service called remindd keeps them open even when the Reminders app is quit, so a hand-made copy can catch them halfway through a write. Do not open the databases either: they hold private text, and a program that opens them can change them.
Reminders has no export command in its File menu, so the practical routes are these.
Both, depending on the account. An iCloud list is held on Apple's servers and cached in the stores above. A list under On My Mac exists only in the local database, so those are the lists at risk if the Mac is wiped. The sidebar headings show which account each list belongs to.
For iCloud lists, a new Mac needs no copying, only sign-in. Time Machine includes these folders, and Migration Assistant moves them. Copying the stores by hand and dropping them onto another Mac is not a supported route, and because remindd keeps the files open, a manual copy may not be consistent. For On My Mac lists you care about, the reliable answer is to keep that kind of list in your iCloud account instead, or at least print it to PDF before wiping the Mac.
The databases stay small: the whole group container was about 10 MB on the Mac checked. To tidy up, complete or delete reminders inside the app. Never delete files in Stores: a missing store takes an account's lists with it, and for On My Mac lists there is no server copy to come back from.
Before the reminders upgrade that arrived with macOS Catalina, reminders were kept with calendar data under ~/Library/Calendars. A Mac upgraded across many releases may still carry those old folders alongside the newer stores.
Two read-only commands answer most questions. The total size:
du -sh ~/Library/Group\ Containers/group.com.apple.remindersThe store files with their dates, newest first:
ls -lt ~/Library/Group\ Containers/group.com.apple.reminders/Container_v1/StoresA store whose modified time keeps changing belongs to an account you use. An old one may belong to an account you removed. Do not guess from the names, and never delete a store to test the theory. The account names are in the Reminders sidebar.
Both locations sit under ~/Library, which Spotlight leaves out of its results, and the database names are generated, so there is nothing a normal search would match.
Reminders keeps its stores in places macOS hides from other apps, so Everywhere needs Full Disk Access before it can list them. With that granted, typing Container_v1 or Data- lists the store files and their companions in whichever of the two locations your Mac uses, which is the quickest way to settle where your version keeps them. ⌘↵ reveals a result in Finder. It searches names, not the reminders written inside the databases.
On macOS Sequoia, in ~/Library/Group Containers/group.com.apple.reminders/Container_v1/Stores, as Data-<identifier>.sqlite files. Some Macs and earlier releases use ~/Library/Reminders/Container_v1/Stores instead.
Keep important lists in iCloud, which restores them when you sign in on a new Mac, and rely on Time Machine for the local files. To archive a list, choose File > Print and save it as a PDF.
Reminders has no export command. The closest supported option is printing a list to PDF with File > Print.
Reminders keeps roughly one database per account, such as iCloud, On My Mac or Exchange, each with its own -wal and -shm companions.
Everywhere keeps track of every file on your Mac — including the folders Spotlight hides and drives you have unplugged. Free for a day, then $19 once.
Version 2.20.3 · macOS 13+ · 4.7 MB · notarised