Where apps hide your files

Finding the Ulysses library and backups

Updated 2026-10-28 · 6 min read

Ulysses hides your sheets inside its own library, so you cannot browse them like documents in Finder. What you can reach is the Backups folder, the app's Browse Backups command, and any external folders you added.

The one path Ulysses documents

Ulysses' help gives this location for automatic backups on a Mac:

~/Library/Group Containers/X5AZV975AG.com.soulmen.shared/Ulysses/Backups/

To open it: in Finder press ⇧⌘G, paste the path and press Return. From Terminal:

open ~/Library/Group\ Containers/X5AZV975AG.com.soulmen.shared/Ulysses/Backups/

Inside the app, you can also right-click a backup and choose Reveal in Finder, per Ulysses' help. If the folder is missing, check what exists with:

ls ~/Library/Group\ Containers | grep -i soulmen

Where the library itself is

Ulysses does not publish an on-disk path for the library. Its help describes two sections, Projects and Notes. With iCloud on, both sync through iCloud, which Ulysses says it uses only for syncing, not as a backup, and the sheets are not shown as files in Finder's iCloud Drive. Turn on Allow Local Notes and a further section, Notes (On My Mac), appears: its contents stay on that Mac and do not sync.

Since the vendor does not document the folder layout, this guide does not either. If you only want to see which folders exist, these read-only commands list them without opening anything:

ls ~/Library/Mobile\ Documents | grep -i -e soulmen -e ulysses
ls ~/Library/Group\ Containers/X5AZV975AG.com.soulmen.shared/Ulysses

Sheets are not plain files you open from Finder, and moving or renaming things in the library folders by hand is how libraries break. If you want files you can see, there are two supported routes, covered below: export, and external folders.

Backups: how many, and how to use them

From Ulysses' own backup help:

• Automatic local backups are kept as 24 hourly, 14 daily, 26 weekly and an unlimited number of monthly backups. Ulysses must be open for at least five minutes to create one.
• To make one yourself on the Mac: Ulysses > Settings > Backup, then Backup now. Manual backups show a lock icon and are not deleted automatically.
• Backups cover Projects and both kinds of Notes, but not External Folders.
• Local backups do not sync. Each device keeps only its own.

On the Mac, choose File > Browse Backups… and select a backup; it opens in a window with a yellow-and-black striped border. To restore a project or group, right-click it and choose Restore to Projects or Restore to Notes. To restore a single sheet, right-click it and choose Restore to …. Per the help, restored Projects sheets go to Pending and Notes sheets go to Inbox.

External folders keep real files you can see

If you want plain files on disk, use External Folders. In Ulysses' help, on the Mac: Ulysses > Settings > Sidebar, turn on External Folders, then open the External Folders section of the library and click Add Folder…. A folder can be local or in a cloud service. Each one is read as Markdown (the default, for the widest compatibility with other apps) or in Ulysses' own format, which keeps attachments and Markdown XL features.

One catch: Ulysses does not create automatic backups of external folders, so they need your own backup, such as Time Machine or the cloud service's history.

Space and clean-up

Backups accumulate, because the monthly set is unlimited. If the folder has grown, check the size before deciding anything:

du -sh ~/Library/Group\ Containers/X5AZV975AG.com.soulmen.shared/Ulysses/Backups

Deleting old backups costs you restore points, nothing else, but do it from Finder with Ulysses quit, and keep manual backups (the ones with the lock icon) unless you are sure. Do not touch the rest of the shared container.

Moving to a new Mac

With iCloud sync on, sign in to the same Apple ID on the new Mac, install Ulysses and let Projects and Notes download. Check that it is complete before wiping the old Mac. Notes (On My Mac) sheets do not travel through iCloud, so export them first. Backups are not synced either, so copy the Backups folder separately if you want your restore history.

Getting sheets out for good

Backups are for restoring inside Ulysses, so they are not the right way to hand your writing to someone else or to another app. For that, use the app's own export commands (check the File menu in your version, since the formats on offer change between releases) and keep the exported files somewhere you control. An export is readable without Ulysses, and a backup is not.

A backup also lives on the same disk as the library, so if the Mac fails, both go. Ulysses' own answer for real backups is Time Machine, which covers ~/Library and so picks up the Backups folder; an external folder in a cloud service needs that service's own history.

Why Finder and Spotlight find nothing

The backups and library sit under ~/Library, and Spotlight and Finder searches leave ~/Library results out. Sheets in the library are not individual documents anyway, so even a perfect search would not return them by title.

Finding it again later

Searching for soulmen in Everywhere shows the shared container and the Ulysses folder inside it, and a folder name such as Backups narrows it further. Group Containers are among the places macOS protects, so Everywhere includes them once it has Full Disk Access. It matches file names only, not the text of sheets, and it cannot open a backup for you. Press ⌘↵ to reveal a result in Finder.

Common questions

Where are Ulysses backups stored on a Mac?

In ~/Library/Group Containers/X5AZV975AG.com.soulmen.shared/Ulysses/Backups/, per Ulysses' help. You can also right-click a backup in the app and choose Reveal in Finder.

Can I see my Ulysses sheets in Finder?

Not from the library, which Ulysses does not document as a folder of files. Use External Folders (Ulysses > Settings > Sidebar) for files you can open in Finder.

How many backups does Ulysses keep?

Per its help: 24 hourly, 14 daily, 26 weekly and unlimited monthly automatic backups. Manual backups with the lock icon are not deleted automatically.

Does iCloud back up Ulysses?

No. Ulysses uses iCloud only to sync between devices and points to Time Machine for backups. Its own local backups stay on each device and do not sync.