Documentation

ChatMirror User Guide

Everything you need to import, browse, and organize your AI conversation history.

Overview

ChatMirror is a desktop application for reading your ChatGPT and Claude conversation exports. Your data stays entirely on your machine — ChatMirror reads local files only.

The basic workflow is: export your conversations from ChatGPT or Claude, locate the conversations.json file (or conversations-001.json for newer ChatGPT exports) inside the archive, and import it into ChatMirror with the Import button on the toolbar.

Exporting from ChatGPT

In ChatGPT, open Settings from the bottom-left menu.

Go to Data Controls and click Export data.

Confirm the export. OpenAI will email you a download link — this can take up to 24 hours.

Download the .zip file and extract it. Inside you will find several files and folders.

Locate conversations.json — or conversations-001.json for newer exports — in the top-level folder of the extracted archive. This is the file ChatMirror needs.

Note: The export ZIP contains many files. You only need conversations.json — or for newer exports, conversations-001.json and similar.

Exporting from Claude

In Claude, open Settings from your account menu.

Navigate to Privacy and select Export data.

Anthropic will email you a download link. Download and extract the .zip file.

Locate conversations.json in the top-level folder of the extracted archive. This is the file ChatMirror needs.

Importing into ChatMirror

Click the Import button on the main toolbar.

In the file dialog, navigate to your extracted export folder and select your conversations.json file (or conversations-001.json for newer ChatGPT exports).

A dialog will appear. You can optionally check Create project for this import to group the conversations into their own project. If you skip this, they go into the general All Chats list.

Click OK. A progress bar will appear at the bottom of the screen while your conversations load.

Sidebar & Projects

The left sidebar is divided into two areas: a Projects panel at the top and an All Chats list below it. The sidebar can be collapsed using the toggle button on the main toolbar for a fuller reading view.

Creating a project

Click the +Project button at the top of the Projects panel. Type a name in the box that appears, then click Create to confirm. The new project appears in the Projects panel.

Navigating projects

Click a project to view its contents in the list below. A back arrow labeled All Chats appears above the list — click it to return to All Chats.

Viewing Conversations

Click any conversation in the All Chats list to open it in the main reading pane. To zoom the text, hold Ctrl and scroll the mouse wheel while hovering over the reading pane.

Right-click menu

Right-clicking a conversation in the list gives you the following options:

Rename — change the conversation title
Delete — remove it from ChatMirror
Export — export the chat as a Markdown or plain text file
Move to project — move it into any project you have created

The same right-click options are available on projects in the Projects panel.

Search & Filtering

The search bar above the All Chats list filters conversations by keyword as you type. Use the sort controls beside the search bar to sort by title or date in ascending or descending order.

Exporting

ChatMirror can export conversations as Markdown or plain text. Select the format from the dropdown beside the Export button, then click Export. A file dialog will ask where to save the output.

If a single conversation is selected, that conversation is exported as one file.
If a project is selected, the entire project is exported as a .zip file.

The info bar at the bottom of the window shows what is currently selected for export before you proceed.

You can also access import and export options through the File menu. The File menu also includes Delete All Conversations (to clear everything and start fresh) and Find in Chat (to search the current conversation for a specific word).

FAQ & Troubleshooting

I extracted the ZIP but I can't find conversations.json.

Look in the top-level folder of the extracted archive — not inside any subfolders. The file will be named conversations.json, or for newer exports, conversations-001.json and similar.

The file dialog won't let me select my JSON file.

Make sure you are selecting the conversations.json file specifically. Other files in the export folder are not supported.

My import finished but I don't see any conversations.

If you checked Create project for this import, your conversations were placed in a new project. Click that project in the Projects panel to view them. If you did not check that option, look in the All Chats list.

Can I import both ChatGPT and Claude exports?

Yes. Import each export file separately. You can keep them organized by importing each into its own project.