What is the EXB file format?
An .exb file is the local database used by Evernote Legacy (versions 1 through 6) on Windows. Internally it is a standard SQLite 3 database, identified by the SQLite format 3 magic string at the start of the file, and can be inspected with any SQLite browser.
The database stores all of a user's notes (content encoded as ENML, Evernote's HTML-derived markup), notebooks, tags, attachment blobs, sync state, and metadata including creation date, source URL, and location. An AES-256-CBC-encrypted authentication token is also stored inside. Note content itself is not encrypted - only the auth token is. File size scales with note count and attachments, commonly ranging from a few megabytes to many gigabytes.
On Windows, Evernote Legacy placed the .exb file at C:\Users\<User>\Evernote\Databases\<username>.exb.
Evernote v10, launched in October 2020, abandoned the .exb format in favour of a cloud-sync architecture with a different local cache. Evernote Legacy (v6.25.1) was officially decommissioned on 26 March 2024, at which point legacy clients lost sync access. To migrate notes, users needed to export to .enex using the Legacy app before that date, or use open-source tools such as evernote-backup to extract data directly from the SQLite tables.
Security & safety
RISK: LOWEXB files contain personal note data including potentially sensitive documents and attachments. The file itself is not executable and poses no malware risk. The embedded auth token is AES-256-CBC encrypted. Protect .exb backup files from unauthorised access as they contain unencrypted note content.
Format details
in a nutshell- Expression Blend project file - Microsoft Expression Blend (discontinued Silverlight/XAML designer) used .exb for project files - unrelated to Evernote.
Programs that open EXB files
Windows3 apps
DB Browser for SQLite
Open-source File > Open Database, select the .exb file. Browse tables directly; export note content from the 'content' column.
Evernote (v10, current)
Freemium Evernote v10 does NOT open .exb files directly. Use it to import ENEX files exported from Legacy.
evernote-backup (CLI tool)
Open-source Python CLI that reads notes from an Evernote account and can work with exported .exb data to produce ENEX files. Technical details
deep spec| Underlying format | SQLite 3 database - magic string `SQLite format 3\x00` at file offset 0 |
| Platform | Windows only (Evernote Legacy for Windows v1-v6.25.1) |
| Default file path | `C:\Users\<User>\Evernote\Databases\<username>.exb` on Windows |
| Note content encoding | ENML (Evernote Markup Language, HTML-derived) stored as text blobs in SQLite tables |
| Encryption | Authentication token: AES-256-CBC encrypted. Note content and attachments: unencrypted plaintext/blobs |
| Byte order | Big-endian (SQLite internal header convention) |
| Typical file size | 5 MB - 10 GB+ depending on note count, attachments, and sync history |
| Attachment storage | Binary blobs inline in the SQLite Resources table |
| Schema versioning | Schema differs across Evernote Legacy v3-v6; Evernote v10 does not read `.exb` files |
| Decommission date | 26 March 2024 - Evernote Legacy officially decommissioned; legacy clients lost sync access |
| Migration path | Export to `.enex` via Evernote Legacy app (before March 2024), or `evernote-backup` open-source CLI |
| Inspection | Any SQLite browser (e.g. DB Browser for SQLite) can open and browse tables directly |
| Compression | None at file level; SQLite page-level compression not used in Evernote Legacy builds |
| Released | circa 2008-2010 (Evernote Windows desktop app v1-v6) |
| Latest version | Used through Evernote Legacy (v6.25.1, last legacy build 2019); superseded by Evernote v10 (2020) |
EXB conversions
Community Q&A
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