How to export your data from Confluence

Confluence lets you export a whole space (or selected pages) as PDF, HTML, Word, XML, or CSV via Space tools > Content Tools > Export, or export a single page as PDF/Word from the page's Tools menu; the XML backup is the only format that preserves comments, blog posts, and restrictions and can be re-imported into another Confluence space.

Formats: PDF, HTML, Word (.doc), XML, CSVPlan: Any Confluence plan (Free, Standard, Premium, Enterprise) — export is a permission, not a plan-gated featureRole: 'Export Space' permission on the space (space admins have this by default); Space Administrator permission needed to customize the PDF stylesheet/layout

✓ Verified against Confluence's official documentation, September 2026

Step by step

1Open the space you want to export.
2Go to Space tools > Content Tools at the bottom of the sidebar, then select the Export tab.
3Pick a format: HTML, PDF, Word, or XML (CSV is also offered on Confluence Cloud).
4For HTML or PDF, choose Normal Export (every page you can view) or Custom Export (pick specific pages), then select Export.
5For a full space backup, choose the XML/'Back up' option, optionally give the file a name, choose 'Save permanently' if you want it kept on the server, then select Back up.
6Wait for the job to finish — only one backup is processed at a time across the whole site, so it may queue behind other exports.
7Download the zipped archive (HTML/XML) or the PDF file from the link Confluence provides when the export completes.
8For a single page instead of a whole space, open the page and use Tools > Export to PDF or Tools > Export to Word.

What the export includes

✓Pages (all export formats)
✓Attachments — image attachments only in PDF; all attachments in HTML and XML
✓Comments — optional in HTML, always included in XML, never included in PDF
✓Blog posts — only in XML backups, not in PDF/HTML space exports
✓Unpublished/draft changes — only in XML backups
✓Restricted pages — included and still restricted in XML; only pages you personally have permission to view are included in PDF/HTML

What it doesn't include

✗Blog posts in PDF or HTML space exports (blogs can only be exported individually, or via XML backup)
✗Comments in PDF exports
✗Non-image attachments in PDF exports
✗More than the first 50 attached images when exporting a single page to Word
✗Team Calendars in XML space exports
✗Multi-column page layouts (PDF renders them as a single column)

Before you start

⚠Only one space backup/export is processed at a time site-wide — your job may sit in a queue if someone else is exporting.
⚠An XML space backup can only be imported into the same or a later Confluence version, never an earlier one.
⚠Word (.doc) exports include only the first 50 images attached to a page.
⚠Wide tables (especially ones with images) can get cut off in PDF exports.
⚠A restarted Confluence instance will fail any export that was 'in progress' — you have to re-run it.
⚠The Space backup recent activity list only shows XML exports from the last two weeks.

Where to take your data

Free and cheaper tools that can take a Confluence export. See all Confluence alternatives →

Notion

Alternatives Confluence vs Notion

Unzip the HTML export and use Notion's Import > HTML option to bring pages in as nested Notion pages; images and files in the archive are picked up automatically.

Confluence Free

Alternatives

If you're consolidating onto a free/Standard Confluence Cloud site instead of leaving the product, restore the XML backup into a new space (same or newer Confluence version) via Space tools > Content Tools > Restore.

Slite

Use Slite's import tool to upload the HTML export folder or individual page PDFs/Word docs; Slite converts HTML/Markdown into its own doc blocks.

Exporting from Confluence: common questions

Can I export my entire Confluence site in one go, or only space by space?+

The documented export tool works per space: you export each space separately as PDF, HTML, XML, or (on Cloud) CSV. To move everything at once you'd export each space's XML backup individually.

Which format should I use if I want to reuse the content elsewhere, not just archive it?+

HTML export is the most portable for re-importing into other tools since it keeps page structure and attachments in a browsable file/folder layout. XML is really meant for re-importing into another Confluence instance.

Do comments and page history come with the export?+

Only the XML backup includes comments, unpublished changes, and full page data; PDF never includes comments, and HTML only includes them if you choose that option.

Will attachments and images be included?+

PDF exports only pull in image attachments that are actually inserted into a page. HTML and XML exports include all attachments, placed in per-page folders inside the zip.

What permission do I need to export a space?+

You need the 'Export Space' permission on that space. Space Administrators have this by default; a site admin or space admin can grant it to others.

Why is my export stuck or slow?+

Confluence processes only one space backup at a time across the whole instance, so your export can sit queued behind someone else's job; large spaces with many attachments also take longer.