How to export your Character.AI chats on Android, and actually keep them
This guide is maintained by the developer of LonelyTavern, a private character-chat app. Everything below is about getting your conversations out of Character.AI in a form you can use.
Yes, there is an export. It isn't a chat file.
Character.AI lets you request a copy of your account data, and your chats are in it. The steps, from the official help center:
- Android or iPhone app: open your Profile, tap the settings icon, and choose Export my data.
- Web: Profile → Profile Settings → Account → Manage Account & Data → Export data.
That is a request, not a download. Character.AI queues it and emails you a link later: sometimes within an hour, often after several hours, occasionally after days, with no progress indicator in between. Users report that the link delivers a ZIP of JSON files covering your account, your characters, and your messages, and that it expires within a day or two. Two more reported gaps: very long conversations can come back with the oldest messages missing, and pinned memories may not be included.
So request it now, while nothing is urgent, and check what came back. If a chat you care about is incomplete, the screenshot method in our Chai guide fills the gap; it works on any app.
Why people are exporting now
Since November 25, 2025, open-ended chat on Character.AI requires passing age assurance: an in-house age estimate backed by a third-party verification service. Accounts under 18 lost open-ended chat entirely. Adults are not exempt from the estimate, and users report being flagged and asked for identification, with their conversations locked away until the dispute resolves. Add content filters that have tightened every year, and the export request stops being a precaution and becomes the first step of a move.
Turning the export into a chat you can continue
The export is data, not a conversation. Two things have to happen before you can keep chatting.
The chat. Apps that import history mostly read the Tavern chat format: a plain-text file with one message per line, each carrying the speaker and the text. The messages file in your export holds the same information in a different shape, and any capable AI model can convert one into the other in a single request. LonelyTavern documents the exact format on its import screen, so you can check the result before importing.
The character. Your export contains what you could see of a bot, not its private definition, and bots you didn't create keep their definitions private. Rebuild the character from the public description and from the way it spoke to you; the transcript is the best reference for its voice. If you made the bot yourself, copy its definition out of the editor before you leave.
About the model
Character.AI runs its own model, and you cannot change it or its filters. Apps that take your own API key let you choose the model instead: DeepSeek, Claude, GPT, or anything a router such as OpenRouter offers, including free ones. For most people this is the surprise of the move: the writing gets better.
Where we'd take it
LonelyTavern is the app we built for this move: it imports Tavern chat history and character cards, connects to any OpenAI-compatible provider under your own key, and keeps everything on your phone. Free, no account, no ads. It is an 18+ app; it asks you to confirm your age, and that is the only thing it ever asks. No verification service, no ID, and we cannot read your stories, because they never reach us.
Character.AI is an independent product of its respective company. LonelyTavern is not affiliated with or endorsed by it. The export steps follow Character.AI's help center as of September 2026; delivery details and limits are as reported by users and may change.