How to find my One Note files on PC

Lisa Boester 0 Reputation points
2026-09-10T15:47:17.72+00:00

I have used One Note for many years. My files are no longer in the One Note app on my PC.

  1. I want to locate them.
  2. I want them in one place, like they are on my iphone.
Microsoft 365 and Office | OneNote | For home | Windows

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  1. Kai-H 26,840 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2026-09-13T09:28:09.9866667+00:00

    Hi, Lisa Boester

    Since the notebooks are still visible on the iPhone, avoid signing out, resetting the app, or deleting anything there until the notes are safely recovered.

    First, compare the account shown in OneNote on iPhone > Settings with the account listed under File > Account on the PC. If the iPhone has another personal, work, or school account, add that same account to OneNote on the PC. OneNote only displays notebooks connected to the accounts currently added.

    It is also recommended that you check File > View Sync Status on the PC and select Sync All. Any error shown there may explain why the PC is not receiving the notebooks visible on the phone.

    For older locally stored notebooks, open File Explorer and check:

    C:\Users\YourName\Documents\OneNote Notebooks

    If you find a notebook folder, open its Open Notebook.onetoc2 file. Also check the Quick Notes or Unfiled Notes section, since older notes can be placed there during an upgrade.

    Once everything appears on both devices, confirm that changes made on one device also appear on the other.

    Thank you for your patience in reading, I hope this information has been helpful to you. 

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  2. AI answer

    2026-09-10T15:47:49.3433333+00:00

    To find the notebooks on the PC and get them back into one place, use this order:

    1. Search across all notebooks in OneNote.
      • In OneNote, use the search box in the upper-right.
      • Select the arrow next to the magnifying glass and choose All notebooks.
      • Type a keyword from the missing notes.
      • If a notebook section is password-protected, unlock it first because protected sections are not included in search.
    2. Re-open notebooks that may have been closed.
      • In OneNote, go to File > Open.
      • Under Recent Notebooks, open any notebook that should contain the missing notes.
      • Search again after reopening them.
    3. Check OneDrive directly.
      • Sign in to the OneDrive website at https://www.onedrive.com.
      • Browse folders such as Documents or Notebooks.
      • Open the notebook in OneNote for the web, then choose Open in OneNote if needed.
    4. Check whether the notes were deleted.
      • Open the notebook where the notes were expected.
      • Choose View > Deleted Notes.
      • If the pages are there, right-click the page and choose Restore To, then move it back to the correct section.
    5. If the notebooks were stored only on the PC and not in the cloud, move them to OneDrive so they stay together and sync like on the iPhone.
      • Open the notebook on the PC.
      • Click File > Share.
      • Select a OneDrive location, or click Add a Place and sign in.
      • Select the location, name the notebook if needed, and click Move Notebook.
      • After that, sign in to OneNote on the iPhone and PC with the same OneDrive account and open the notebook.

    If content is missing after moving from OneNote for Windows 10 to OneNote on Windows, check local backups:

    • In OneNote, go to File > Info > Open Backups.
    • Look for .one files in the backup folder.
    • Open the needed file, then use Move or Copy to restore pages or sections into the active notebook.

    This gives the best chance of both locating the notebooks on the PC and consolidating them into one synced location through OneDrive.

    AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

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