In the Mac OS Sierra era, many Macs still had Notes riding inside Apple Mail for long-time users who upgraded rather than started fresh. If that’s your setup, those Notes are effectively mail items. So, the practical question becomes simple: how to backup Apple Notes on Mac without affecting your setup?

This article shows you how to back them up using Mail Backup X by InventPure, and how to keep the archive searchable and exportable.

We’ll stay focused on how to backup Apple Notes on Mac when they live inside Apple Mail’s data. Mail Backup X also handles a broader world of mail sources, Gmail, Office accounts, and general IMAP, so the same approach extends beyond Notes if you need it.

Where Apple Mail Notes live — Apple Notes backup on Mac

If your Notes still reside under Apple Mail, they exist as IMAP messages inside a special “Notes” mailbox. Because they are just another folder in your mail store, they travel with the rest of your Apple Mail profile. That means your Notes are in scope for a mail-centric backup, provided you select that mailbox during setup in Mail Backup X.

The benefit is straightforward: select, back up, search, and export like any other mail content using the tool’s built-in viewer and export features.

Apple Notes backup on Mac After OS Sierra Era

Apple later separated Notes into its own app with iCloud sync. Mail Backup X focuses on email clients and servers; it does not connect directly to the standalone Notes app or iCloud Notes.

If your Notes live only in the Notes app, they aren’t covered here. If your Notes are still inside Apple Mail’s data, Mail Backup X includes them when backing up your Apple Mail profile, preserves the folder hierarchy, makes them searchable in its viewer, and lets you export them (for example, EML or MBOX for mail-native exports; you can also export selected items out of the viewer).

How Mail Backup X treats Notes — backing up Apple Notes on Mac inside Mail

Mail Backup X backs up Apple Mail like any other supported mail application.

It works like this: you create a profile, choose the folders (include the “Notes” mailbox), pick storage locations, and set a schedule. Its viewer lets you filter by folder, run basic or advanced searches (by sender, subject, date, attachment name/type, and logical operators), and open or export the items you select.

Features that matter for Apple Notes backup on Mac

The Notes you care about are only as useful as your ability to find them later. These five capabilities make that doable in practice.

1. Multiple backup profiles — Keep Apple Mail (with Notes) in one profile and other accounts in others; each profile has its own settings.
2. Flexible storage spaces — Save to local disk or link a cloud drive (Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, or FTP) as a defined storage space.
3. Mirrors and distributed archives — Maintain mirror copies or distribute a single archive across multiple locations to extend space without moving everything.
4. Schedules you control — Automatic, manual, or recurring (interval/daily/weekly) so the backup cadence fits your routine.
5. Security and viewer — Optional archive encryption with a profile key and recovery key; plus a built-in viewer with advanced search and per-item export.

Practical benefits — the value of using Mail Backup X for Apple Notes on Mac

• One place to look — Viewer, folder tree, sort, and search keep “that note” findable without hopping across apps or formats.
• Consistency over time — Automatic or scheduled runs catch incremental changes so your Notes mailbox stays current alongside your email.
• Resilience by design — Mirrors and distributed locations let you grow storage and keep more than one copy of the same archive.
• Export on demand — Pull selected notes out as individual items from the viewer or run a profile-wide export in standard mail formats.
• Optional lock-and-key — If needed, encrypt the archive so it opens only with the profile key (and, if ever required, your recovery key).

Step-by-step — how to backup Apple Notes on Mac with Mail Backup X

1. Open the Dashboard → My Backup Profiles → New Backup. Choose Apple Mail as the source.
2. Select folders. Include the Notes mailbox and any other relevant folders. You can opt to automatically include newly created folders later.
3. Set storage. Pick a local folder or a configured cloud storage space as the archive location.
4. (Optional) Security. Choose Secured to encrypt this backup profile; the archive will then require its profile key to open elsewhere.
5. Schedule. Use Automatic to capture changes as Mail updates or choose Recurring (interval/daily/weekly) or Manual.
6. Adjust other settings like USB Snapshot, give the profile a name, and then save the profile.

The backup begins immediately if it’s automatic otherwise it begins on schedule. You can also go to My Backup Profiles and click on Backup Now if you want to run manually. Once the backup is completed, you can open View Data to confirm the Notes mailbox contents are present and searchable. From the viewer, right-click selected notes and Export Selected, or use Export Data for larger, folder-level exports.

FAQs — Apple Notes backup on Mac with Mail Backup X

Question: Can Mail Backup X include my Notes if they appear inside Apple Mail?

Yes. When Notes are part of your Apple Mail data, include the Notes mailbox during folder selection. Mail Backup X then backs them up with the profile and makes them searchable and exportable in the viewer.

Question: How do I keep the Notes mailbox in sync without babysitting it?

Set the profile’s Backup Schedule to Automatic or define a recurring time. Mail Backup X can also run manual jobs when you need an immediate backup. The result is a profile that keeps your Apple Mail Notes backups current alongside email.

Question: What formats can I export when I need selected notes outside the archive?

From the viewer, you can export selected items; from the profile, you can export folders in standard mail formats such as EML or MBOX. This makes it easier to hand off, migrate, or simply store notes as files.

Question: Can I store the Apple Mail Notes backup locally and on a cloud drive at the same time?

Yes. Use a local Storage Space and add a cloud Mirror. You can even distribute a single archive across multiple locations when space is tight, then open it later via Open Archive.

In the long run, a trustworthy backupis what gives you confidence and clarity over your data. Mail Backup X offers a 15-day free trial, which is enough time to set up a profile and test your workflow end-to-end.

If your immediate task is to backup Apple Notes on Mac, start with the free trial version. You can set it up in no more than five minutes. When you see your notes show up in the viewer, you will find the assurance that your precious thoughts stored as Notes are anchored safely where they cannot slip away.