How to get your bookmarks on every device

Bookmarks follow the browser, and most people use more than one. Chrome on the work laptop, Safari on the iPhone, Firefox on the home desktop, plus links saved inside Instagram, Reddit and YouTube that live only in those apps. A recipe bookmarked on the phone at lunch isn’t in the browser you open at the stove that evening.

This guide covers how bookmark syncing usually works, where it breaks down across browsers and apps, and how to keep one set of bookmarks in Fabric that you can open and search from any browser, computer or phone.

How people usually sync bookmarks

Each major browser has its own sync. Sign in to Chrome on every device and Chrome bookmarks follow you; turn on iCloud for Safari and the same happens across Apple devices. This works well for anyone who uses a single browser everywhere.

The trouble starts with a second browser. A work machine that only allows Edge, an Android phone alongside a Mac, or a switch from Chrome to Firefox each splits the collection. Exporting a bookmarks file and importing it elsewhere gives a snapshot that goes stale the next day.

Many links never reach the browser at all. The save button in a social app, a link texted to yourself, or a note with a URL pasted into it each hold bookmarks that the browser’s sync can’t see. A browser bookmark also stores only the address, so a page that changes or disappears takes its content with it. Bookmarking vs. saving goes into that difference.

Step 1: Bring your existing bookmarks into Fabric

Fabric can import a browser bookmarks file, which is the quickest way to bring years of saved links across in one go. Export the file from each browser you use and import each one, so Chrome, Safari and Firefox bookmarks end up in the same library. How to import your browser bookmarks walks through the export side.

Links scattered in notes or messages can be pasted straight into Fabric. A pasted link becomes a bookmark, and Fabric works out what kind of page it is.

Step 2: Save new links from every browser

Install the Fabric browser extension in each browser you use. It’s available for Chrome, Safari and Firefox, and it saves to the same account from all three. Alongside a whole website, it can save a screenshot of the page, selected text, or images, which helps when only one paragraph or chart on a page matters.

When Fabric saves a link, it saves the page for reading and search too. That gives you more than an address to come back to, and the content stays searchable even if the original title was vague.

On a computer where you can’t install extensions, such as a locked-down work laptop, open the Fabric web app and paste the link in. It’s saved the same way as a link from the extension.

Step 3: Save links from your phone

Install the Fabric app for iOS or Android. In any app with a share button, including the browser, Reddit, YouTube or a messaging app, tap Share and choose Fabric. The link goes into the same library as the ones saved from your laptop.

You can add a comment or tags as you save, which is useful for a note to yourself like why the link mattered or who sent it. More on catching things in the moment is on the quick capture page.

Step 4: Open and read bookmarks on any device

Every Fabric app shows the same bookmarks: the web app in any browser, the desktop apps for Mac, Windows and Linux, and the phone apps. Saved articles open in the reader, which strips ads and clutter, and your reading progress syncs between devices, so an article started on the phone opens at the same point on the laptop.

As links arrive, Fabric creates embeddings, writes a short summary of each page, extracts its topics and suggests tags. If you’d like links grouped without filing them, set up smart collections that fill themselves based on content, such as one for recipes or one for job listings. Tags and comments added on the phone appear on the laptop as well, because both apps open the same library.

Step 5: Search your bookmarks instead of scrolling them

A long bookmark bar is hard to browse on a phone screen. Click Search or press Cmd+F (Mac) / Ctrl+F (Windows) on desktop, or open search on mobile, and describe the page. Search matches by meaning across the saved content, so “that article about four-day work weeks” can find a link saved under a headline that never used those words.

When one good link reminds you of others, select it and run a similarity search to see everything else you’ve saved on the same theme, whichever device you saved it from.

For something specific, such as a product code or a person’s name, put the words in quotes for an exact match. Filters narrow results by tag, by location in your library, or by kind of item, so you can limit a search to bookmarks and leave out notes and files.

Frequently asked questions

How do I sync bookmarks between Chrome and Safari?

Install the Fabric extension in both browsers and save links through it. Both save to the same Fabric library, which you can open from either browser or from the Fabric apps.

Can I get my iPhone bookmarks on a Windows PC?

Yes. Save links on the iPhone with the share sheet, and open them in the Fabric desktop app for Windows or the web app.

Can I import my existing browser bookmarks?

Yes. Fabric can import a browser bookmarks file, so you can bring across what you’ve already saved in each browser.

Which browsers does the Fabric extension support?

Chrome, Safari and Firefox.

What happens if a bookmarked page is taken down?

When you save a link, Fabric saves the page for reading and search along with the address, so you have the content you saved even if the original changes.

Can I save links from apps like Reddit or YouTube?

Yes. Use the share button in the app on iOS or Android and choose Fabric.

Do I need to sort bookmarks into folders?

No. Fabric writes a summary and suggests tags for each link, and search reads the saved page. Folders and smart collections are there if you want them.

Can I use Fabric for bookmarks on the free plan?

The free plan is for trying Fabric out. It includes the reader and limited AI use, with storage caps, while connections to other apps and transcription need a paid plan. See pricing for the paid plans.