How to export Instapaper and move your articles to Barside

Instapaper saves articles to read later, and it exports your whole account as a CSV file. Barside imports that file into its Reading inbox on your computer, keeping your archive, your starred articles and your folders. This guide shows the export, the import and the first steps afterwards.

Before you start

Barside is a free desktop app for Windows, Linux and Mac. Its Reading inbox keeps readable copies of articles on your computer, with highlights, newsletters by email, Reader Mode and read aloud, next to your notes and tasks.

Instapaper runs on phones and in the browser. Barside is a desktop app, with no phone app, so it suits people who read mostly at their computer.

Step 1: Export from Instapaper

From Instapaper's help page:

1. Go to instapaper.com/settings/account while signed in.
2. Scroll down to the Import section.
3. Click Export .CSV to email.
4. Wait for Instapaper's email. Instapaper says it can take a few hours.
5. Open the link in the email and download the CSV file.

Instapaper's other downloads, ePub and PDF bundles from a list's menu, hold the first 19 articles of that list and are meant for e-readers; they are not an export of your library.

Step 2: Import into Barside

1. Open Settings & backups → Notes from other apps → Import next to Import notes, or type import in the search bar.
2. Find Instapaper and choose Choose CSV.
3. Pick the file you downloaded.
4. Barside shows Ready to import with the number of reading items.
5. Choose Import. Articles go to Reading, not to your notes.

Articles you already saved in Barside are skipped, so importing again is safe.

What comes along

If something looks wrong

• The email has not arrived. Instapaper says it can take a few hours. Check your spam folder before asking for a second export.
• Barside does not recognize the file. Make sure you picked the .csv file from the email's link, not an ePub or PDF download.
• An article will not download. The website may be gone or block downloads. Search the title and save the new copy with Barside.

Start with a tidy inbox

A long Instapaper queue often comes along with the move. A fresh start makes the new inbox useful:

1. Start with the oldest unread articles. They are the most likely to be out of date.
2. Archive what you will never read. It stays searchable in the archive.
3. Keep starred articles as your favorites list.
4. Download the few you will read this week with Get article text, so they are ready offline.
5. Use tags from your old folders to find a topic again.

Ten minutes of this turns hundreds of old saves into a short list you want to read.

Reading in Barside from now on

• Save new articles from your browser with the search bar, or keep whole pages with their layout using save web pages.
• Highlight passages; they appear in the article and in one list of all highlights.
• Get newsletters by email at your own Barside address, straight into Reading.
• Listen to articles with read aloud, or read in Reader Mode with your theme.

Instapaper and Barside, side by side

Instapaper is a focused reading service with apps for phones, tablets and the web, a free plan and a Premium subscription. Barside is a free desktop app where reading sits next to your notes, tasks, recordings and AI features, and your library stays on your computer. Choose Instapaper if you read mostly on a phone; choose Barside if you read at your desk and want your reading connected to your work.

See other options in the best read-it-later apps, and how Barside compares with Pocket in the Pocket alternative guide. Moving from more apps? See the Pocket and Matter guides.