Share Text Snippets Across Chrome, Edge and Windows

You can reuse a Text Replacements snippet library in Chrome, Edge and the Windows app by exporting a JSON or CSV file and importing it into each installation. This is a manual transfer: later edits in one installation need another export and import.

Use this when the same reply belongs in a browser form and a Windows desktop app, or when you want matching shortcuts in two browser profiles. Sharing the library does not make every text field compatible with both tools.

Choose which tool should expand text

The extension's product page documents shared JSON and CSV files, excluded fields and pause controls. The Windows product page describes the desktop app separately. An exported library contains snippet data; it does not install the app or grant browser permissions.

Install the extension in the browser you use

In Chrome, use the official Text Replacements listing and review the installation prompt. Google explains how to install extensions and manage their site access. A managed browser may be subject to your organisation's rules.

In Edge, open the same listing. If Edge asks you to allow extensions from other stores, review that prompt before proceeding. Microsoft's Edge instructions cover installation from the Chrome Web Store. Install the extension in the profile where you will write.

Export once, then import into each installation

1. Choose the installation containing the library you want to transfer. Export a copy before editing or importing anything.
2. Export JSON for the app's native structured file, or CSV if you need a readable table of shortcuts and replacements.
3. Open the destination's snippet manager or settings and use its import control to select the file.
4. Review the reported imported and skipped entries. Existing shortcuts are kept rather than overwritten by import.
5. Repeat in the other browser or Windows installation, then test a few entries in empty documents or drafts.

The shared formats retain shortcut text, replacement text, enabled status and trigger mode. JSON also carries format and settings metadata; do not assume importing a library will reproduce every installation preference. A newer unsupported JSON version can be rejected, so update the destination app if it cannot read an export.

Handle existing shortcuts deliberately

If the destination already has ;sig, importing another ;sig does not replace its text. A successful import count therefore does not prove that an older reply has been updated.

For a changed reply, compare the two versions and edit the destination's existing snippet. If you need to compare both inside the app, import the revised copy with a distinct temporary shortcut. Keep the backup until you have checked the result. Do not delete a whole library merely to update one entry.

For CSV, the required column names are shortcut and replacement. The export also includes enabled and triggerMode. Quoted CSV fields preserve commas, line breaks and quotation marks; use an exported file as your starting point rather than building one by guesswork.

Test ordinary text, multiline replies and macros

• Try a short plain-text entry, followed by a multiline email body. Check punctuation and line breaks in the receiving app.
• Test the trigger mode. For an after-delimiter shortcut, use Space in an unsent draft; Enter can submit a chat or form.
• If an entry contains a date or time macro, expand it in each installation and review the output. Regional settings and formatting can affect the result.
• Replace literal placeholders such as [Name] yourself. They are not automatic candidate or customer fields.

These files transfer plain-text snippets. They do not preserve a rich-text email layout, copy passwords from a vault or bypass a site's restrictions.

Avoid two expanders acting on the same field

If the Windows app and extension both recognise a shortcut in the same browser field, the result can be confusing. Choose one to handle that field. You can pause the extension with Alt+Shift+P or its icon, and disable it on an individual site. The Windows app has a global pause shortcut, Ctrl+Shift+Pause.

The extension does not expand in Google Docs, Sheets or Slides, browser settings and store pages, or password fields. Its protections also exclude card fields. A shared file does not remove these limits. Check the target field before making it part of a daily workflow.

Keep one place for changes

Pick a library to edit first and note the export date in your backup filename. After changing a reply, transfer the revised entries to the installations where you need them and check any duplicate-shortcut skips. Installing or syncing an extension is not evidence that your snippet edits have reached another browser.

For a first practical library, try the 15 recruiting email templates. For another PC, see moving Windows snippets to a new computer.

Frequently asked questions