Share Bookmarks in Chrome

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Bookmarks are such a vital part of our everyday workflow. Often, after someone has spent the time gathering bookmarks and meticulously structuring all their saved links inside folders, the next step is to share their bookmarks with others.

However, Chrome has restricted native support for sharing bookmarks. So, in the spirit of sharing, we have compiled a list of some available options to start sharing bookmarks.

Multi-Select Copy and Paste

The most basic way to share a list of bookmarks is to copy & paste them into an email or your preferred text-based communication. This method is perfect for sharing a small number of bookmarks in a single folder.

  1. Open Bookmark Manager by clicking in the top right of Chrome and then selecting Bookmarks > Bookmark Manager from the dropdown (alternatively, you can use the keyboard shortcut CTRL+SHIFT+O on Windows & Linux or ⌥+⌘+B on Mac).
  2. Hold Shift and select all of the bookmarks you’d like to copy.
  3. Right-click and select Copy.
  4. Paste the bookmark URLs wherever you want to send them or store them.

Pros

Cons

Full Export to HTML

If you are looking for a way to preserve the structure of your bookmarks, this method will work for you.

Unfortunately, Chrome doesn’t support exporting a single folder. Instead, you must export all your bookmarks to an HTML file. You can then edit the export file to remove any personal bookmarks. However, this approach isn’t very accessible to those unfamiliar with HTML.

An example of exporting all bookmarks in Chrome to HTML
  1. Open Bookmark Manager by clicking at the top right of Chrome and then selecting Bookmarks > Bookmark Manager from the dropdown (alternatively, you can use the keyboard shortcut CTRL+SHIFT+O on Windows & Linux or ⌥+⌘+B on Mac).
  2. Click the in the top right of the Bookmark Manager window and select Export Bookmarks.
  3. Save the HTML file and then send this file to whomever you’d like to share your bookmarks with.

The bookmarks can then imported by following the same steps, except you’ll need select Import Bookmarks at step 2 and import the HTML file that was sent.

Pros

Cons

Partial Export to HTML with a temporary Chrome profile

This method allows for a narrower scope of bookmark exports without having to modify an HTML file. This method is quite a work-around and not a typical use-case of chrome profiles, but it allows you to overcome all of the limitations of the previous steps without a third-party tool.

  1. Click your profile icon in the top right of Chrome.
  2. Select + Add from the profile menu list.
  3. Select Continue without an account.
  4. Enter a temporary name for the profile and click Done.
  5. A new Chrome window will open with an entirely new profile. Open Bookmark Manager by clicking in the top right of Chrome and then selecting Bookmarks > Bookmark Manager from the dropdown (alternatively, you can use the keyboard shortcut CTRL+SHIFT+O on Windows & Linux or ⌥+⌘+B on Mac).
  6. Copy the bookmarks you want to export between your existing chrome profile and the newly created one by right-clicking and selecting Copy and then pasting to the other profile. This will even allow you to copy entire folders and paste them on your Bookmark Manager page in your other profile.
  7. In the newly created profile, click the in the top right of the Bookmark Manager window and select Export Bookmarks.
  8. Save the HTML file and then send this to whomever you’d like to share your bookmarks with.
A temporary chrome profile used to export a specific selection of bookmark folders

Pros

Cons

Partial Export via Export Selective Bookmarks

Sometimes it’s easier to reach for a simple third-party tool. This nifty extension allows you to select exactly the bookmarks you’d like to export without needing to edit HTML or create Chrome profiles.

Exporting a selection of bookmark folders using Export Selective Bookmarks
  1. Install the extension from here.
  2. Click the extension icon to open the export menu.
  3. Tick the relevant folders you would like to export and click the Export button in the top right.
  4. The bookmark HTML will now be downloaded, and you can send this to whomever you’d like to share your bookmarks with.

Pros

Cons

Bookmark Llama

Bookmark Llama makes sharing bookmarks with others feel like a native feature of Chrome. Any changes to bookmarks within shared folders are instantly synced for anyone who has been given access, and any changes can be made directly in the browser. Additionally, the Bookmark Llama supports sharing bookmarks across Chrome, Firefox and Edge.

Shared folders on Bookmark Llama appearing natively in the browser
  1. Install the extension for Chrome, Firefox, or Edge.
  2. Sign-up up for an account.
  3. Create a shared folder from the extension.
  4. Start inviting people to your shared folder.

Pros

Cons

Though each method has its own merits, Bookmark Llama definitely ticks a lot of boxes when sharing bookmark folders in Chrome. The tool preserves folder structure, only shares some folders rather than the whole Bookmark Bar and opts for real-time updates on bookmarks and folders without needing to manually export and import new versions.