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NoteStore.sqlite: can you recover deleted Apple Notes from it?

By Kayabyte · Last updated 14 November 2026

Short answer: NoteStore.sqlite is the database where the Notes app on a Mac keeps your notes. A note deleted long ago is not hidden inside the current file in a form you can read back, so the useful copy is an older one: the same file inside a Time Machine snapshot or an iPhone backup from before the deletion. Do not edit the live file. Work on a copy, or use an app that reads the older database read only and brings back only the notes you choose, such as NoteRescue.

Where the file is

On a Mac, Notes stores its data in a group container in your Library folder: ~/Library/Group Containers/group.com.apple.notes/, with NoteStore.sqlite inside it on recent macOS versions. Attachments and previews sit in folders next to it. The Library folder is hidden: in Finder choose Go, then hold Option to see Library.

A note’s text is not stored as plain text in a simple column. It is stored in a compressed, structured form inside the database, so opening the file in a database viewer shows rows and blobs, not readable notes. That is why “just open the sqlite file” rarely works for reading a note.

Why deleted notes are hard to get back from the live file

Recently Deleted keeps a deleted note for about 30 days, as Apple documents. After that the note is removed, and we know of no dependable way to read it back from the current file. Apple has no archive of older notes.

What does work

  1. Recently Deleted in Notes, within about 30 days. Also check iCloud.com Notes and Data Recovery in iCloud account settings.
  2. A Time Machine snapshot from before the deletion holds an older NoteStore.sqlite. Restoring it by hand puts an older copy of the whole Notes database in place, which can overwrite notes you made since. See restore Apple Notes from Time Machine.
  3. A Finder backup of an iPhone or iPad holds the same database under a scrambled file name; an encrypted backup needs the password you chose in Finder. See read an encrypted iPhone backup on a Mac.
  4. NoteRescue reads the database inside each snapshot or backup without restoring anything, lists notes that are missing today, and exports the ones you pick (Markdown, HTML, PDF or plain text with attachments) or adds them to Notes in a new Recovered folder. Locked notes are counted but never opened. Notes that were created and deleted between two backups cannot be recovered.

If you work on the file yourself

NoteRescue: scan free, recovery per app (Notes USD 24.99 once, All apps 39.99), macOS 15 or later, works offline with no account, no AI. NoteRescue

Questions

Can I recover a note deleted more than 30 days ago? Only from a backup that still holds it; see recover deleted Apple Notes after 30 days.

Is NoteStore.sqlite in iCloud? iCloud syncs your notes between devices; this file is the local copy on each device.

Apple, Mac, macOS, iPhone, iCloud and Time Machine are trademarks of Apple Inc. NoteRescue is made by Kayabyte and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Apple.