Where Does Adobe Digital Editions Store Books?
The My Digital Editions library folder on Windows and Mac, and why the app refuses to let you move it.
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Adobe Digital Editions keeps every downloaded book in one fixed folder inside Documents. On Windows it is called My Digital Editions, on Mac it is Digital Editions. There is no setting to relocate it, a limitation users have complained about for years.
The practical consequence is simple: back up that folder and you keep loans, annotations, and the authorization state. Lose it and the books must be downloaded again. OneDrive users get an extra surprise, since folder backup silently moves Documents and the library follows it.
Where Adobe Digital Editions stores this, by platform
%USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Digital Editions
Fixed location with no in-app way to change it. Move the folder and leave a directory symlink (mklink /d) at the old path to effectively relocate it. Close ADE before copying, or the copy fails with a sharing error.
~/Documents/Digital Editions
Same fixed-folder behavior as Windows under a slightly shorter name. Relocate with a Finder move plus an ln -s symlink back to Documents. Keep a backup before macOS upgrades, which have been known to disturb the folder.
Frequently asked questions
how do I change the Adobe Digital Editions folder
You cannot change it inside the app, which only ever uses the fixed Documents folder. Move the folder where you want it, then create a symbolic link at the old location pointing to the new one. ADE follows the link without noticing the difference.
how do I move my library to a new computer
Copy the whole My Digital Editions folder to the new machine at the same Documents path, then authorize ADE with the same Adobe ID. Copying loose EPUB files alone loses loans and annotations. Keep the app closed during the copy to avoid sharing errors.
my books are not in Documents, where are they
Check OneDrive Documents first. When folder backup is on, Windows quietly redirects Documents under OneDrive, and ADE follows it there. The books are safe, just in a different parent than the guides describe.
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