Skip to main content

Why Is My Chat History Gone? Understanding OpenRouter's Local-First Chat

Updated

You've logged into your OpenRouter account from a new device or browser, only to find your previous conversations have vanished. 

This article explains why your chat history doesn't automatically sync and how you can manage it.

Local-First for Your Privacy

OpenRouter's chat interface is built with a privacy-focused, local-first design. This means your chat history—including all prompts and AI responses—is stored directly within your web browser on the specific device you are using. It is not stored on our servers.

While this ensures maximum privacy, it has one important consequence: your chat history does not automatically sync across different devices or browsers.

Common Causes for "Lost" Chat History

Your chat history will appear to be gone if you:

  • Log in on a different device: Moving from your desktop to your laptop will result in an empty chat history on the new device.
  • Use a different browser: Chats started in Chrome will not be visible in Firefox, even on the same computer.
  • Clear your browser's cache or site data: This action permanently deletes all locally stored information for OpenRouter, including your chat sessions.
  • Use Incognito or Private Browsing: These modes do not save session data, so your chats will disappear as soon as you close the window.

How to Save and Transfer Your Chat History

While automatic syncing is not yet available, you can manually save and move your conversations using the Export and Import features.

To Save a Conversation:

  1. Open the chat you wish to save.
  2. Click the settings button (gear cog) in the bottom-left corner of the message window.
  3. Select Export Chat. This will download a .json file to your computer's Downloads folder.

To Load a Conversation on a New Device or Browser:

  1. On the new device/browser, navigate to the OpenRouter chat page.
  2. Click the Import Chat (gear cog) in the bottom-left corner of the message window.
  3. Select the .json file you previously exported.

The Future of Chat History

We understand that the current local-first approach can be inconvenient for users who work across multiple devices. Our team is actively exploring options for a secure, opt-in, cross-device syncing feature to be implemented in the future.

Key Takeaway: Your chat history is safe, but it lives only in your browser. To preserve it across devices, remember to manually export your important conversations.

Related articles