Clio has an export page. An administrator can download spreadsheets from it, and for a lot of questions that is enough. It is not a complete copy: your documents, your bills and your trust transactions stay in Clio. This guide covers every route to the complete copy, what each one costs you in time and effort, and the steps for the one we built and open-sourced.
0documents in Clio's built-in export. It produces CSV files only.
50API requests a minute per login, Clio's limit in business hours.
200records per request. Each document needs at least one more.
90 daysthe minimum before Clio deletes a cancelled account's content.
The whole run in two and a half minutes: what Clio's export leaves out, then the free command from login to the folder per matter on disk.
What does Clio's built-in export give you?
Clio's export page is for administrators. It produces CSV files of matters, contacts, notes, tasks, calendar entries, communications, time entries and expenses. You download them one export at a time. There is no schedule, and nothing checks that the files are complete.
Four things are not in it: documents, bills, trust transactions and custom field definitions. Balances and ledgers come from Clio's reports, which are a separate download. We went through each gap in detail in what Clio's built-in export leaves out.
Clio says it too
Clio's help centre recommends that you "retain a local backup of your data." The export page is where most firms start, and it covers the records. The documents are usually the part a firm cannot do without.
What are the ways to get everything out?
Everything beyond the export page goes through Clio's API, the same door every Clio integration uses. The difference between the routes is who runs the code and where the copy ends up.
| Route | Documents | Runs | Where the copy sits |
|---|
| Clio's built-in export | No | When an admin downloads it | Wherever the CSVs are saved |
| FileScience | Yes | Daily, hosted | FileScience's cloud |
| Faster Suite | Yes | Its backup tool downloads all Clio documents | See the vendor |
| Clio Data Escrow | Yes | Weekly | A secure location, per Clio |
| Your own script on the API | Yes | However you schedule it | Storage you choose |
| The open-source clio-export command | Yes | When you start it | A folder on your computer |
"I need spreadsheets of my matters and contacts."
Clio's built-in export. It is quick and needs nothing installed.
"I want a vendor to hold a daily copy for me."
A hosted backup service such as FileScience. The copy lives in their cloud, which suits firms that prefer a vendor to manage it.
"I need everything, documents included, once, on my own disk."
A read-only API export you run yourself: your own script, or the free command below.
"I want that copy every night, in our own OneDrive, SharePoint or S3."
An API export on a schedule. Build it, or have it set up for you.
Why does a full export take so long?
Clio limits how fast any app can read. During business hours that is about 50 requests a minute per login. A list request returns at most 200 records, and every document is at least one more request, plus the requests that map each matter's folders. A firm with 100,000 documents needs well over a day for the first full copy.
That shapes how you run it. Start on a Friday afternoon and let it run over the weekend. Use a tool that saves its place, so a laptop going to sleep does not cost you the first ten hours. Count before you start, so you know what you are waiting for. We wrote up what Clio's 50 requests a minute do to a batch run separately.
How do I export everything with the free command?
We open-sourced the export we built for our own Clio work as clio-export. It is free, MIT licensed and read-only. It runs on your computer under your own Clio developer app, so the data goes from Clio to your disk and nowhere else. The code is on GitHub.
1
Install Node.js 20 or later
From nodejs.org. Check it with node --version.
2
Create a Clio developer app
At developers.clio.com, signed in with your Clio login. Redirect URI http://127.0.0.1:5678/callback. Copy the client ID and secret.
3
Set the three values and log in
CLIO_CLIENT_ID, CLIO_CLIENT_SECRET, CLIO_REGION (us, eu, ca or au), in the shell or a .env file. Then run auth.
4
Count, then export
A dry run first, then the real run into an empty folder on an encrypted disk. --resume if it stops.
# macOS or Linux
export CLIO_CLIENT_ID=your_client_id
export CLIO_CLIENT_SECRET=your_client_secret
export CLIO_REGION=us
npx @oktopeak/clio-export auth
npx @oktopeak/clio-export --out ./clio-export --dry-run
npx @oktopeak/clio-export --out ./clio-export
On Windows PowerShell, set the values with $env:CLIO_CLIENT_ID = "..." and use a short output path such as D:\clio-export. If you already run our Clio connector for Claude, npx @oktopeak/clio-mcp export is the same command.
The free Clio export, with every option explained
What comes out, what does not, how long it takes and how it handles your client files.
What will the export folder look like?
clio-export/
data/<type>.jsonl raw records, exactly as Clio returns them
data/<type>.csv the same records for Excel
matters/<number> - <client>/ documents, in your Clio folder structure
REPORT.md what was exported, what was not, and why
Document files keep their names, with the Clio document id added so two files with the same name never collide. The original names and paths are listed in data/documents.csv. REPORT.md calls the export COMPLETE only when every required record type matches the count Clio reported at the start.
What it does not include
- Ledger reports: trust ledger, client ledger, accounts receivable, work in progress. Run those from Clio's reports.
- Bill PDFs as Clio renders them. Bills come out as data.
- Original email files.
- Documents that belong to no matter. They are counted and reported, not downloaded yet.
- Anything the Clio user who runs it cannot see. Run it as an admin.
What should I check before I rely on the copy?
The counts match
Whatever tool you use, compare its counts with what Clio shows. A copy that is missing 3% of its documents looks complete until the day you need one of them.
It only reads
An export has no reason to write to Clio. Ask, or read the code. Ours has no write call and a test that fails if one is added.
The copy is protected
An export holds confidential client files in plaintext. It belongs on an encrypted disk that only the firm's administrators can reach.
You can find a file in it
Open the folder and look for a document from a matter you know. If a paralegal cannot find it without help, the copy will not help you in a hurry.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I export documents from Clio?
Not from Clio's export page. The built-in export produces CSV files and leaves documents out. Documents come out through Clio's API, with a script you write, a hosted backup service, or a ready-made command such as the free, open-source clio-export, which saves every document in a folder per matter.
Who can use Clio's built-in export?
Administrators. It produces CSV files of matters, contacts, notes, tasks, calendar entries, communications, time entries and expenses.
How long does a full Clio export take?
Clio allows about 50 API requests a minute per login during business hours and returns at most 200 records per request. Every document needs at least one more request. A firm with 100,000 documents therefore needs well over a day for the first full copy; starting on a Friday and letting it run over the weekend is the usual answer.
Does exporting change anything in Clio?
Clio's export page does not, and neither does a read-only API export. Check that whatever you run only reads: the open-source clio-export contains no call that writes to Clio and has a test that fails if one is added.
What happens to my data if I cancel Clio?
Clio deletes an account's content no less than 90 days after cancellation. Take the complete copy while the account is active and check it before you cancel.
Next step
If you only need spreadsheets, Clio's export page is the fastest route. If you need the documents, start with a dry run of the free export to see how big your account is. If you want the same copy every night in your firm's own storage without anyone starting it, that is our Clio Backup setup, $500 one time.
Clio is a trademark of Themis Solutions Inc. Oktopeak is not affiliated with or endorsed by Clio. Facts about Clio's export and retention checked 3 November 2026.
