Guide · from Atlassian's own documentation, checked 14 October 2026
How to download a Confluence space, with all its pages and attachments
Confluence has no "download space" button. To get one space's pages and attachments onto your own disk, run a space export to HTML: on Cloud, open Space settings, choose Export space, then HTML (on Data Center: Space tools, Content Tools, Export). You download a zip with every page you can view and each page's attachments. Here's how on Cloud and Data Center, how to download just a page tree, and why a space export isn't a full backup.
Which download keeps your attachments
| Format | Attachments | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| HTML (zip) | Yes, in a folder per page (Data Center docs conflict; check your zip) | A copy you can open in a browser, or move to another wiki |
| XML (zip) | Yes on Data Center | Importing into another Confluence |
| CSV (zip, Cloud only) | Yes, with comments, by default | Importing into another Confluence Cloud site |
| PDF (one file) | No: images on pages only (Data Center docs) | A printable manual |
From Atlassian's Cloud export page and the "What's included in the export?" table in its Data Center docs. Atlassian's Cloud page doesn't say whether an XML export includes attachments. In an HTML zip, each page's files are in download/attachments/<page ID>.
Download a space on Confluence Cloud
- Next to the space's name in the sidebar, choose More actions (•••), then Space settings.
- Open the General menu and choose Export space.
- Choose HTML, then Next, and take everything you can view.
- Choose Export space, and download the zip when it's ready.
Atlassian describes space exports as a space admin task. You get only the content you can view; a site admin exporting CSV or XML gets everything. HTML exports leave out blog posts and page comments, and Cloud space exports don't include Team Calendars. Your organization's admins can also block exports.
Download a space on Data Center or Server
- In the space, open Space tools at the bottom of the sidebar, then Content Tools.
- Open the Export tab, choose HTML, then Normal Export.
- Choose Export, and download the zip when it's ready.
Atlassian's Data Center page conflicts here: its steps say Normal Export leaves out attachments, while its table says HTML exports include them. Check for a download/attachments folder in your zip.
You need the space's Export Space permission, and you get the pages you can view. For an XML copy with every page, blog post, comment and attachment, which another Confluence on the same or a newer version can import, choose Back up in Content Tools instead. Unless you choose to save it permanently, that file is kept on the server only temporarily, so download it when the backup finishes. Menu names can differ slightly between versions.
Download just a page tree, or some pages
There's no download button on a page tree, so use the same space export and pick pages:
- Cloud: on the Export space screen, choose HTML or XML, then Next, then choose specific content items, selecting the pages you want.
- Data Center: on the Export tab, choose HTML, then Custom Export, and select the pages.
A single page has no "download with attachments" option either: its menu exports to PDF or Word. To keep one page's attachments, run a space export with only that page selected. More on PDFs in Confluence export to PDF.
A space download isn't a full backup
An HTML export is a readable copy of one space, as you can see it. Atlassian offers it for reading or moving content, not restoring: to import back into Confluence it points to CSV and XML exports and backups. An HTML export leaves out blog posts and, on Cloud, page comments. For a copy Confluence can restore:
- Cloud: a Confluence admin makes a site backup under Settings, Data management, Backup manager, ticking Backup attachments. It covers the whole site, not one space.
- Data Center: a system administrator's site or multi-space backup. Atlassian's export docs say that if you're exporting a space for backup purposes, you should consider another means of backup.
Our guide to exporting all Confluence spaces covers site backups, their limits and what they leave out.
Big spaces and slow downloads
- Atlassian says a typical Cloud export of about 100 pages should finish within a few minutes. If an export is slow or fails, export smaller groups of pages to find the one causing it.
- Spaces with many attachments make large zips. Our storage limits guide shows how to see which spaces hold the most files.
- If you need page source with macros as definitions rather than rendered pages, see Confluence storage format.
Format by format, with styling and the HTML export template, is in our guide to exporting Confluence. Whatever you download, keep it, and keep your Confluence site, until you've checked the copy.
Moving the space to a new wiki?
Tablewide runs Docmost, an open source wiki, at one flat price with unlimited users, from $49 a month. The free preview takes the HTML zip of one space and puts it into a private Docmost wiki, with no card; it's deleted after 7 days unless you subscribe. Comments, page history and permissions don't come across from a Confluence export, and formatting, macros and attachments may not transfer exactly. Through the form, we aim to have your preview ready within two business days of your upload, on a best-efforts basis. The preview terms say where your export is stored and when it's deleted.
Organizations in the EEA, UK or Switzerland: please use the form and don't upload an export. We'll build your preview from your public pages instead, or tell you if that isn't possible (preview terms).
Get a free preview All export formats
Atlassian and Confluence are trademarks of Atlassian. Docmost is a trademark of its developers. Tablewide is not affiliated with or endorsed by either. Steps and menu names are summarised from Atlassian's published documentation on the date above and can change.