To export fanfiction, use the site's own download button when it has one (AO3 offers AZW3, EPUB, MOBI, PDF and HTML), and a converter when it doesn't: FicHub in the browser for FanFiction.net and the big forums, FanFicFare through Calibre for over 100 sites, or the WebToEpub extension. As of 13 November 2026, FicHub's own page says "AO3 works will not currently work", because AO3 has been offline since 29 October. If the fic is yours, export it now, while every site you post on is up.
We checked each tool's own page or code on 13 November 2026.
Fanfiction export tools compared (checked 13 Nov 2026)
| Tool | Sites | Formats | What holds it back |
|---|---|---|---|
| KudoWrite (where your own exported fic lives) | Imports .epub, .html, .docx, .odt, .md, .txt, .rtf, or a zip of chapters | Exports plain text, Markdown, HTML, EPUB 3 or PDF | Not a downloader: it's where the fic you wrote is kept, edited and continued |
| AO3's download button | AO3 only | AZW3, EPUB, MOBI, PDF, HTML (DOWNLOAD_FORMATS in AO3's own code) | Only works while AO3 is up; offline since 29 Oct 2026 |
| FicHub ("FanFiction Export") | FanFiction.net, FictionPress, SpaceBattles, SufficientVelocity, QuestionableQuesting, Harry Potter Fanfic Archive, AdultFanfiction.org and a few more | EPUB (recommended), MOBI, PDF, zipped HTML | "AO3 works will not currently work"; slow under load, throttles requests; PDF exports from FFN have failed with 503s (issue #49) |
| FanFicFare | About 110 sites on its supported list, AO3, FFN, Wattpad and Royal Road among them | EPUB first, HTML; AZW3 by converting the EPUB | A Calibre plugin or a Python command line; its web service shut down in late 2019; FFN needs its Browser Cache or Proxy features "for most users" |
| WebToEpub | A list of roughly 460 sites, AO3 and Wattpad included | EPUB | A browser extension (Chrome, Edge, Firefox); its list is what was "known to work" when last checked |
Source: each tool's own page, repository or code, read 13 November 2026.
Is FicHub working? What other fans are searching
"Fanfiction export" is the heading on FicHub's home page, so most people typing it want FicHub. It is up for FanFiction.net and the forums, not for AO3. You're not alone in looking: these are the US searches around it.
| Query (US) | Monthly average | Last month | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|
| wattpad downloader | 5,400 | 8,100 | ×1.69 |
| fanfiction export | 390 | 4,400 | ×30.4 |
| free wattpad downloader | 170 | 210 | ×0.93 |
| how to download wattpad | 70 | 170 | ×1.75 |
| how to download fanfiction | 30 | 50 | n/a |
| how to download fanfiction net | 40 | 20 | n/a |
Source: Google Keyword Planner via KudoWrite's topic sweep, 13 November 2026. FicHub's banner ties its current load to the AO3 outage: it is "under high (but stable) load due to the AO3 outage, please be patient."
How to download fanfiction from AO3
When AO3 is up, open the work and use Download: AZW3 or MOBI for a Kindle, EPUB for most other e-readers and apps, PDF to print, HTML to keep a plain web copy. Those five are the formats AO3's own code lists, so a third-party converter adds nothing for an AO3 fic while the site is up.
While it is down, nothing can fetch a work that isn't being served. FicHub says so outright, and FanFicFare and WebToEpub read the same pages. What you saved before 29 October is what you have. Our AO3 down timeline has the dated reports on when it may return and what to do with your account meanwhile.
Finding a fic while AO3 is down
Nothing can download a work AO3 isn't serving, so look for copies that already exist:
- Your own files first. Search your downloads folder, your e-reader and your Calibre library for the title or author: an EPUB or PDF you saved before 29 October still opens.
- The author's other homes. Many writers cross-post or keep a masterlist on Tumblr; search their AO3 username there. Some also post the same fic on FanFiction.net or Wattpad, where FicHub or the app's offline reading can get it.
- Don't count on FicHub's cache. FicHub caches what it exports, but its banner says AO3 works will not currently work, so a fic someone fetched last month won't come back through it today.
- Ask the author. If you only kept a link, a polite message is the one route that's always allowed.
How to download fanfiction from FanFiction.net
FanFiction.net has no download button of its own, which is why the converters exist. Paste the story's full URL (starting with https://) into FicHub, wait for the metadata, and take the EPUB; FicHub recommends EPUB and its own issue tracker shows PDF exports failing with 503 errors. If FicHub is overloaded, FanFicFare in Calibre is the fallback, but expect to switch on its browser-cache option: its wiki says FanFiction.net's protection blocks plain requests for most users.
Is there a Wattpad downloader that's allowed?
Tools exist (FanFicFare and WebToEpub both list Wattpad), but Wattpad's Terms of Service (last revised 13 May 2019) tell users not to use "any kind of software, device or method (whether it's manual or automated)" to take content off the service, and not to "reproduce, distribute" a story without its author's consent. For reading someone else's story offline, the Wattpad app's own offline reading is the route the platform supports (added in 2014, MobileSyrup).
Your own story is different: the same terms say "You own all the rights to the content you create." Copy it out of your Wattpad drafts chapter by chapter into a document you control. Our Wattpad fanfiction guide covers its content rules if you plan to keep posting there.
Where the other options fall short
- AO3's button is only as available as AO3. Since 29 October a bookmark opens nothing; only a saved file does.
- FicHub depends on caches and upstream services it doesn't control. AO3 is off its list for now, PDF and MOBI are the formats that fail, and a busy day means waiting before you retry.
- FanFicFare is the most complete, and the most work: install Calibre and add the plugin, or run it from a Python command line. There has been no web version since 2019.
- WebToEpub gives you EPUB only, and its site list carries no promise that each entry still works.
- All of them make a read-only snapshot. An EPUB is fine for reading on a Kobo. You can read it on a Kobo, but you can't draft chapter 12 inside it.
Back up your own fic: keep a master copy you can write in
If you write fic, export your own works first (from AO3 when it returns, from FFN through FicHub, from your Wattpad drafts by copy), then give them a home that isn't a posting site.
In KudoWrite, import the EPUB or HTML you just exported, or a zip of chapters, and the chapters and scene breaks are detected for free. From then on the book saves to your account continuously, on whatever device you open next, and exports as EPUB 3, PDF, Markdown, HTML or plain text whenever you want a fresh copy to post on AO3 or Wattpad. The story bible fills itself with your cast, ships and canon as you write, so the next chapter is written with what you settled in the first. Keep posting wherever your readers are, from that copy.
KudoWrite is a browser app in English, and new accounts get one free credit to try the writing tools, then one-off packs with no subscription. Import your fic into KudoWrite and write the next chapter there. For canon help as you go, see writing fanfiction with AI.