← Back to all guidesAmazon has one of the broadest personal data footprints of any company: every order you have ever placed, every product you have browsed, every Alexa command you have spoken, your Kindle annotations, Prime Video history, and years of device usage. The export process runs through Amazon's Privacy Central and is less well-known than Google Takeout — but the archive covers far more than most people expect.
What Amazon knows about you
Amazon's data footprint spans shopping, entertainment, smart home, reading, and cloud services. If you use more than one Amazon product, the breadth of what is stored is significant.
- Order history — every purchase, date, price, delivery address, and payment method
- Browsing and search history — products you viewed and searched for on Amazon.com
- Alexa voice recordings — audio clips of every command, query, and conversation captured by Echo devices
- Alexa interaction history — transcripts of voice interactions even where audio is deleted
- Prime Video watch history — every title watched, when, and on which device
- Kindle reading data — books purchased, reading progress, highlights, notes, and annotations
- Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods purchase history
- Device usage data — Fire tablet, Echo, Ring, and Kindle activity
- Advertising profile — interest categories and inferences Amazon uses for ad targeting
- Customer reviews and ratings you submitted
- Wish lists and saved items
- Login activity and account security history
What the Amazon export does not include
The Amazon data export through Privacy Central is a structured archive of account-level data. A few important things require separate steps or are not available via the standard export.
- Alexa audio recordings are stored separately — see the Alexa section below for how to access and delete them
- Ring camera footage is not in the standard export — Ring has its own data request process at ring.com
- AWS account data requires a separate request through the AWS privacy team
- Amazon Business account data is separate from your personal account
How to request your Amazon data (step by step)
- Go to Amazon and sign in to your account.
- Click "Account & Lists" > "Account".
- Scroll down to the "Data and privacy" section and click "Request your data".
- Alternatively, go directly to amazon.com/hz/privacy-central/data-requests/preview.
- You will see a list of data categories. Select the ones you want — or select all.
- Click "Request" to submit.
- Amazon will send a confirmation email immediately.
- The archive preparation can take up to 30 days, but most requests complete within a few days.
- When ready, Amazon emails a download link that is valid for 30 days.
- Download the ZIP file before the link expires.
Which Amazon data categories to request
Amazon splits the export into dozens of individual categories. You can request all of them at once or select specific types. Here are the most valuable ones to prioritise.
- Retail.OrderHistory — your complete purchase history in CSV format, the single most useful file in the export
- Retail.CustomerProfile — account details, addresses, and payment method metadata
- Retail.BrowsingHistory — products you viewed and searched, organised by date
- Digital.PrimeVideo.WatchlistHistory — everything in your Prime Video watchlist
- Digital.PrimeVideo.ViewingHistory — every title watched with timestamp and device
- Kindle.ReadingInsights — books read, reading sessions, pages, and time spent
- Kindle.Annotations — all your Kindle highlights and personal notes
- Advertising.Profile — the interest categories and inferences used to target ads at you
- Alexa.Interactions — voice command transcripts (not audio — those are separate)
- Digital.MusicPurchases — any digital music you have bought
- Amazon.Photos — activity from Amazon Photos if you use it
What is inside the archive
The download is a ZIP file containing subfolders for each data category you requested. Most files are in CSV or JSON format.
The most practically useful files are the CSVs — they open cleanly in Excel or Google Sheets without any conversion.
- Retail.OrderHistory.1.csv — one row per order line item with product name, order date, status, price, and shipment details
- Retail.BrowsingHistory.1.csv — timestamped list of product pages you visited
- Digital.PrimeVideo.ViewingHistory — one file per profile with title, watch date, and device
- Kindle.Annotations.json — all highlights and notes with book title, author, location, and text
- Advertising.AmazonAudiences.csv — the ad audience segments Amazon has put you in
- Advertising.3PAudiences.csv — third-party audience data shared with or bought by Amazon for targeting
- Alexa.Interactions.*.json — structured transcripts of Alexa commands
- Amazon.CustomerReviews.csv — reviews you have written
How to open and read the files
- CSV files: open directly in Excel or Google Sheets via File > Import — the order history CSV in particular works perfectly in a spreadsheet
- JSON files: drag into a browser tab for a tree view, or use jsonviewer.stack.hu for a cleaner interface
- Kindle.Annotations.json: import into a spreadsheet via Excel > Data > Get Data > From File > From JSON, then expand to get one row per highlight
- The advertising files are worth reading even if you don't process them — the audience categories are often surprisingly specific
- For a complete searchable view, import all CSVs into a single Google Sheet and use CTRL+F or a filter to search across your history
Alexa voice recordings — a separate step
Alexa audio recordings are not part of the standard Privacy Central export. They are managed through the Alexa Privacy Settings page or the Alexa app, and they must be accessed or deleted separately.
This is worth doing even if you are not an active Echo user — recordings can accumulate for years on devices used occasionally.
- Go to amazon.com/alexaprivacy or open the Alexa app.
- Go to Settings > Alexa Privacy > Review Voice History.
- You can listen to individual recordings here.
- To download a transcript history, use the Alexa Interactions category in your Privacy Central data request (above).
- To delete all recordings: go to Manage Your Alexa Data > Automatically delete recordings > select a retention window, or delete all recordings at once.
Your Kindle highlights — what to look for
The Kindle annotations export is one of the most underrated pieces of Amazon data. It contains every highlight and note you have ever made across your entire Kindle library — including free samples and books you bought years ago.
The annotations export works for any Kindle device or the Kindle app — highlights sync across both and are all included in a single file.
The JSON file can be imported into a spreadsheet or note-taking app. Tools like Readwise can also import it directly to create a searchable highlights library.
- Each annotation has: book title, author, highlight text, personal note (if any), location in the book, and timestamp
- These are exportable to Readwise, Obsidian, Notion, or a simple spreadsheet
- You can also view highlights at read.amazon.com/notebook — the browser interface is more readable than the raw JSON
- Highlights on books borrowed via Kindle Unlimited may not appear if the subscription has lapsed
Your advertising profile
The advertising data in the export shows what Amazon knows about your interests and which audience segments you have been placed in. This is the data that drives the ads you see on Amazon, across Amazon-owned properties, and on third-party sites that use Amazon's ad network.
Many people find this section revealing — not because the data is wrong, but because of how specific it is.
- Amazon.Audiences lists the internal interest categories derived from your browsing and purchase behaviour
- Third-party audience data (3PAudiences) shows segments built from outside sources that Amazon uses to target you
- You can opt out of interest-based advertising at amazon.com/adprefs — this does not delete the data but stops it being used for targeting
- The ad profile is built from browsing, purchasing, Alexa, and device data across your account
Where to store it
- The order history CSV is worth keeping alongside financial records — it is a complete purchase log going back to account creation
- Store Kindle annotations in a note-taking app or a clearly labelled folder — this is genuinely useful reference material
- Keep the advertising profile files if you want a historical record of what Amazon inferred about you
- Store the full archive in a folder named amazon-2026-04
- Off-site copy: ProtonDrive (go.getproton.me/SH2aK) for sensitive financial and purchase data, or pCloud (partner.pcloud.com/r/155235) for long-term archive storage
- External drive backup: an external SSD (amzn.to/4eFl0ca) is the simplest local second copy
Quick version
If you want the short checklist instead of the full guide, use the service page.
FAQ
How long does the Amazon data export take?
Up to 30 days, but most requests complete within a few days. You will receive an email when the archive is ready.
Does downloading my Amazon data delete it?
No. The export creates a copy. Your data stays on Amazon's servers unless you separately request deletion.
How do I get my Alexa voice recordings?
Alexa audio recordings are not in the standard export. Access them at amazon.com/alexaprivacy or in the Alexa app under Settings > Alexa Privacy > Review Voice History.
How far back does the order history go?
To your first ever Amazon order. The Retail.OrderHistory CSV includes your complete purchase history from account creation.
What format is the Amazon data in?
Mostly CSV and JSON. CSV files open directly in Excel or Google Sheets. JSON files can be viewed in a browser or a JSON viewer.
Is my Kindle data included?
Yes — if you request the Kindle categories. You will get reading insights (books, time, pages) and all your highlights and personal notes as a JSON file.
Does the export include Ring camera footage?
No. Ring video is managed separately. Contact Ring support or visit ring.com to request Ring-specific data.
How do I read my Kindle highlights from the export?
Import Kindle.Annotations.json into Excel via Data > Get Data > From File > From JSON, then expand to get one row per highlight. Alternatively, go to read.amazon.com/notebook for a browser-readable view, or import to Readwise if you use that tool.
Can I delete my Amazon browsing history?
Yes. Go to amazon.com > Browsing History > Manage history > Remove all items. This is a separate action from the data export.
What is in the advertising data section?
The audience segments and interest categories Amazon has assigned to you based on your browsing, purchases, and device activity. It also includes any third-party audience data used for targeting.