Windows11 Are there local save alternatives for Microsoft Whiteboard

Microsoft Whiteboard supports only cloud storage; to create a local backup, you can manually export the content as a PDF or image file.

The standalone desktop and mobile app for Whiteboard will also reach the end of support on September 14, 2026.

The notice applies to Microsoft Whiteboard used with a personal Microsoft account, not necessarily Whiteboard for work or school accounts. According to the message, personal-account users will lose the ability to create or edit boards on August 22, 2026. Existing boards can only be viewed and exported until September 5, 2026, after which they will be permanently deleted.

Whiteboard was designed around automatic cloud saving and real-time collaboration. Microsoft’s documentation says commercial-account boards are stored as .whiteboard files in OneDrive for Business, while personal-account boards are only accessible through the Whiteboard board picker. Personal users therefore do not have an editable local Whiteboard file to download.

Export every required board before the deadline. From the board picker, select the three-dot menu beside a board and choose Export image, then save the image locally and confirm that it opens correctly. Repeat this for every board. The exported image is a flattened copy, so objects, links, sticky notes and handwriting will no longer be separately editable. Save important text and links separately if they must remain usable.

For future offline work, Xournal++ or OpenBoard can save editable files locally and export to PDF or images. PowerPoint is also suitable for simpler diagram-style boards.