You requested your Snapchat export three days ago. The email finally arrived. You downloaded the 45GB ZIP file, extracted it, and opened the memories_history.html page. There’s a “Download All Memories” button right at the top.
You click it. Your browser starts downloading files. Then it freezes. You refresh, try again in Chrome, then Firefox, then Safari. Each attempt downloads some files, crashes, and leaves you with no idea which memories actually completed versus which ones failed.
You search Reddit for solutions. Someone mentions a Python script on GitHub. Another person suggests manually editing EXIF data. A third says to just accept that Snapchat exports are broken and move on.
This is where most people are stuck right now. Snapchat’s 5GB storage limit created millions of first-time exporters, but the platform’s tools weren’t designed to handle what users actually need: a reliable Snapchat memory downloader that fixes dates, embeds GPS coordinates, and merges overlays automatically.
Before comparing tools, let’s define what a properly fixed export looks like. Your Snapchat export comes with two things:
The JSON file has everything. The downloaded files have nothing. They’re stripped of EXIF metadata, GPS coordinates, and capture dates. Gallery apps show every photo as taken today. Your timeline is destroyed.
A tool that truly fixes Snapchat exports needs to:
Let’s see which tools actually do this.
| Feature | ExportSnaps | GitHub Scripts | Manual Method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ease of Use | Drag and drop interface | Requires Python setup | Extremely time consuming |
| Download Method | Direct CDN concurrent downloads | Script based. Varies by script | Browser download all |
| EXIF Embedding | Automatic for all fields | Partial. Depends on script | Manual using EXIF editor |
| GPS Coordinates | Automatic embedding | Partial. Depends on script | Manual per file |
| Overlay Merging | Automatic | Requires separate tools | Manual in Photoshop |
| Failure Handling | Failed.json created for retry | Usually none | No tracking |
| Tested Capacity | 1.16 TB and 64,790 files | Unknown. Varies | Not scalable |
| Platform Support | macOS and Windows native app | Command line. All OS | Any OS with tools |
| Processing Speed | Fast with concurrent downloads | Slow to moderate | Extremely slow |
| Privacy | 100 percent local processing | 100 percent local if script is safe | 100 percent local |
| Cost | $15 one time. Free up to 200 files | Free but complex | Free but time intensive |
| Learning Curve | None | High. Python and dependencies | Moderate to high |
| Support | Active developer support | Community based | None |
Several developers have created Python scripts that read memories_history.json and attempt to fix exports. The most common approach uses ExifTool (a command-line metadata editor) to write dates and GPS from the JSON into files.
You download Python. Install dependencies (requests library, ExifTool). Download the script from GitHub. Edit configuration variables (input folder, output folder). Run the script from the terminal. It reads the JSON, downloads files, and attempts to embed metadata.
If you’re comfortable with Python and command-line tools. If you want to inspect/modify the code yourself. If you have a small library (under 1,000 files), where setup time is worth the free cost. If you’re on Linux (ExportSnaps is macOS/Windows only).
For everyone else, the complexity outweighs the savings.
Some users attempt to fix exports manually using photo editing software and EXIF editors.
Open memories_history.json in a text editor. Find the entry for each photo (search by filename). Note the capture date and GPS coordinates. Open the photo in an EXIF editor like ExifTool, PhotoMechanic, or Adobe Bridge. Manually type the date into the DateTimeOriginal field. Manually type GPS coordinates into the GPSLatitude/GPSLongitude fields. Save the file. For overlays, unzip the overlay file. Open both the base image and overlay in Photoshop or GIMP. Layer them manually. Save the merged version. Repeat for every single memory.
Never, realistically. Even for very small libraries (under 20 files), downloading a tool saves more time than manual work. The only scenario where manual processing makes sense is if you need to fix a single specific photo and want to learn EXIF editing as a skill.
The term “Snapchat memory downloader” usually refers to tools that can actually download and organize your memories properly, not just browser-based downloads that fail.
ExportSnaps has been tested with libraries up to 1.16TB. That’s not a theoretical limit; actual users have processed exports this large. The app handles:
Most browser-based downloads crash around 10-20GB. GitHub scripts often fail with memory errors on large libraries. ExportSnaps processes multi-terabyte exports without issues.
You interact with the app three times: upload JSON, configure settings, click start. Everything else is automatic. No manual EXIF editing. No overlay merging in Photoshop. No tracking which files succeeded versus failed (the app creates failed.json automatically).
For a 50GB library with 10,000 memories:
The concurrent download system alone makes ExportSnaps 3-4x faster than alternatives.
Files processed by ExportSnaps work perfectly in every gallery app because the metadata follows standard EXIF specifications:
Some GitHub scripts write metadata in non-standard ways that certain apps can’t read. ExportSnaps uses industry-standard EXIF libraries to ensure compatibility.
Let’s walk through fixing a real export:
User scenario: Sarah has 7 years of Snapchat memories (25GB, roughly 5,000 photos/videos). She tried the browser “Download All” button. It crashed after downloading 2,000 files. She has no idea which 3,000 files are missing.
Using ExportSnaps:
Without ExportSnaps: Sarah would spend weeks manually editing EXIF data or days debugging Python scripts. The $15 saved her 100+ hours of work.
Learn more about fixing specific Snapchat metadata issues and understanding timestamp problems. If your export previously failed, see our guide on why Snapchat exports fail and how to fix it.
Snapchat announced old memories exceeding 5GB may be deleted after September 1, 2026. Users have limited time to export and organize years of memories.
Processing speed becomes critical when you’re racing a deadline. If your first export attempt fails (browser crash, partial download), you need to request a new export (24-48 hour wait) and try again. Every failed attempt costs 2-3 days.
A tool that works the first time, processes quickly, and handles failures gracefully means you meet the deadline with minimal stress. ExportSnaps’s failed.json retry system is specifically designed for this: if anything fails, you retry just those files instead of restarting the entire process.
The best tool to fix Snapchat exports is one that actually works at scale, automates the entire process, and handles failures intelligently. For most users, that’s ExportSnaps.
GitHub scripts work if you’re technical and have time to debug. Manual processing isn’t viable for anyone with more than a few dozen memories. Browser-based downloads fail on large exports and don’t fix metadata at all.
ExportSnaps costs $15 one-time (free for 200 files), processes libraries up to 1.16TB, embeds complete EXIF metadata, merges overlays automatically, and creates failed.json for intelligent retries. It’s the only tool tested and proven to handle the massive exports Snapchat users are creating right now.
Your memories deserve proper organization. Choose a tool that actually delivers it.
ExportSnaps is the best complete solution for most users. Free alternatives (GitHub scripts) require technical setup, lack support, and often miss features like overlay merging or intelligent retry handling. The free tier of ExportSnaps (200 files) works for smaller libraries. For large exports, the $15 saves dozens of hours versus manual methods or debugging scripts
ExportSnaps processes the memories_history.json file from your Snapchat export. You need access to the account to request the export from accounts.snapchat.com. The app doesn’t bypass Snapchat’s authentication; it processes exports you already have legitimate access to.
Processing time depends on library size and internet speed. A 10GB export (2,000-3,000 files) typically takes 15-30 minutes. A 50GB export takes 45-90 minutes. A 100GB+ export might take 2-3 hours. The process is fully automated, so you can start it and let it run in the background.
Yes. The memories_history.json format has remained consistent. As long as your export included the JSON file (you toggled “Export JSON Files” ON when requesting the export), ExportSnaps can process it regardless of when you downloaded it from Snapchat.
The app creates failed.json in your output folder containing only memories that didn’t complete. Load this file back into ExportSnaps and process it the same way you processed the original JSON. Only the failed files will re-download. You can retry multiple times until all memories succeed.
All three methods preserve identical quality because they only modify metadata, not image/video data. ExportSnaps, GitHub scripts, and manual EXIF editing all write metadata without re-encoding files. The difference is speed, automation, and reliability, not quality.
