How to Sync OneNote Across Devices and Fix Sync Errors

To sync OneNote across devices, the notebook has to be stored on OneDrive (or on SharePoint, for work and school accounts), and every device has to be signed in to OneNote with the same Microsoft account. A notebook saved on your computer’s drive never syncs, even if its folder sits inside your OneDrive folder. So the fix is usually three steps: check where the notebook lives, move it with OneNote’s own command, then open it on each device.

This guide shows how to sync OneNote across devices in OneNote for Windows (the Microsoft 365 desktop app), OneNote for Mac, OneNote for iPad and OneNote on the web, then walks through the sync errors people run into most.

How to Sync OneNote Across Devices: Where Notebooks Live

Only one OneNote app can store a notebook on your computer, and that is where most sync trouble starts.

App	Can save a notebook on your computer	Syncs through OneDrive
OneNote for Windows (Microsoft 365)	Yes	Only when the notebook is on OneDrive or SharePoint
OneNote for Mac	No	Yes, every notebook
OneNote for iPad and iPhone	No	Yes, every notebook
OneNote on the web	No	Opens notebooks straight from OneDrive

If you imported a notebook package on Windows, such as a planner template, OneNote usually unpacked it into a folder on your computer. It works fine on that PC but will not appear anywhere else until you move it. Our guide on how to import a OneNote template covers the import itself. On a Mac, notebooks always live on OneDrive, so an imported template is ready to sync as soon as it opens. Our OneNote template for Mac guide explains that route.

If you still use the older OneNote for Windows 10 app, note that Microsoft ended its support in October 2025. The steps below are for the Microsoft 365 desktop app.

Step 1: Check Whether Your Notebook Is on OneDrive

In OneNote for Windows:

1. Open the notebook and choose File > Info.
2. Look at the location listed under the notebook’s name.
3. A web address starting with https:// (for personal accounts, it usually includes d.docs.live.net) means the notebook is on OneDrive and can sync.
4. A folder path such as C:\Users\YourName\Documents\OneNote Notebooks means it is stored on this computer only.

A quick second check works from any device: sign in to OneNote on the web, or open OneNote on your iPad, with the same account. If the notebook shows up there, it is already in the cloud.

OneNote Notebook Not Connected to OneDrive

A notebook that is not connected to OneDrive shows the same signs: it exists on one Windows PC only, it is missing from the notebook list on your Mac, iPad or phone, and OneNote on the web cannot find it. There are two usual causes.

• It was never moved. Imported notebooks and notebooks created with a local location stay on the computer.
• It was copied into the OneDrive folder in File Explorer. This looks like a cloud notebook, but Microsoft notes that OneNote keeps treating it as a locally stored notebook unless you move it with OneNote itself. Do not drag notebook folders around in File Explorer.

A third, rarer cause is a second account. If you use a personal account and a work account, the notebook may be on the other account’s OneDrive, so check which account each device is signed in with.

Step 2: Move a OneNote Notebook to OneDrive

Before you move anything, make a backup: choose File > Export, select Notebook, then OneNote Package, and save the file somewhere safe.

In the current Microsoft 365 version of OneNote for Windows, Microsoft’s steps are:

1. Open the notebook you want in the cloud.
2. Choose File > Save a Copy.
3. Pick a recent OneDrive folder, or choose Browse and go to your OneDrive (the Documents folder is a sensible spot).
4. Type the notebook name and choose Save.

In OneNote 2016 to 2024, the same job lives under File > Share: pick your OneDrive as the location and choose Move Notebook.

Then confirm it worked. Go back to File > Info and check that the location now starts with https://. If you see two notebooks with the same name in your notebook list, keep the OneDrive one open and close the local one: right-click its name and choose Close This Notebook. Closing a notebook does not delete it.

Step 3: Open the Notebook on Your Other Devices

Sign in to OneNote with the same Microsoft account on each device, then open the notebook once. After that, it stays in your list and syncs on its own.

• Another Windows PC: choose File > Open and select the notebook under your OneDrive.
• Mac: choose File > Open Notebook and select it.
• iPad or iPhone: at the bottom of your notebooks list, tap More Notebooks and tap the notebook. If it is not listed, tap Open more from OneDrive and find it there.
• Web browser: sign in to OneDrive, go to the folder where you saved the notebook and click it to open it in OneNote on the web.

This import once, sync everywhere pattern is exactly how our OneNote planner is set up: you import it once on a computer, then it syncs to your iPad or phone. For pencil tools and handwriting once it arrives, see OneNote digital planner on iPad.

How to Force a Sync in Each App

OneNote syncs in the background, but a manual sync is the fastest way to see whether something is stuck.

App	How to sync now
OneNote for Windows	Shift+F9 syncs the current notebook and F9 syncs all of them. Or choose File > Info > View Sync Status, then Sync Now or Sync All.
OneNote for Mac	Control-click the notebook name and choose Sync This Notebook.
OneNote for iPad and iPhone	Pull down on the notebooks list, the section list or the page list.
OneNote on the web	There is no manual sync. Changes save as you work.

On Windows, also check File > Options > Sync and make sure Sync notebooks automatically is ticked.

OneNote Not Syncing? Work Through These Fixes

Start with four checks, in this order:

1. Connection. Open any website on the device that is out of date. If it will not load, fix the connection first.
2. The web version. Open the notebook in OneNote on the web. If your latest changes are there, the lagging device just needs to catch up, so force a sync on it. If they are missing on the web too, the device where you made them has not uploaded them yet.
3. Account. Confirm every device is signed in with the same account.
4. Updates. Update OneNote everywhere. Error 0xE40105F9 specifically means the app version is too old to sync.

One warning before you try anything drastic: do not close the notebook, sign out or reinstall while it has changes that have not synced. Microsoft warns this can lose them. Copy important pages into another notebook first.

Error or symptom	What it means	What to do
Yellow warning triangle on a section in View Sync Status	That section cannot sync	Create a new section, copy (not move) the pages into it, press Shift+F9, then delete the old section
Yellow information bar about conflicting changes	Two devices edited the same spot before syncing	Open the conflict version, copy anything you need into the main page, then delete the conflict page
Misplaced Sections in the notebook list	OneNote cannot find where a section belongs	Move the section into a notebook, or delete it once its content is safe elsewhere
E000006C with a refresh prompt	The notebook needs a refresh	Choose Refresh Now in the message
0xE0000024	Sign-in problem	Click the error to sign in again and confirm the account
0xE4010641	Network disconnected	Check the connection and try again later
0xE00015E0	Not enough space on the device	On Windows, choose File > Options > Save & Backup > Optimize All Files Now, or keep fewer backups

If OneDrive itself is full, nothing new can upload. Free up space in OneDrive or add storage, then sync again.

Keep OneNote Syncing Smoothly

A few habits prevent most of the problems above:

• Keep pictures small. Big images and stickers make sections heavy and slow to sync. Our guide on how to add stickers to OneNote shows how to resize them first.
• Give one device a moment. If you edit a page on your PC and then pick up your iPad, pull down to sync before you write on the same page. That avoids conflict pages.
• Manage attachments on iPad. In OneNote’s settings on iPad, under Sync, you can turn off Auto Sync Attachments so large files download only when you open them.
• Close notebooks you no longer use on each device, so OneNote has less to keep up to date.

Once sync is reliable, it is worth settling on a daily routine for the notebook itself. Our guide on how to use OneNote as a planner covers that.

Your next step: open File > Info on your Windows PC right now and check the location of each notebook you care about. Any that still show a C:\ path are the ones to move today.