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Where CapCut saves your projects on Mac and Windows

By Greg Thompson, Founder, CutConvertPublished

CapCut desktop saves each project as a folder inside com.lveditor.draft. On a Mac that's ~/Movies/CapCut/User Data/Projects/com.lveditor.draft/. On Windows it's C:\Users\<you>\AppData\Local\CapCut\User Data\Projects\com.lveditor.draft\.

Each folder has your project's name, and the edit itself is the draft_info.json inside it. That's the file to drop on the CapCut to Premiere Pro, CapCut to DaVinci Resolve or CapCut to Final Cut Pro converter.

CapCut desktop saves every project as its own folder inside a folder called com.lveditor.draft. The folder has your project's name, and the file inside it called draft_info.json is the whole edit: every track, clip, trim, speed change and text layer. CapCut doesn't show you this location anywhere obvious, so here are the exact paths on Mac and Windows, what each file in the folder does, and what to check when your project isn't there.

The CapCut project folder on a Mac

~/Movies/CapCut/User Data/Projects/com.lveditor.draft/

~/Movies is the Movies folder in your home folder. The quickest way in is Finder's Go > Go to Folder (Shift-Command-G). Paste the path and press Return.

You'll see one folder per project, named the way it appears on CapCut's home screen. If you have dozens, switch Finder to list view and sort by Date Modified. The project you worked on last is at the top.

The CapCut project folder on Windows

C:\Users\<you>\AppData\Local\CapCut\User Data\Projects\com.lveditor.draft\

AppData is hidden, so clicking through from your user folder won't get you there. Paste this into the File Explorer address bar instead:

%LOCALAPPDATA%\CapCut\User Data\Projects\com.lveditor.draft

Windows fills in your user name. Sort by Date modified to find the latest project.

What's inside a project folder

Most of the folder is CapCut's working files. These are the ones that matter:

File or folderWhat it is
draft_info.jsonThe edit itself: tracks, clips, trims, speed, position, scale, crop, volume, transitions and text. On Windows and in older versions it can be called draft_content.json.
draft_info.json.bakCapCut's previous save of the same edit.
draft_meta_info.jsonThe project's name, cover and folder path. CapCut needs it to list the project on the home screen.
draft_cover.jpgThe thumbnail on the home screen.
Timelines/One folder per timeline in the project, each with its own copy of draft_info.json. Use the one at the top of the project folder.

Your footage is not in there. A CapCut project points to each video and audio file wherever it was when you imported it. Stock clips, music and sound effects from CapCut's own library are downloaded to CapCut's cache folder, under CapCut/User Data/Cache.

That matters when you back up. Copying the project folder saves the edit, not the media.

If your project isn't in that folder

Three things to check, in this order.

  1. You moved the drafts folder. CapCut's settings have a drafts location you can change. If you or someone else pointed it at another drive, your projects are there.
  2. Search for the file. On a Mac, Spotlight finds it, or run mdfind -name draft_info.json in Terminal. On Windows, search the drive for draft_info.json in File Explorer. Every result is a project folder.
  3. The project only exists in the cloud or on your phone. A project made in the CapCut phone app lives on the phone. Back it up to your CapCut cloud space, then open it in CapCut desktop signed in to the same account. Once it opens on the computer, it has a folder like any other desktop project.

Back up or move a CapCut project

Quit CapCut first, so it isn't halfway through a save. Then copy the whole project folder, not just draft_info.json.

To move a project to another computer, copy the folder into the same com.lveditor.draft folder there and open CapCut. It lists the project when it starts. Copy the media as well, then use Relink in CapCut for any clip it can't find.

Open the project in another editor

CapCut can't export the edit as XML for any other app. There's more on that in Does CapCut export XML? What it does leave behind is draft_info.json, and that file has everything a converter needs. Drop it on one of these:

Only after the captions? The CapCut to SRT converter reads the same file, and exporting subtitles from CapCut covers CapCut's own caption export.

FAQ

Where are CapCut projects saved on a Mac? In ~/Movies/CapCut/User Data/Projects/com.lveditor.draft, one folder per project. ~/Movies is the Movies folder in your home folder. In Finder, choose Go > Go to Folder and paste the path.

Where are CapCut projects saved on Windows? In C:\Users\<you>\AppData\Local\CapCut\User Data\Projects\com.lveditor.draft. AppData is a hidden folder, so paste %LOCALAPPDATA%\CapCut\User Data\Projects\com.lveditor.draft into the File Explorer address bar instead of clicking through.

What is com.lveditor.draft? The name CapCut gives its drafts folder, on Mac and Windows alike. Every desktop project you make is a folder inside it.

Which file holds my CapCut edit? draft_info.json, at the top of the project folder. It lists every track, clip, trim, speed change, transform and text layer. draft_meta_info.json holds the project's name and cover, and the .bak files are CapCut's previous save.

Are my videos inside the project folder? No. The project points to your media files wherever they were when you imported them, so copying the project folder doesn't copy your footage. Stock clips and music from CapCut's library sit in CapCut's own cache folder.

Can I change where CapCut saves projects? Yes. CapCut's settings have a drafts location you can change. If your projects aren't in the default folder, check that setting, or search the computer for draft_info.json.

Greg Thompson · Founder, CutConvert

Greg builds CutConvert, the post-production file converter — including the first working decoder for Premiere Pro’s binary .prtranscript format. He writes these guides from the format specs and real editor workflows.

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