Practical notes / Saving and exporting

# Keep the project, share the image

Published 2026-11-04

A finished design needs two different files: an image to use elsewhere and an editable project to return to. In Artboar, exporting a PNG or WebP and saving a project are separate actions. Doing one does not do the other.

## What each copy keeps

- **PNG or WebP export:** a flattened image of the active artboard. Use it in a post, presentation, website, or other destination that accepts that format. It does not preserve selectable text, separate shapes, crop settings, or your other artboards.
- **Save project:** an editable **.design.json** download containing your design, artboards, layers, and retained image assets. Open it in a compatible Artboar editor to continue editing.
- **Browser recovery:** one draft in the same browser on the same device, when storage is available. It helps you resume work; it is not cloud sync or a portable backup. Clearing site data can remove it.

You can import an exported image into another design, but it remains a single image layer. That cannot reconstruct the original editable objects.

## A practical finish-and-back-up routine

1. Review the active artboard. Check text wrapping, image crops, and the background. Export it as PNG or WebP at a scale supported by the editor and appropriate for its destination.
2. Check the downloaded image. Confirm that it is the right artboard and that important content is visible. Switch artboards and repeat when you need more than one image.
3. Choose **Save project** and check that the **.design.json** file has actually downloaded. The action requests a download; browser settings, cancellation, or a failed download can prevent you from getting the file.
4. Keep that project file somewhere you can find it. A clear name such as **launch-screens-2026-11-04.design.json** helps distinguish it from last week’s version. Keep a separate copy if losing the work would matter.

The save or export status is useful feedback, but inspect the file you received. An image export does not save your editable project, and seeing a locally saved draft does not establish that you have a downloaded backup.

## Reopen without losing the current draft

Before using **Open**, save any work you want to keep: opening a project replaces the current document rather than merging two designs. A direct template link can also offer **Keep current**, **Save project**, or **Replace with template** when there is a draft. Verify the requested download before choosing to replace it.

To continue on another device, transfer the project file and open it in Artboar there. Check that its artboards, images, and text look as expected. Bundled fonts are available in Artboar; system fonts can differ between computers, so review wrapping before the next export. Newer project features may require a current editor.

## Try it with a small design first

Use a template, change a headline, export the image, and save the project. Once you have kept any existing draft safe, reopen the downloaded project and check that the headline is still editable. This checks the backup you received without relying on browser recovery alone.

[Choose an editable template](/templates/) · [Open Artboar](/app/) · [Follow the post and story guide](/guides/social-post-and-story/)

[View this page on Artboar](/blog/editable-project-vs-image-export/)