My notes are held hostage in Evernote and I can't export them

[GenTeal 4]

I used to be able to open one of my notes within Evernote, right click on it, and select "save" or "save as" and I could get a pdf copy of it on my Mac desktop.  Now for the life of me, I don't know how to get anything to export...or if it does export, I can't open it.  I've dumped way too much money into Evernote to just have them leave me stranded here!  Not happy at all. 

[agsteele 2,951]

In the direct download desktop app, to save a note as a PDF, you tap the three dot menu at the top right corner of the note.

If you can tell us the full details of which version of the app you are using and your OS, we may be able advise specifically.

[Boot17 1,452]

You can also right click a note (or group of notes) in the note list and then right-click and select "Export as PDF". Or you can select multiple notes in the note list and then click the little PDF button in the blue bar that floats at the bottom center of the screen.

You can also go to the "File -> Export Note as PDF..." menu.

Note that if you are using the Web version on a Mac (like you are running Evernote in a browser), then you can't export to PDF like this.

(Also, wouldn't a less inflammatory and click-baity title for this post perhaps be "Is it still possible to export my notes to PDF?" or "Help with exporting notes to PDF" 😉)

 

[GenTeal 4]

At this point I can’t even gain access to my account. Evernote was having technical difficulties so I signed out and  then couldn’t log back in. So I reset the password, but now it says I have to unsync a device. I clicked on unsync and it said I’ve already done that this too many times this month. What?  I’ve only done this once to get the free account set up. And now somehow I’m locked out. Beyond frustrated at the time and energy Evernote is causing. How can I access my account so I can continue exporting my notes out of it?  Help please!

[GenTeal 4]

I’ve been a premium user paying annually for the last ten years. I wasn’t thrilled with the price increase because Evernote was getting worse each year, and I barely uploaded anything each month and the price hike is simply unaffordable.  Even when I try searching for notes, Evernote is so slow that I would just give up trying to find things.  So I wanted to downgrade to free, and just pay for a month at a time when I needed to upload. And now I can’t get access to my notes. Please help me sign in. 

[PinkElephant 8,119]

https://help.evernote.com/hc/en-us/requests/new
 

Use the ticket type „Account“, it’s available for Free users as well.

 

A monthly upgrade should be available at any time.

[GenTeal 4]

I don’t understand. It wants me to sign in again. 

[PinkElephant 8,119]

To open a ticket you need to be signed in. But signed into the help pages, not into your notes.

Or proceed as a guest:

https://help.evernote.com/hc/en-us/requests/new?ticket_form_id=254668&guest=true&guest=true

[GenTeal 4]

I don’t have time to do this right now. Will this automatically reset next month so I can unsync a device so I can use the Evernote app on my Mac?  I see my notes on my iPhone app, but I don’t know if I can export entire notebooks on my phone. 
 

Also, if I don’t want the Google security feature, will I be locked out of my notes permanently?  What is my deadline?

[Bill Myers 458]

23 hours ago, Boot17 said:

(Also, wouldn't a less inflammatory and click-baity title for this post perhaps be "Is it still possible to export my notes to PDF?" or "Help with exporting notes to PDF" 😉)

Yeah, but the inflammatory title lends itself to some entertaining imaginary scenarios on my part. I'm seeing Evernote as some kind of terrorist group holding notes in an account hostage. One of those notes is shared with others and begins, "These are my words and I have written them of my own free will."

I know I risk upsetting our OP further. But sometimes I just can't help myself.

[Bill Myers 458]

I know this advice has a bit of a "close the barn door after the horses got out" vibe, but I almost ran afoul of this issue when I was on a free account for a month or so earlier this year. Word to the wise: anyone else considering a downgrade to a free account would be well-served to sign out of Evernote on all devices except the two they intend to continue using the application on. And bear in mind that the Web client counts as a device for these purposes.

I know it seems annoying but it's also fair. Otherwise, what's to stop someone from just logging out of one device and logging into another ad infinitum to get around the device limit?

Unless you're one of those who thinks any limitations on the free account are inherently unfair. We'll just have to agree to disagree in that case.

[PinkElephant 8,119]

2 hours ago, GenTeal said:

I don’t have time to do this right now. Will this automatically reset next month so I can unsync a device so I can use the Evernote app on my Mac?  I see my notes on my iPhone app, but I don’t know if I can export entire notebooks on my phone. 
 

Also, if I don’t want the Google security feature, will I be locked out of my notes permanently?  What is my deadline?

You should inform yourself. The forum is no answering machine, just to make up for your own deficits in learning the software you use.

You have no time to solve your problem, but obviously you expect us (fellow users) to dedicate our time to help you out.

For starters read this - if you did it before acting blindly, you likely wouldn't be in a bind now:

https://help.evernote.com/hc/en-us/articles/218558068

Then this:

https://help.evernote.com/hc/en-us/articles/209005557

About 2FA, you don't need to set it up (but it is safer, and recommended).

If you search the forum, you will find enough alternatives to Google Authenticator. Beside this EN is operated on servers rented from Google ...

[GenTeal 4]

I think the problem was that I somehow made a different account years ago that was never used. There aren’t any notes in it. Instead of deleting it, somehow I think I stored the password for it and logged into today.  Then I realized that’s not the account I needed to sign into.  I’m not trying to take advantage of the system. I was successfully signed into just my Mac and iPhone. But now I’ve messed it up after Evernote encountered an error and suggested I quit or restart. Now I can’t get back in. 

[PinkElephant 8,119]

No idea. I have 3 accounts, 1 subscription, 2 Free. I can switch at will between them. I just need to take care that on the Free accounts I only use 2 devices (in my case web and iPhone).

If you were in that other account, it shouldn’t have an impact on your active one. You can even have different devices synced on each account.

[John in Michigan USA 129]

4 hours ago, GenTeal said:

I think the problem was that I somehow made a different account years ago that was never used. There aren’t any notes in it. Instead of deleting it, somehow I think I stored the password for it and logged into today.  Then I realized that’s not the account I needed to sign into.  I’m not trying to take advantage of the system. I was successfully signed into just my Mac and iPhone. But now I’ve messed it up after Evernote encountered an error and suggested I quit or restart. Now I can’t get back in. 

It sounds like you've logged in to your main account automatically for long enough that you forgot you once had one or more different accounts. Now you have a chicken-before-the-egg problem: Which username/email is the current, paid account and which ones aren't? If that is the core of your problem, I'd suggest something like password recovery / account recovery. That too is something that free support or the forums (search is your friend) can help with.

Note that if you've for example lost access to your main account's email (or user name, form of payment, etc., depending on how you set it up) you would consult that service or company, not Evernote.

Edited September 1, 2023 by John in Michigan USA
clarity

[PinkElephant 8,119]

Entering the word „Password“ into the help database produces this :

https://help.evernote.com/hc/en-us/articles/208313998

[GenTeal 4]

Thank you. I tried logging back into the desktop app again and somehow it randomly started working again tonight without me doing anything different. I do have to say Evernote has been glitchy. It used to work a lot smoother back in the early days of its release. 
 

I do have all the correct passwords to use now, and which keychain passwords to avoid.