The short answer
If you signed in and used cloud sync, your folder structure is stored on your account, not just in the browser. Uninstalling and reinstalling FolderTube and signing back in with the same account brings your folders back.
If you never signed in, your folders were stored locally in that browser only. Uninstalling removes the extension's local storage along with it, and there is no account-side copy to restore from.
Why it works this way
FolderTube saves folder data to your account whenever you are signed in โ that is what makes multi-device sync possible in the first place. Signing in is not just a login screen; it determines where your data physically lives. Without signing in, there is no account to attach the data to, so it stays local to that one browser installation.
If you were signed in: reinstall and sign back in
- Reinstall FolderTube from the Chrome Web Store.
- Open YouTube and click the purple FolderTube button to open the sidebar.
- Sign in with the same account you used before.
- Your folders, channel assignments, and (on Premium) colors and icons should reappear automatically.
Add real folders to YouTube
FolderTube is free to install. Drag your subscriptions into folders and finally find what you actually want to watch.
Add to ChromeIf you were not signed in: local data likely does not survive
Without an account attached, your folder structure lives in that browser's local storage. Uninstalling the extension typically clears its local storage as part of the removal, which means the folder structure you built is unlikely to come back after a reinstall.
If you are not sure whether you were signed in, open the FolderTube sidebar before uninstalling and check the account section โ it will tell you whether you are currently signed in.
How to protect your folders before uninstalling
- Sign in before you do anything else. This alone moves your data from local-only to account-backed, so any future uninstall is no longer a risk.
- Use the built-in backup tool in the sidebar's Settings panel. The free plan gets a copyable list of every folder and its channel URLs; Premium gets a full JSON download of your folder hierarchy and channel assignments. There is no one-click re-import yet, so treat it as a record to manually rebuild from rather than a restore button.
Signing in after the fact does not restore old local data
If you already uninstalled without ever signing in, signing in on a fresh install starts you with an empty account โ it does not retroactively pull in whatever was in the old browser's local storage. The backup habit only helps if you do it before uninstalling.
What to read next
For the full backup workflow, see How to export and backup your YouTube subscriptions. For how sync works day-to-day across devices, see How to sync your YouTube folders across devices.