You can switch AI agents without losing the work you have built up, but there is no universal one-click transfer. Save an archive and portable copies of the material you need, rebuild provider-specific tools and settings in the new service, then test real tasks before relying on it. Treat conversations, memory, prompts, files, and integrations as separate things to migrate.
What to save before you switch
Start by listing what you actually use, then decide whether each item needs to remain usable in the new agent or only needs to be retained as a record.
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- Prompts and instructions: Save reusable text in editable plain-text or Markdown files.
- Project context: Copy important reference documents and note which tasks depend on them.
- Conversation history: Identify chats containing decisions, examples, or context worth keeping. An export can preserve a record without being importable elsewhere.
- Agent configuration: Record settings, custom-agent behavior, reusable skills, templates, and expected inputs and outputs.
- Tools and connections: List actions, integrations, connected services, permissions, and any recurring workflow that depends on them.
OpenAI’s agent import guidance addresses instructions, settings, skills, plugins, projects, and recent work. Its custom GPT workflow migration guidance notes that custom actions do not transfer through that particular workflow and recommends saving familiar prompts for comparison. A prompt-only backup may therefore omit important dependencies.
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Export your data and keep portable copies
Use the source service’s current export controls, but do not rely on the export alone. Keep the original archive intact as a reference, and separately save working copies of the prompts, instructions, and project files you plan to reuse. Store those copies somewhere you control and can access while setting up the destination. An optional local backup, such as a portable external SSD, can hold files; it does not transfer them between services.
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Anthropic’s Claude export documentation, dated July 8, 2026, says individual users on Free, Pro, and Max can request an account-information and chat-history export from the web app or Claude Desktop. The download link arrives by email, expires 24 hours after delivery, and must be used while signed in. Anthropic also says that this personal-account export cannot be imported into another personal Claude account.
Before closing or deleting the old account, check the destination’s current documentation for supported content, formats, account eligibility, and any access or retention changes. Do not assume one provider’s export can be imported into another.
Transfer memory separately from chat history
Memory and conversation archives are different kinds of data. Anthropic describes a feature for importing memory from other AI providers into Claude and exporting Claude memory for backup or migration. That description is not evidence that conversations, attachments, or workflow settings transfer with the memory. Anthropic’s separate data-export guidance explicitly says the personal export cannot be imported into another personal Claude account.
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1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteUse the Claude memory transfer documentation for the memory feature’s current scope and instructions; use the export documentation for account archives. Keep copies of any critical context that you need in both forms.
Rebuild provider-specific workflow pieces
Put reusable instructions into the destination feature that best fits them: agent instructions, project instructions, a skill, a prompt template, or another supported option. Reattach knowledge files and reconnect services using the destination’s own permission flow. Similar feature names do not guarantee identical behavior, so preserve the original text and adapt it rather than assuming it will work unchanged.
A simple mapping note helps expose gaps:
| Source feature | Saved material | Destination feature | Still to rebuild |
|---|---|---|---|
| Instructions or prompts | Editable text files | Agent instructions or prompt templates | Format and behavior adjustments |
| Project knowledge | Reference files and relevant context | Project or knowledge-file area | Reattach files and confirm access |
| Skills, plugins, or tools | Descriptions, settings, and workflow notes | Supported destination tools or skills | Recreate unsupported actions and reconnect services |
| Conversation history | Export archive and selected useful chats | Import feature, if supported | Manual reference or reconstruction when not importable |
| Memory | Memory export or saved preference notes | Memory import, if available | Check which preferences actually arrived |
OpenAI’s agent import documentation describes importing instructions, settings, skills, plugins, projects, and recent work into the ChatGPT desktop app or Codex CLI. It also warns that some prompt templates or command-style prompts rely on arguments, shell interpolation, or file-path placeholders; those need adaptation rather than blind copying.
For the specific custom-GPT-to-plugin workflow, OpenAI says custom GPT actions do not transfer, recommends saving familiar prompts for comparison, and says the original GPT becomes read-only after migration. Those limits apply to that workflow, not every migration between providers. See OpenAI’s custom GPT workflow migration guidance.
Test the new agent before depending on it
Run a small set of saved examples that represent how you work. Include a common prompt, a task that needs a project file, and any task that uses a tool or integration. Check the result against the important constraints and expected output, not just whether the agent responds.
- Run the prompt-only example and check instruction following and output format.
- Run a task that requires a reference file and confirm the agent can access the correct document.
- Run a tool- or integration-dependent task and confirm the connection, permissions, and expected behavior.
- Adjust missing instructions or context, then run the examples again.
- Keep the previous setup available until the critical tasks work in the replacement.
OpenAI’s custom GPT migration guidance specifically recommends saving familiar prompts so you can compare results. It does not promise that the replacement will behave identically, so judge readiness against the tasks and requirements that matter to you.
Choose a migration path by what must survive
Before choosing a sequence, compare the source and destination on the items below. Provider documentation describes specific flows; it does not establish a universal feature comparison across all assistants.
- Data type: Is the item an archive, memory, prompt, instruction, project file, setting, or tool?
- Transfer method: Is it a downloadable export, in-product import, workspace move, or manual recreation?
- Destination: Are you moving within one provider, to a different account or workspace tier, or to another provider?
- Fidelity: Does the item become usable configuration, or only a record to consult?
- Access and retention: What account eligibility, workspace policies, retention terms, and post-move access rules apply?
- Validation: Can you replay representative tasks and verify files, tools, and expected outputs?
For example, Anthropic distinguishes memory transfer from account-data export and says the personal export cannot be imported into another personal Claude account. OpenAI’s workspace migration guidance covers a different, provider-specific move: from a personal workspace to ChatGPT Business or Enterprise. Review the relevant provider instructions for your actual route rather than treating one flow as a general migration rule.
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