Migrate Windows apps with WinGet export while keeping app data separate

WinGet export creates a JSON list of packages it can match to configured sources. That list can help rebuild a Windows 11 workstation, but Microsoft warns that unmatched apps produce warnings and import installs packages, not their profiles or licenses. A reliable migration therefore has three inventories: package list, application data and account or activation requirements. The JSON is a reviewable plan, not an automatic clone of the old PC.

Before you start​

Back up personal files and app-specific profiles before migration. Identify paid software, browser profiles, databases and hardware-bound licenses. Keep the old PC available until the replacement is tested. Decide whether you want current versions or fixed exported versions; old version pins can be unavailable or insecure later.

Do it step by step​

1. On the old PC, run winget list and save its output. Compare it with Settings > Apps to catch applications that do not map to a package source.
2. Run winget export -o followed by a chosen JSON file path. Read every warning about packages that could not be matched; make a manual list for those apps.
3. Open the JSON and inspect Sources and PackageIdentifier entries. Remove software you no longer need, and verify any unexpected source or package before carrying it to the new PC.
4. Copy the JSON and separate app-data backups to trusted storage. Do not store license keys or passwords in the WinGet manifest.
5. On the new PC, install Windows updates, confirm WinGet sources and run winget import -i against the reviewed JSON. Watch failures and prompts rather than assuming one command completed everything.
6. Restore each application's data using its supported method, sign in or reactivate where required, and test critical workflows. Compare the final app inventory to both the export and manual list.

Check the result​

Every critical application opens with the expected settings or data, unmatched apps have been addressed, and licenses are valid on the new machine.

If something goes wrong​

If import cannot find a package, check the current source and ID; repositories change. If a package installs but data is absent, restore from the app-specific backup. Do not delete the old PC before the replacement has passed a full workday of use.

Know the limit​

WinGet export and import do not transfer documents, account secrets or license entitlements. Microsoft notes that export attempts to match installed apps and reports unmatched packages; its JSON can be edited before import. Microsoft WinGet export WinGet import

Decision checkpoint​

Create a migration checklist with an owner for each application: installation, data, credential, license and validation. WinGet only addresses the first of those in many cases. If an app stores files under AppData or has a built-in export command, include its supported restore procedure. For browser extensions and password managers, verify synchronization and recovery keys before retiring the old device. Do not move an old executable directory wholesale just because it appears in the package list; installed dependencies and machine-specific settings can break.