# Where to save links on iPhone: one place for every app

> **TL;DR** Save links on your iPhone in one library that every app can reach through the share sheet. Safari's bookmarks and Reading List work well for pages open in Safari. Shareling adds itself to the share sheet in any app that shares a web link, a web page or text containing a link, saves it to Self (your own library), turns any #word you type in the note into a label, and writes the link on the phone even when you are offline or the Shareling app is closed.

Save links on your iPhone in one place that every app can reach through the share sheet, so a link from Safari, a chat or a social app lands in the same library. Shareling puts itself in that share sheet: tap Share in any app that shares a link, type a note with `#labels`, tap Send, and the link is saved to your own library even with no connection.

The problem it solves is scatter. Links arrive in messages, feeds and browsers, and each app keeps its own pile. Shareling is a Mac, iPhone and iPad app (iOS, iPadOS and macOS 26 or later) for keeping your own links and sending a link to one specific person, and on the iPhone the share sheet is the way in.

## Where should I save links I find on my iPhone?

Save them in one library that the share sheet can reach from every app, rather than in whichever app you found them in. What that library should be depends on where your links come from.

If you read mostly in Safari, Safari has two built-in places. **Reading List** is for pages you mean to read later: add one from Share > Add to Reading List, or touch and hold a link and tap Add to Reading List without opening it. Reading List items can be read without an internet connection. **Bookmarks** keep a link to revisit, and on iPhone you can sort them into folders, rename them and reorder them. With iCloud for Safari on, both stay up to date on your iPhone, iPad and Mac.

If your links come from everywhere, Shareling keeps them together. It saves each link to **Self**, your own library, with an optional note and labels. A label in Shareling works like a tag, so one link can sit under two projects. The labels are called folders in the app, and they are private to you.

Here is how the two compare on what the share sheet does:

| | Safari Reading List and bookmarks | Shareling share sheet |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Add a note while saving | Bookmark descriptions are documented on Mac only | Yes, in the note field |
| Label a link | Bookmarks: move into a folder | Type `#name` while saving; one link can carry several |
| Offline | Reading List items can be read offline | The save itself works offline |
| Syncs across your devices | Yes, through iCloud for Safari | Not in the current code (see below) |

That last row matters. Shareling's sync to your other devices is designed around iCloud, but the live connection is not switched on in the current code, so a link you save on the iPhone stays on the iPhone for now.

## How do I save a link to Shareling from any app?

Save a link to Shareling by tapping the app's Share button, choosing Shareling, and tapping Send with **Self** selected, which it is by default. Step by step:

1. In Safari or another app, tap the Share button on the page or link.
2. Choose Shareling. A sheet opens with the page's title and its site.
3. Optionally type a note.
4. Under **Send to**, leave **Self** selected, or pick a person.
5. Tap **Send**.

![Shareling's share sheet on iPhone, from the app's snapshot tests: the page title and site, a note field with an #inspiration folder chip, and Send to showing a person and Self](/content/save-links-from-iphone-share-sheet/share-sheet.webp)

The share sheet accepts one web page or one web link per share, or text. When Safari shares a page, Shareling runs a small script in the page to read its title as well as its address, which is why the sheet shows a title for Safari pages. From shared text it takes the first `http` or `https` link and trims punctuation that prose leaves on the end, such as a trailing full stop or comma. If what you shared holds no link, the sheet says "That isn't a web link Shareling can save."

Sharing the same page to Self twice leaves one link, not two.

## How do I add a label while sharing?

Add a label while sharing by typing `#` and a name in the note field, then a space: the name leaves the note and becomes a folder chip. Type `#recipes ` and a `#recipes` chip appears beside the note; tap a chip to remove it. You can add several, and everything that is not a `#word` stays as the note.

Labels and notes behave differently once you send to someone. The note travels with the link, so it is how you tell the other person why you sent it. Labels never travel: they are yours alone, like favorites and read-later. In the app a label is called a folder, and one link can sit in several.

## Does it work offline or with the app closed?

Yes, saving works offline and with the Shareling app closed. The share extension does not hand the link to the app and wait; it writes the link straight into the app's database, which sits in a container the app and the extension share.

One database transaction writes the link, its labels and the pending sync change together, so a crash halfway through leaves nothing behind. Two jobs are deliberately left out of the extension:

- **Link previews.** The extension does not fetch the page's details, because of the share extension's memory limit. The app fills previews in the next time it opens, up to 50 links per launch.
- **Syncing.** Nothing syncs from the extension. The change waits in an outbox in the database until the app sends it.

Today that outbox waits longer than the app launch. The live iCloud connection is listed as later work in Shareling's architecture notes, and the iPhone app currently starts its sync with nothing to send to. Until that ships, links saved to Self stay in the iPhone's library, and a link sent to a person is saved on your phone but does not reach them yet.

That split is the design choice. The extension only writes to the database, so saving is instant and does not depend on the network, while the slower work of fetching previews and syncing waits for the app. The cost is that a link saved from the share sheet has no preview until you next open Shareling.

## What if Shareling isn't in my share sheet?

If Shareling isn't in your share sheet, check first that what you are sharing is a link. Shareling offers itself only for a web page, a web link or text, one item at a time, so it does not appear when you share a photo or a file. It also needs iOS or iPadOS 26 or later.

If the sheet opens but Send fails with "Shareling couldn't reach its library. Open the Shareling app once, then try again.", do what it says: open the Shareling app, then share again. Every cause and error message is on the [share extension not showing up](/docs/share-extension-not-showing) page.

To get a saved link onto your Mac today, see [sending a link from iPhone to Mac](/guides/send-link-iphone-to-mac).

## Frequently asked questions

### Where is the best place to save links on my iPhone?

Somewhere every app can reach. Safari's Reading List and bookmarks suit pages you read in Safari. Shareling's share sheet takes a link from any app that shares a web link, a web page or text containing a link, and keeps it in one library with a note and labels.

### Can I add a tag or folder to a link while I share it on iPhone?

Yes, in Shareling. Type # and a name in the note field, then a space, and the name becomes a folder chip. Tap a chip to remove it. Folders are private: they never travel with the link.

### Does saving a link with Shareling need an internet connection?

No. The share extension writes the link straight into Shareling's database on the phone, so the save works offline and with the Shareling app closed. The page preview is fetched later, the next time you open the app.

### Can I share several links at once to Shareling?

No. The share extension accepts one web page or one web link per share, or text; from text it takes the first http or https link it finds.