> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://anki.mintlify.site/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Add-on Folders

You can access the top level add-ons folder by going to the
Tools>Add-ons menu item in the main Anki window. Click on the View
Files button, and a folder will pop up. If you had no add-ons installed,
the top level add-ons folder will be shown. If you had an add-on
selected, the add-on’s module folder will be shown, and you will need to
go up one level.

The add-ons folder is named "addons21", corresponding to Anki 2.1. If
you have an "addons" folder, it is because you have previously used Anki
2.0.x.

Each add-on uses one folder inside the add-on folder. Anki looks for a
file called `__init__.py` file inside the folder, eg:

```text theme={null}
addons21/myaddon/__init__.py
```

If `__init__.py` does not exist, Anki will ignore the folder.

When choosing a folder name, it is recommended to stick to a-z and 0-9
characters to avoid problems with Python’s module system.

While you can use whatever folder name you wish for folders you create
yourself, when you download an add-on from AnkiWeb, Anki will use the
item’s ID as the folder name, such as:

```text theme={null}
addons21/48927303923/__init__.py
```

Anki will also place a meta.json file in the folder, which keeps track
of the original add-on name, when it was downloaded, and whether it’s
enabled or not.

You should not store user data in the add-on folder, as it’s [deleted
when the user upgrades an add-on](./addon-config#config-json).

If you followed the steps in the [editor setup](./editor-setup) section, you
can either copy your myaddon folder into Anki’s add-on folder to test it, or on
Mac or Linux, create a symlink from the folder’s original location into your
add-ons folder.