ChatshelfHow to search old ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini chats
Use the search in the site where you had the chat: ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini each have a way to search their own chat history. The catch is that each one searches only its own chats. If you cannot remember which assistant you asked, you search three times. Chatshelf puts one search box over all three.
Searching inside each site
- Search with a rare word. A name, an error message or a number works better than a common phrase. Chat titles are made by the site and often say little about the content.
- Try more than one phrasing. If you remember asking about "invoice reminders", also try "payment" and the client's name.
- Search in the other assistants. Open each site and use its own chat search or chat list. They do not see each other.
- Rename chats you will want again. A title such as "Tax 2025: deductions" is something a later search can find.
This works, and for a short history it is enough. It gets slow when you have hundreds of chats across three sites.
Searching all three with Chatshelf
Chatshelf records the chat list the site shows in its sidebar, and saves the text of a chat when you open it. The search box sits in its section on each site, and in the toolbar popup. Type one or more words. Every word has to match. Titles come first, then text matches with a short snippet around the words. Results from ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini appear together.
The limits are worth reading before you rely on it:
- Titles: free searches the title of every chat Chatshelf has seen in a sidebar.
- Text: free searches the text of your 20 most recent saved chats. Pro searches every saved chat. Pro costs €49 once or €29 a year, as one-time passes that do not renew.
- Saved means opened. Text is saved when you open the chat. A chat you have never opened since installing has a title and no text, so only its title can match.
- Older matches are counted. On free, when chats outside the 20 match your words, the search shows a line such as "2 more matches in older chats (Pro)". Older saved text is kept, not deleted.
New installs get 7 days of Pro, with no card, which is enough time to open your most important chats and see how the search behaves on them.
How to get more out of it
Open the chats you care about once, so their text is saved. Pin them, or file them in folders. Then search for the one rare word you remember. If the result is a title-only match, open the chat to read it.
The text stays on your computer. Chatshelf has no server that receives your chats. It runs in Microsoft Edge and Firefox on desktop, not in Chrome, and it only sees what the three sites show in the browser.
When the built-in search is enough
If you use one assistant, keep a tidy history, and your question is "what did I ask last week", the site's own search is the simpler choice. Chatshelf starts to pay off when you use two or three assistants, or keep chats for months.
Questions
- Can I search ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini chats in one place?
- Yes, with Chatshelf. One search box covers the chat titles and saved text from chatgpt.com, claude.ai and gemini.google.com.
- How many chats does free search read?
- The free plan searches every title and the text of your 20 most recent saved chats. Pro searches the text of every saved chat.
- Why is a chat missing from search?
- A chat is listed once the site shows it in its sidebar, and its text is saved when you open it. Open the chat once and it can be found by its words.
- Does Chatshelf send my chats anywhere?
- No. The text is saved in your browser. Only your licence key, and a suggestion if you press Send, leave the browser.
Folders, search and export for your chats
Chatshelf is free, with no account. Your folders and saved chat text stay in your browser.
Chatshelf runs in Microsoft Edge and Firefox on desktop. Chatshelf is an independent product and is not affiliated with OpenAI, Anthropic or Google.