diff --git a/bin/autojump_data.py b/bin/autojump_data.py
index 3ce96c2..b3e9e5a 100644
--- a/bin/autojump_data.py
+++ b/bin/autojump_data.py
@@ -121,6 +121,8 @@ def save(config, data):
     try:
         # write to temp file
         temp = NamedTemporaryFile(delete=False)
+        # prevent Windows errors by closing the file before opening it.
+        temp.close()
 
         with open(temp.name, 'w', encoding='utf-8', errors='replace') as f:
             for path, weight in data.items():