Notesnook
Private, end-to-end encrypted notes with a polished free tier.
About
Notesnook is an open-source, end-to-end encrypted note-taking app from Streetwriters, designed as the private replacement for mainstream apps like Evernote and Google Keep. It uses a zero-knowledge architecture: notes are encrypted on-device (Argon2 key derivation, ChaCha20-Poly1305) before syncing, and the codebase is open for audit. Unlike many privacy-first competitors, the free tier is genuinely generous — rich-text and Markdown editing, reminders, tags, cross-device sync, and encrypted backups without paying.
Paid plans (Essential from about $1.67/month, Pro around $4.49–5.83/month) raise storage and organization limits and add features like full-quality images, unlimited notebooks, and app lock. Since v3 (2025) the sync server is self-hostable via Docker. It is GPL-3.0 licensed with roughly 14,800 GitHub stars and apps for Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, and web, with widely praised mobile UX. Extras include note version history, a web clipper, and Monograph — publishing a note as a public web page. Tradeoffs: there is no plugin system, no wiki-style note linking, and real-time collaboration is still on the roadmap.
What it can do
- Zero-knowledge end-to-end encrypted notes (Argon2, ChaCha20-Poly1305)
- Generous free tier: rich text + Markdown, reminders, tags, cross-device sync
- Nested notebooks with full-text search
- Note version history and encrypted automatic backups
- Monograph: publish notes as public web pages
- Web clipper for saving pages
- Self-hostable sync server (v3+, Docker)
- Biometric/app lock and password-protected notes
- GPL-3.0 open source, ~14.8k GitHub stars
- Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, web
Setup
Install the app for Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, or use the web app at notesnook.com — the free tier needs only an account. Notes sync encrypted across devices automatically. For full control, self-host the sync server with Docker (v3+). Upgrade to Essential or Pro in-app for higher limits and extras like app lock and Monograph publishing.
Prerequisites
Any modern device or browser; an account for sync (free). Docker only for self-hosting.
Use cases
Works with
Trust score — 8/10
Scored 8/10 (metrics tier, metrics-v1). Evidence: ~14.8k GitHub stars with commits pushed October 16, 2026; GPL-3.0; independent 2026 reviews confirm zero-knowledge E2EE, the generous free tier, self-hosting since v3, and pricing from ~$1.67/mo (Essential) to ~$5.83/mo (Pro). Strengths: best-in-class free tier among encrypted notes apps, polished mobile UX, auditable open source. Docked for: (1) no plugin system and no wiki-style note linking; (2) real-time collaboration still unshipped; (3) younger project than Joplin with self-hosting still maturing. License: GPL-3.0.
★ 14,769 GitHub stars
How the trust score is built
Full methodology →- Adoption · stars/downloads, log-scaled vs peers
- 7.0/10
- Maintenance · recency, releases, issue load
- 9.0/10
- Openness · license + docs
- 10.0/10
- Manual review · sanity read + red-flag check
- 8.0/10
- · ~14.8k GitHub stars (Oct 16, 2026 snapshot); GPL-3.0
- · Zero-knowledge E2EE (Argon2, ChaCha20-Poly1305); generous free tier; self-hostable sync server since v3 (2025); Essential ~$1.67/mo, Pro ~$4.49-5.83/mo
- · No plugin system; no wiki-style note linking; real-time collaboration still on roadmap
Sources
Every fact above was checked against these sources. Where a claim comes from the provider and couldn't be independently verified, the text says so.