Notes you own
Notes are plain files in a folder you choose. Search, backlinks, and the link graph are derived from those files — never the other way around. Open them in any text editor, sync them with any cloud, or just zip the folder.
Local-first · No cloud · No telemetryYour second brain,
Your second brain,
on your machine.
Your second brain. Local. Private. Yours.
Knotbook is a free desktop workspace for notes, PDFs, tasks, and research. Plain files in a folder you own — with wikilinks, databases, a canvas whiteboard, end-to-end encrypted live collaboration, PDF editing, and KnotAI built in.
Open the command palette with ⌘ K · search with ⌘ P
0Network calls at runtime
100%Local — files live on your disk
FreeNo Accounts required
KnotAIKnotAI built in — runs locally
Features
Everything in one local workspace
Notes, PDFs, tasks, canvases, databases, and an AI assistant — all in a workspace that lives on your machine. Now with end-to-end encrypted live collaboration.
Live collaborationNew
Share any note with a 6-digit code. Peers join over a peer-to-peer link with end-to-end encryption — no servers see your text. Toggle read-only when you just want to present.
PDF viewer & annotationsNew
Open PDFs in-app, highlight text, drop sticky notes and image stamps, then export a flattened copy. Annotations live next to the note that referenced them.
Note → PDF exportNew
Turn any note into a polished PDF with embedded fonts, proper headings, and your theme's typography. One command, no extra tooling.
Database viewsNew
Treat any folder as a live table. Sort, filter, and group notes by frontmatter properties — switch between table, kanban, calendar, or gallery without touching the source.
Canvas whiteboardNew
An infinite Tldraw-powered canvas inside your workspace. Sketch diagrams, mind-map a research thread, drop note links — saved as plain JSON next to your notes.
Outliner modeNew
Flip any note into a collapsible outline of headings and bullets. Zoom into a single branch when you want focus, fold everything else away.
Tasks across the workspaceNew
Every checkbox in your vault rolls up into one panel — filter by status, due date, or tag. No special syntax, no separate to-do app.
Synced blocks & transclusionNew
Embed a section from another note with ![[Note#Heading]]. Edits propagate, references stay live, and the source file stays plain text.
Version historyNew
Every save snapshots locally. Scrub the timeline of any note, diff against an earlier version, and restore with one click — all on-disk, no cloud history.
Quick captureNew
Hit ⌘⇧N from anywhere to drop a thought straight into today's daily note. No window swap, no losing the line of thought.
Web clipper inboxNew
The browser extension queues clipped pages in an in-app inbox. Review, edit, and accept what you keep — nothing is written without your say-so.
Publish to static HTMLNew
Export selected notes as a self-contained static site. No JavaScript, no external assets — drop the folder on any host or open it offline with file://.
Properties panelNew
Edit YAML frontmatter as a structured form, not raw text. Properties round-trip cleanly so database views and queries stay in sync.
Templates
Save any note as a reusable template. Spin up a new daily, meeting, or research note with a single command and pre-filled frontmatter.
PluginsNew
Drop a plugin folder into your workspace to extend Knotbook. Sandboxed, local, toggleable per-vault — no marketplace gatekeeping.
Wikilinks & backlinks
Type [[ to connect any two ideas. Knotbook keeps a live backlink panel so you can see every place a note shows up.
Full-text search
Instant search across every note, heading, and the text extracted from your PDFs — keyboard-first, results as you type.
Tags & advanced graph viewPro
A tag explorer plus a Cytoscape-powered link graph make it easy to navigate the web of ideas you've built up over months of writing.
KnotAIPro
A local-first assistant that reads your notes and PDFs, answers in context, and rewrites selections inline. Bring your own model — your text never leaves the machine.
Linked devicesPro
Pair a Knotbook companion app over Wi-Fi. The desktop stays the source of truth; mobile reads and writes through the local link.
Local-first, no telemetry
Knotbook makes zero network calls by default. Your workspace lives on your disk. Delete the folder and your data is truly gone — exactly what you'd expect.
Native, fast, light
A small native binary that boots instantly. Atomic file writes mean your notes survive crashes, and indexing stays out of your way.
Command palette
Press ⌘K to jump anywhere — open a note, run an action, switch a setting. Press ⌘P to search across notes and PDFs.
KnotAI
An assistant that lives in your workspace.
KnotAI is the AI built into Knotbook. It reads your notes and PDFs, answers questions in context, drafts summaries, and follows wikilinks across your workspace — without sending a single byte to a third-party server.
Bring your own model. KnotAI runs against local models you control, so research notes, journals, and client work never leave your machine.
- Workspace-aware answers.Cites your notes by wikilink, not the open web.
- PDF Q&A.Ask questions across imported papers and reports.
- Inline rewrites.Summarize, expand, or rephrase any selection.
- Local by default.No accounts, no billing, no data egress.
Ready to keep your thinking close?
Download Knotbook, point it at a folder, and start writing. Your notes, your PDFs, your machine — that's the whole deal.