A note app that gets out of the way.
Fjordnote stores every note as plain text and hands back search, tags and encrypted sync. It ships no feed, no boards and no badge asking for attention. Type, tag, close the lid.
Free tier, no card. Runs offline on macOS, Windows, Linux and the web.
Four things the app gets right
The studio has shipped one product for six years. That is long enough to learn what people open every morning.
Opens before you blink
Cold start runs under 300 ms on a five-year-old laptop. Search covers 40,000 notes and narrows before you finish the second word.
Files, not a database
One note is one Markdown file in a folder you choose. Copy the folder to a stick and the whole archive moves with it.
Encrypted before upload
Sync derives its key on your machine. The server holds ciphertext and file sizes. That is the entire list.
No feed, no streak
Nothing scrolls and nothing needs feeding. Fjordnote has one job and finishes it when the window closes.
Setup takes three steps
Onboarding is short by design. Most people are writing two minutes after the download finishes.
Pick a folder
Point Fjordnote at an empty directory, or at the pile of Markdown you already keep. It reads what is there and adds nothing of its own.
Write in plain text
Headings, lists, links, tables, code. A hash in front of a word turns it into a filter. There is no formatting toolbar to learn.
Turn sync on, or skip it
One passphrase links your devices. Skip the step and Fjordnote never opens a socket. Both paths are fully supported.
Built to be boring
Fjordnote does not redraw its interface every spring. Version 3.4 looks close to 2.0 because the shape was right, and because churn is expensive for the people who rely on it.
Releases land about every six weeks. Each one carries a written changelog, the list of issues it closes, and a blunt note on anything that broke. Old formats keep opening. A note written in the first public build in 2020 still opens today with its tags intact.
- Six years of releases, zero forced migrations
- Export is a copy command, not a feature request
- Two people answer the mail, and both wrote the code
By the numbers
| First public build | March 2020 |
|---|---|
| Paying accounts | 7,900 |
| People on staff | 2 |
| Median reply time | 9 hours |
| Outside investors | None |
Figures reviewed 30 January 2026.
Start on the free tier
Unlimited local notes, one device, no card. Upgrade only when sync becomes useful.