A free, open-source, local-first notes app. Linked notes, diagrams and video study, all on your machine. No account, no server.
- Block editor: headings, lists, checklists, tables, columns, images.
- Linked notes:
@mentions with backlinks on every note. - Diagrams: a canvas in any note, with shapes, labeled connections and frames. Imports Mermaid and JSON Canvas; exports PNG, SVG and JSON Canvas.
- More tabs: tables with typed columns, YouTube videos with timestamp links, PDFs, Word documents and Markdown.
- Search across every title and note body.
- Import Markdown folders, Obsidian vaults, Evernote, Notion and HTML. Export to Markdown that Obsidian opens as a vault.
- Safe by default: version history, daily backups, and saves that survive a crash.
- Sync through a folder Dropbox, iCloud Drive, OneDrive or Syncthing already syncs. No Loam server involved.
- Optional encryption with a passphrase and a recovery key.
- Side chat: an optional AI assistant (bring your own Anthropic, OpenAI or local model, or the Claude Code or Codex CLI). Off by default.
- Plugins and a built-in MCP server for AI clients.
Windows installers are on the Releases page and update themselves (unsigned for now, so SmartScreen warns on first run). On macOS and Linux, build from source.
Requires Node.js 24 (see .nvmrc).
npm install
npm run dev # the app with hot reload
npm start # a production buildNotes live in one SQLite file in the app's data folder (Settings shows where). Nothing leaves your computer unless you set up sync.
With encryption on, if you forget the passphrase and lose the recovery key, your notes can't be opened again, by you or anyone else.
- CONTRIBUTING: scripts and checks
- Architecture: how the app is built
- AI access (MCP): connect AI clients to your notes
- Plugins: examples and the API types
- Performance: numbers with 10,000 notes
- SECURITY: how your notes are protected
MIT.