Introduction

Noted is a local-first note-taking app for macOS. It stores everything as plain Markdown and HTML files in a folder you choose, and layers a modern editor, full-text search, note linking, multi-provider AI, Git integration, and a built-in MCP server on top of those files.

There is no account, no sync service, and no telemetry. Your notes never leave your machine unless you explicitly ask an AI provider or a Git remote to receive them.

Why local-first

Most note apps keep your notes in a proprietary database behind a login. Noted takes the opposite stance:

• Your files, your folder. Each note is a real .md/.html file on disk. You can read, back up, grep, and version them with any other tool.
• Works offline. The editor, search, wikilinks, backlinks, export, and Git all work with no network connection. AI is the only feature that reaches out, and only to the provider you configure.
• No lock-in. Because the vault is just Markdown, you can leave at any time and take everything with you.
• Private by default. No account, no analytics, no background phone-home. API keys are stored with the macOS Keychain (via Electron safeStorage) when available.

What's inside

• A rich editor built on TipTap — headings, lists, tables, code blocks with syntax highlighting, math, images, and typography.
• [[Wikilinks]], backlinks, and a per-note connections panel.
• A fast note switcher and global full-text search.
• Multi-provider AI (OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini, OpenRouter, LM Studio, Ollama) with inline suggestions, slash commands, an actions bar, and a chat panel — plus optional PII masking before any request leaves your machine.
• Git integration for status, commit, push, and pull-request flows.
• Export to HTML, Markdown, PDF, and DOCX, and a quick-capture window.
• A local MCP server so compatible AI clients can read and write your notes, and drive file-first agent workflows.

How this documentation is organized

• Guide — install Noted and learn each feature in the order you'd meet it: the editor, organizing notes, search, AI, Git, and export.
• Reference — exhaustive detail: every setting, every keyboard shortcut, the MCP server's tools, and the agent-workflow protocol.
• Contributing — the architecture, security model, and how to build and release the app.

Where to go next

• Installation — download the signed build or build from source.
• First run — create your vault and your first note.
• The editor — a tour of everything you can type.