OpenNotes

OpenNotes is a desktop app for notes, mind maps, and todo lists. It stores your notes on your computer in SQLite. You don't need an account.

You can organize notes in folders, link them with [[wikilinks]], and work in tabs or side-by-side panes. The editor supports Markdown shortcuts, tables, code blocks, and slash commands. There are also reminders, favorites, trash and restore, and settings for themes and typography.

Run it locally

Install Node.js, pnpm, Rust, and the Tauri prerequisites for your system, then run:

pnpm install
pnpm tauri dev

pnpm dev starts just the frontend. Use the desktop app to work with notes; database access and other native features need Tauri.

Development

The app uses React, TypeScript, Vite, and Tailwind, with Tauri handling the desktop window and native plugins.

pnpm test        # Run the test suite
pnpm typecheck   # Check TypeScript
pnpm build       # Build the frontend
pnpm tauri build # Build the desktop app

See the architecture notes for the save flow and code layout, mind maps for their data format, and the roadmap for upcoming work.

Your data

Notes save automatically after a short pause. If a save fails, OpenNotes keeps the edits pending, retries, and shows a message with a Retry now button. When you close the window, it waits for pending saves. If they fail, the window stays open.

Unsaved drafts are also kept in the app's local storage and recovered on startup for notes that still exist. Clearing that storage removes pending drafts.

The database is opennotes.db in the app-data directory for com.opennotes.app. Regular notes contain Markdown; mind maps and todo lists contain JSON. Draft recovery isn't a backup, so keep a copy of the database before changing local data manually.

License

OpenNotes is licensed under GPL-3.0-or-later.