NotePrivate: Private Notes App, Encrypted on Mac and Windows

The short answer

What makes a notes app genuinely private

Four tests separate a private notes app from one that only looks private.

A private notes app encrypts your notes before they touch a disk or a server, and leaves the key that opens them with you instead of with the company. NotePrivate works that way: your master key is sealed by your own password, that password never leaves your machine, and the app still opens your notes with the network switched off. It runs on macOS and Windows, the planned price is $59 per year, and it is not on sale yet, so every button on this page joins the NotePrivate waitlist.

Run these four tests on NotePrivate and on anything else you are weighing up. They are the whole difference, and each one is easy to check before you commit your notes.

Who holds the key. If support can reset your password and still show you your notes, the vendor can read them. NotePrivate cannot reset yours, and that limit is the point.
Where the encrypted copy sits. Encrypted in transit is not encrypted at rest. NotePrivate writes an encrypted vault to your own disk, so a stolen laptop yields ciphertext.
Whether it opens offline. An app that needs a server to show you a note has already sent something somewhere. Pull the network cable and NotePrivate keeps working.
How you get out. Privacy you cannot leave is a cage. NotePrivate exports the whole vault, or every note as a plain Markdown file, on demand.

Why NotePrivate

Real privacy without giving up a real notes app

Most private notes apps make you choose between security and a good writing experience. NotePrivate gives you both.

Your key, not the cloud's

Every note and attachment is encrypted with a master key wrapped by your password. Not even we can read them.

Every note type, one app

Rich text, markdown, code, checklists, spreadsheets, one-time codes, and saved web pages, all in a single vault.

Import from anywhere

Bring notes from Apple Notes, Evernote, Standard Notes, Google Keep, Simplenote, Markdown, and more.

Fast and lightweight

A tiny footprint keeps everything quick: instant note switching, quick open, a global capture shortcut, and Touch ID on Mac.

Encrypted at rest, on your machine

A unique key protects your vault and every attachment, and that key is sealed behind your password so it never leaves your Mac in the clear. iCloud is only ever an encrypted backup, never the source of truth.

Per-note password protection for your most sensitive notes
Auto-lock, lock on sleep, and Touch ID sign in on Mac
Rotate your master key any time after a scare

Sealed vaultOnly your password opens it

Touch IDFaster sign in on Mac

Auto-lockOn idle and on sleep

Key rotationRe-encrypt everything

Rich textHeadings, lists, links

CodeMonospaced blocks

ChecklistsTasks and to-dos

SpreadsheetsQuick CSV grids

One-time codesTOTP, secrets hidden

Web captureEncrypted offline copy

One vault for every kind of note

Stop scattering your life across five apps. Write documents, drop in code, track tasks, keep a quick spreadsheet, store your two-factor codes, and save web pages as encrypted offline copies, all in the same searchable vault.

On-device OCR makes image and PDF text searchable
Backlinks with [[ autocomplete connect related notes
Folders, subfolders, tags, labels, and saved searches

Nothing is ever locked in, or lost

Your data leaves with you. Export the whole encrypted vault, or every note as Markdown, whenever you want. And the little safety nets are all there so a wrong click never costs you.

Sync between your devices through your own cloud folder, still encrypted
Undo destructive actions and roll back with version history
Conflict-safe encrypted backup and restore

UndoReverse trash, moves, more

VersionsRoll back any note

ExportVault or Markdown

BackupEncrypted, conflict-safe

Setup

How to move your private notes onto your own machine

Five steps, roughly twenty minutes, and the order matters more than the speed.

Decide where the vault lives before you import anything. NotePrivate keeps one encrypted vault file, and you choose the folder. Put it somewhere your normal backup already covers, because the encrypted vault is only as safe from disk failure as the drive under it.
Pick a password you can retype from memory in six months. Your NotePrivate password wraps the master key, and nobody can reissue it for you. A long passphrase beats a short scramble, and it belongs in your password manager on day one, not after the first scare.
Import the notes you already have. NotePrivate reads exports from Apple Notes, Evernote, Standard Notes, Google Keep, Simplenote, Markdown, HTML, DOCX, and plain text, and rebuilds your folder tree as it goes. Import first, reorganize second, or you will do the tidying twice.
Put a second password on the handful of notes that need one. Per-note passwords in NotePrivate cover the small set you would not want open on screen if someone walked past, which is usually recovery codes and financial records rather than your whole vault.
Test the way out on day one. Run the full export in NotePrivate and open one of the resulting files. If an export you have never tried is your only escape plan, you do not have an escape plan. Windows users can follow the same five steps in the encrypted notes app for Windows walkthrough, and anyone keeping dated entries should read the private journal app page.

Send one private note without handing over the vault

Most people searching for private notes want two different things: a place to keep notes nobody else can read, and a way to pass one note to somebody without emailing it in the clear. NotePrivate does both, and the second one works without asking the other person to install anything.

Turn a single note into a link and NotePrivate encrypts it, then puts the decryption key in the fragment of the URL, the part after the hash sign. Browsers never send that fragment to the server, so noteprivate.com serves the viewer page and still cannot read the note. Decryption happens in the recipient's browser.

Two honest limits. The link expires, and you can revoke it early, but until then anyone holding it can read that note, so treat the link exactly as carefully as the note. And a shared note is one note: the rest of your NotePrivate vault stays sealed behind your password.

One note, one linkOpens in any browser

Key stays in the linkNever sent to the server

ExpiryLinks stop working

Revoke earlyKill a link you regret

How it compares

NotePrivate vs the apps you already know

The same notes you keep in Apple Notes, Evernote, or Notion, but encrypted with a key only you hold, and richer than a plain-text privacy tool.

Capability	NotePrivate	Apple Notes	Evernote	Standard Notes	Notion	Obsidian	Keep It
End-to-end encrypted	Yes	Partial	No	Yes	No	Partial	No
Encrypted on your disk	Yes	Partial	No	Partial	No	No	No
You hold the keys	Yes	No	No	Yes	No	Partial	No
Works fully offline	Yes	Partial	Partial	Partial	No	Yes	Partial
Per-note password	Yes	Yes	No	Partial	No	No	No
Code, spreadsheet, one-time codes	Yes	No	No	No	Partial	Partial	No
Saved web page capture	Yes	No	Yes	No	Yes	Partial	Yes
Version history	Yes	Partial	Yes	Yes	Yes	Partial	Partial
Import from other apps	Yes	Partial	Yes	Partial	Yes	Partial	Partial
Full export, no lock-in	Yes	No	Partial	Yes	Partial	Yes	Partial
No ads or telemetry	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Partial	Yes	Yes
Price	$59/yr planned	Free	Subscription	Free + paid	Free + paid	Free + paid sync	Paid

Yes full support Partial limited or conditional No not available

Competitor capabilities are summarized at a general level and change over time. Verify current details on each vendor's site.

Compare in depth: Evernote alternative · Notion alternative · Obsidian alternative · Standard Notes alternative · Apple Notes alternative · encrypted notes app for Windows · private journal app

Pricing

One plan. Everything included.

No feature tiers, no upsells, no data mining. Just the whole app.

NotePrivate

$59 / year

Full app for macOS and Windows. Not on sale yet: join the waitlist and we will write to you the day it opens.

End-to-end encryption with keys only you hold
Every note type: rich text, code, checklists, spreadsheets, one-time codes, web capture
Folders, tags, labels, backlinks, and saved searches
On-device OCR, version history, and undo
Encrypted iCloud backup and full export, no lock-in
Import from Apple Notes, Evernote, Standard Notes, Keep, and more
Free updates across the year

Why a subscription?

It funds ongoing security work, macOS updates, and the iPhone app, without ads, without tracking inside the app, and without selling your data. Your notes are the product to you, never to us. This marketing site uses ordinary web analytics; the app does not.

What if I cancel?

Your notes are plain files on your device, encrypted with your key. Export the full vault or all notes as Markdown at any time. You are never locked in.

Coming to iPhone

A companion iOS app with shared, encrypted iCloud sync is in progress, so your vault follows you across devices.

FAQ

Questions, answered

Which notes app is most private?

The most private notes app is the one whose maker cannot read your notes even if it wanted to, and that comes down to who holds the decryption key. NotePrivate seals your master key with your own password, so there is no password reset and no support route to your text. Standard Notes and Notesnook take the same end-to-end approach. Apple Notes, Evernote, and Notion hold keys on your behalf for most or all of your content, which is why they can show you your notes in a web browser after a password reset.

Can you keep private notes on an iPhone?

Yes, but not with NotePrivate yet. Apple Notes on iPhone and iPad can lock individual notes behind Face ID or a passcode, which stops anyone who picks up your phone from reading them, though Apple still holds the keys to the rest. NotePrivate ships on macOS and Windows today, and the iPhone companion app with encrypted iCloud sync is still in progress, so if iPhone is your only device NotePrivate is not the right choice right now.

Can I send someone a private note without them installing anything?

Yes. NotePrivate turns a single note into a link that opens in any browser. The decryption key rides in the fragment of the link, the part after the hash sign, which browsers never send to a server, so noteprivate.com serves the page without ever seeing the note. The link expires and you can revoke it early, but anyone holding it can read that note until then.

Can NotePrivate read my notes?

No. Your notes are encrypted with a master key that is wrapped by a key derived from your password. That password never leaves your device, so no one but you, including us, can decrypt your vault.

Where are my notes stored?

Locally on your device, always. You can optionally back up, and sync between your devices, through a folder you control (iCloud Drive, Dropbox, or any synced folder); everything in it stays encrypted. The app works fully offline.

What happens if I forget my password?

Because only you hold the key, a forgotten password cannot be recovered by us. On Mac you can turn on Touch ID for faster sign in, and we recommend keeping your NotePrivate password in a password manager.

Can I move my existing notes in?

Yes. NotePrivate imports from Apple Notes, Evernote, Standard Notes, Google Keep, Simplenote, Markdown, HTML, DOCX, and plain text, and recreates your folders as it goes.

Which platforms are supported?

NotePrivate ships today on macOS and Windows. An iPhone companion app with encrypted iCloud sync is in progress.

Can I buy NotePrivate today?

Not yet. NotePrivate is not on sale and there is no public download. Join the waitlist and we will email you when it opens. There is no free trial planned: a license will be required from first launch.

Private notes you actually own, not notes you rent from the cloud.

Quarterly plan