Features
Your second brain,
not somebody's database.
Notes live as open files on your disk, sync only when you choose, and leave with you the day you go. Ownership is the feature everything else stands on.
The principle
Your notes should outlive
every app you write them in.
Most notes apps keep your writing in their database and rent you a window to it. The day the pricing changes, the startup pivots, or the internet drops, you are negotiating for your own memory.
NoteX takes the other road. Every note is a real file on your disk: an open JSON format called .notex, or plain Markdown if you prefer, in real folders you can see. Copy them, grep them, commit them to git, back them up with whatever you already trust.
A real folder. Your backup tool, your git repo, and your grep all work here.
The format
Readable by you.
Parseable by everything.
A .notex file is JSON you can open in any text editor: metadata on top, blocks below. No binary container, no proprietary encoding, no mystery. Markdown files (.md and .mdx) open natively in the same editor, so an existing folder of Markdown is already a NoteX workspace.
Structured text files are also what AI reads best, which makes an owned knowledge base an AI-ready one. Small files, huge dividend.
Why small files matter for AIInside a .notex file
{
"version": 1,
"metadata": {
"title": "Launch Plan Q3",
"icon": "🚀",
"cover": "…",
"created": "2026-07-01T09:12:00Z"
},
"content": { …blocks as structured JSON… }
}Title, icon, cover, dates, and content: one small text file. Even the icon travels inside it.
In and out
Doors in every wall.
📤 Export, always
Any note exports as Markdown or self-contained HTML on desktop, plus PDF on web. One command exports every note you have as Markdown, no per-page clicking.
📥 Import, easily
Markdown files import with full conversion, and whole Notion workspaces arrive with hierarchy intact. Your history comes with you.
🗂️ Folders that mirror
The note tree can mirror to real on-disk folders, so your file system organization matches what the sidebar shows.
Offline is not a mode
No account. No network.
No difference.
The desktop app works completely without an account: create, edit, search, export. Sync exists for the moments you want it (multiple devices, shared team notes) and stays out of the way when you do not. A Local workspace that never syncs is always one click away.
How sync and servers workFrequently asked questions
What format are the files?
The .notex format is readable JSON: metadata (title, icon, cover, dates) plus content as structured blocks. NoteX also edits .md and .mdx Markdown files natively, so plain-text purists lose nothing.
Do I need an account to use NoteX?
No. The desktop app is fully functional with local files and no account. Signing in adds sync, multiple workspaces, and shared team notes.
Where do images and attachments live?
Beside your notes in companion folders, so they ride along with backups and moves rather than hiding in an app database.
Can I put my notes in git?
Yes, and it works well: notes are small text files that diff meaningfully. Engineers keep wikis next to code this way. See the engineering use case.
What happens if I uninstall NoteX?
Nothing happens to your notes. They are files in your Documents folder; uninstalling the app does not touch them, and Markdown exports open anywhere.
Your notes deserve a better engine.
A Notion-style block editor on the engine behind the world's most popular code editor. Notes stay files you own, extensions add what you need, and AI plugs in natively. Free to start, on web and desktop.
Free to start · Your files, your disk · Windows desktop & web