Cnotely Desktop Is Here: Your Full Knowledge Loop, Now Native
From the browser to your desktop
For the past year, Cnotely has lived entirely in your browser. You clipped a web page and it became a clean Markdown note. You selected a sentence and it became a memory card. Everything worked where you read — no install, no account, no friction.
That browser-first approach isn’t going anywhere. But today we’re opening a second front door: Cnotely Desktop — a real, native Windows app that runs the entire Cnotely knowledge loop offline, on your machine, with extras the web can’t easily offer.
This is the moment Cnotely stops being “a notes app plus a cards app” and becomes something simpler to explain: Web + Desktop.
One product, two front doors
| Cnotely Web | Cnotely Desktop | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it runs | Any modern browser | Native Windows app |
| Best for | Capture while you browse | Deep work, offline, organizing |
| Install required | No | Yes (one setup file) |
| Works offline | Partially | Fully |
| Screenshot OCR | No | Yes |
| Local file import | Limited | Full |
| Cloud backup | Optional | Optional after sign-in |
| Price | Free | Free |
Same account-free philosophy. Same privacy promise. Different front door for different moments.
What lives inside the desktop app
The desktop app isn’t a stripped-down companion — it’s the full loop:
- Capture. Parse any web page into clean Markdown, recognize text inside screenshots with OCR, or import local files directly. Read-later items land in your inbox in one click.
- Knowledge. A rich-text knowledge base editor with images and links turns what you captured into your own documents.
- Cards. Promote any key point into a two-sided memory card with a single click.
- Review. The SM-2 spaced-repetition algorithm schedules your review cadence so knowledge actually sticks. (New to the method? Here’s the background on spaced repetition.)
- Graph. Connect cards and notes into a visual map and see your knowledge structure at a glance.
That’s the same “collect → organize → review” loop you already know from the web note platform and the card workstation. The desktop app just wraps it in one window.
Why go native?
Three things change when Cnotely runs as a desktop app:
- It works when the internet doesn’t. Airplane, train, café with dead Wi-Fi — your notes and cards are right there.
- Your screenshots become searchable. Built-in OCR pulls text out of images, so a photo of a whiteboard or a slide is no longer a dead end.
- Local-first, with a backup you opt into. Data stays on your machine by default. Sign in only when you want encrypted cloud backup and sync across devices.
None of this compromises the privacy stance Cnotely is built on: no tracking, no analytics scripts, no selling your data.
Web or Desktop? A 10-second guide
- You’re reading and want to save something fast → use the browser extension or the web app. Zero install.
- You’re studying or writing and want focus → open the desktop app. Offline, distraction-free, OCR-ready.
- You live on multiple devices → desktop for the heavy lifting, web for quick captures, cloud backup to keep them in sync.
You don’t have to choose one. Most people keep both open.
Getting started
Download is a single setup file, no account required:
👉 Download Cnotely for Desktop
Prefer to stay in the browser? Launch the web note editor or open the card workstation — still free, still no sign-up.
FAQ
Is the desktop app free?
Yes. Like everything Cnotely, the desktop app is free to download and use. Cloud backup is optional and only activates after you choose to sign in.
Do I need an account?
No. The app works fully offline with local storage. An account is only needed if you want cloud backup and cross-device sync.
Can I use the same cards on Web and Desktop?
If you enable cloud backup (sign in), your notes and cards sync across both. Without sign-in, each stays local to its device.
Which platforms are supported?
The first native build targets Windows 10/11 (64-bit). We’ll share news on macOS and Linux as they progress.
Final word
Cnotely started as a way to clip the web cleanly. It became a way to remember what you read. Now it meets you both in the browser and on the desktop — wherever your thinking happens.
Try it today: Download Desktop · Use the Web app