# VNote

> Free desktop Markdown note-taking app with plain-file notebooks

VNote is a free, open-source note-taking application for Windows, Linux and macOS that centers on Markdown. Each notebook is an ordinary directory of plain text files, with unlimited folder nesting, tags, search and a Markdown editor that previews as you write. Notebooks can sync through a built-in Git client or any folder-sync service, and the project describes the app as local-first and single-user.

- **Category:** Note-Taking Apps
- **Made by:** VNoteX Team
- **Website:** https://docs.vnote.fun
- **Runs on:** Windows, Linux, macOS
- **Facts last checked:** Oct 9, 2026

## Pricing

VNote is free to use.

- **Pricing model:** Free
- **Free plan:** Free and open source under the GNU LGPLv3 license, with no account to create and no paid edition. Packages for each platform are on the project's GitHub and Gitee release pages.
- **Free trial:** None listed.

| Plan | Price | What you get |
| --- | --- | --- |
| VNote | $0 | The full app for Windows 10 or newer, Linux (as an AppImage) and macOS 10.15 or newer, plus a separate reduced build for Windows 7. |

Read from https://docs.vnote.fun/getting-started/installation/ on Oct 9, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with VNote before buying.

## Key features

- **Notebooks as plain folders:** A notebook is one directory of plain text files, mostly Markdown, with folders nested to any depth. There is no database, so notes can be copied, backed up or edited with other tools.
- **Markdown editor with live preview:** In-place and side-by-side live preview, syntax highlighting and an interactive outline, with math rendered by MathJax and diagrams by PlantUML, Graphviz and Mermaid.
- **Built-in Git sync:** A bundled notebook can clone, commit, fetch and push to a Git remote from inside the app, on demand or at a set interval, with a dialog for resolving conflicts.
- **Mind maps and PDF annotation:** Mind maps are their own note type, edited on a node canvas. PDFs open in a built-in viewer with highlight, drawing and text-box tools, and the comments are saved beside the file.
- **Vi mode and keyboard control:** Vi mode gives modal editing, and tabs, window splits, configurable shortcuts and a fuzzy search-and-jump entry box cover the rest from the keyboard.
- **Export to Markdown, HTML and PDF:** Notes, folders or whole notebooks export to Markdown, HTML or PDF, and a custom command such as Pandoc reaches formats like docx and epub.

## Good for

- People who want Markdown notes as plain files with no account
- Vi users and others who work mostly from the keyboard
- Keeping a notebook under Git version control
- Large, deeply nested personal knowledge bases

## Worth knowing

- Desktop only: packages exist for Windows, Linux and macOS, and the docs list no iOS, Android or web version.
- The docs say VNote is for single-user note-taking, with no real-time collaboration and no managed, account-based cloud service.
- VNote does not update itself. It only checks for a newer release, and each new version is downloaded and installed by hand.
- Tags, attachments, the recycle bin and Git sync work only in bundled notebooks, not in raw notebooks that browse an existing folder.

## Works with

Git, GitHub, Dropbox, OneDrive, Nextcloud, Google Drive, Pandoc

**Tags:** Open source, Local-first, Notes, Markdown, Mind mapping, Keyboard-first, Templates

## Alternatives

- [QOwnNotes](https://toolgpa.com/tools/qownnotes): Open-source Markdown notes app with Nextcloud and ownCloud support. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/qownnotes-vs-vnote)
- [Joplin](https://toolgpa.com/tools/joplin): Open source Markdown notes with sync through a service you choose. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/joplin-vs-vnote)
- [Obsidian](https://toolgpa.com/tools/obsidian): Markdown note-taking app that keeps your files on your device. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/obsidian-vs-vnote)
- [Zim](https://toolgpa.com/tools/zim): Desktop wiki that keeps linked pages as plain text files. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/vnote-vs-zim)
- [CherryTree](https://toolgpa.com/tools/cherrytree): Hierarchical desktop notes with rich text and code highlighting. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/cherrytree-vs-vnote)

## Sources

The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Oct 9, 2026:

- https://docs.vnote.fun/
- https://docs.vnote.fun/getting-started/why-vnote/
- https://docs.vnote.fun/getting-started/installation/
- https://docs.vnote.fun/managing-notes/notebook-sync/
- https://docs.vnote.fun/managing-notes/pdf-viewer/
- https://docs.vnote.fun/editing/mind-maps/
- https://docs.vnote.fun/editing/templates/
- https://docs.vnote.fun/editing/vi-mode/
- https://docs.vnote.fun/search/united-entry/
- https://docs.vnote.fun/productivity/export/
- https://docs.vnote.fun/help/faq/
- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/vnotex/vnote/master/README.md

Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/vnote
Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).