Note Repo

Install Note Repo

Note Repo runs on Apple silicon and Intel Macs with macOS 14 or later. Connect your GitHub account in Polar after purchasing, accept the repository invitation, then download the ZIP from the private Note Repo releases.

Unzip it and drag Note Repo.app to Applications. The download is signed and notarized. Confirm Open at the normal first-launch prompt.

Write your first day

The app opens on today with a bullet ready for typing. Write Plan the weekend project, press Return, and add another item. There is no save button: changes save automatically.

Press Tab to nest an item under the previous one. Shift-Tab moves it back. Start a numbered list with 1. or a bulleted list with -. Option-Return adds another line inside the same item.

For example, keep Plan the weekend project at the top level, with Sketch the screen and Test with a friend nested beneath it. This keeps the plan together while leaving room for unrelated notes afterward.

Scroll up for earlier days. Only days with notes appear; the notebook has no future days. Command-D returns to today and starts writing.

Keep useful items easy to find

Click a bullet to star its item. View starred, below Today, collects starred items across all days. Click its star to remove it from that view. Click Today to return to the notebook.

Use Command-F or Command-K to search. Option-Up and Option-Down move to the previous or next day. Command-B toggles bold for selected text or new typing.

Add links and images

Paste a web address to turn it into a link with the page title and domain. A URL pasted on its own starts a new bullet. Looking up titles needs internet access; the app uses the relevant page or embed service.

Drop an image file into a day or paste an image from the clipboard. Drag its right edge, bottom edge or corner to resize it. You can cut, paste and delete the image like another item. PNG, JPEG, GIF, WebP and safe SVG images are supported, up to 15 MB each.

Install the command-line tool

The native noterepo command is inside the app. Link it into a directory on your PATH:

mkdir -p "$HOME/.local/bin"
ln -s "/Applications/Note Repo.app/Contents/Resources/bin/noterepo" "$HOME/.local/bin/noterepo"

If Terminal cannot find it, add export PATH="$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH" to your shell configuration, then reopen Terminal.

Add a note and inspect today’s items:

noterepo add "Test the weekend prototype"
noterepo show

Commands return JSON. Each item has a number n, which later commands use. Read the current output before editing by number, because moving or deleting items changes their positions.

noterepo edit 1 "Plan the weekend project with Maya"
noterepo search weekend
noterepo days --limit 5

Use --date yesterday to add to a previous day. The app notices CLI changes and updates its window. Run noterepo help for every option, or noterepo capabilities --json for coding agents.

Back up the notebook

Notes and images live in one local database:

~/Library/Application Support/NoteRepo/notes.sqlite3

Use the CLI’s backup command for a complete copy:

noterepo backup

It prints the backup location. Store a copy somewhere separate from the Mac if you need protection against disk failure. noterepo restore accepts a backup folder or database file and requires --yes; it backs up the current notebook before replacing it. Check noterepo help and the chosen path before restoring.

Updates and privacy

Note Repo → Check for Updates… checks immediately. The daily version check can show Open GitHub Release; sign in with the GitHub account connected to your purchase, download the ZIP, quit the app, and replace it. Notes stay outside the app bundle.

Notes and the CLI work offline. There is no notebook account or cloud sync. Link-title lookups and the public version check use the network; the version request does not include notes.