marka.md

a local markdown editor for the notes you share with ai.

a cross-platform (macOS · Windows · Linux) markdown editor specialized for ai context management. live editor, rendered preview, file tabs, csv preview, grouped themes, smarter command palette, and a context tray for staging multiple notes into one AI-ready bundle.

built around one loop: collect notes → write → share with ai. nothing leaves your machine until you copy.

works with claude, chatgpt, gemini, local agents, and anything that reads plain markdown.

what you get

area	details
writing	live preview, shiki highlighting, mermaid diagrams, media previews, task lists, mark/strike syntax, reading mode, editor-only mode, opt-in vim
ai context	stage sidebar files, see file/token counts, copy one AI-ready bundle with relative paths
files	tabs, folder sidebar, favorites, search, manual refresh, drag-to-move, undo file ops, copy paths, reveal in file manager, useful dot-tool folders
data + export	capped CSV preview, rendered code copy buttons, mermaid-aware PDF export, stable print margins
desktop polish	grouped themes, transparency controls, platform-aware shortcuts, session restore, external file watching, signed updates

install

download the latest release →

macOS

• homebrew: brew install --cask mattenarle10/tap/marka-md
• apple silicon (M1/M2/M3/M4): grab marka.md.dmg → drag marka.md.app into /Applications → open.
• intel mac: grab marka.md_intel.dmg → same install steps.

Homebrew users can update with brew update && brew upgrade --cask marka-md. The in-app signed updater still works too.

terminal command (macOS)

Use marka open notes.md or marka open --wait notes.md. In the app, use Help or the command palette's install marka command action. It installs a launcher at ~/.local/bin/marka without changing shell settings. If needed, add export PATH="$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH" to your shell profile.

--wait finishes when the tab closes or the app quits, not when the file is saved. Closing a tab is not an approval signal for an agent. Use marka --help for usage. The command accepts one existing .md, .markdown, or .mdx file, including quoted paths with spaces. Exit codes: 0 success, 1 launch/open failure, 2 invalid input, 130 cancelled with Ctrl-C.

On macOS the new bundle is named marka.app; the product is still marka.md. An in-app update preserves the old folder name. To remove .app from the Finder label on an older installation, quit normally, rename marka.md.app to marka.app in Applications, then reopen it and reinstall the terminal command. Do not replace an existing destination or edit the signed bundle's contents.

Windows (10+, x64)

grab marka.md_*-setup.exe → run. Windows SmartScreen may ask for confirmation because the Windows build is unsigned.

Linux (x86_64)

pick what fits your distro:

• AppImage (works anywhere): chmod +x marka.md_*.AppImage → run. self-contained, no install step needed.
• .deb (Debian / Ubuntu / Mint / Pop!_OS): sudo dpkg -i marka.md_*_amd64.deb
• .rpm (Fedora / RHEL / Rocky / openSUSE): sudo dnf install marka.md-*.x86_64.rpm
• AUR (Arch and derivatives): yay -S markamd-appimage or paru -S markamd-appimage

from source

requires bun, rust, and platform build tools. on Linux, install libwebkit2gtk-4.1-dev libsoup-3.0-dev and related Tauri deps.

bun install
bun run tauri dev      # native window with hmr
bun run tauri build    # produces .dmg / .exe / .AppImage / .deb / .rpm under src-tauri/target/release/bundle/

keyboard

shortcuts shown with macOS modifiers below. on Windows / Linux, substitute ⌘ → Ctrl, ⌥ → Alt, ⇧ → Shift.

key	does
⌘K	command palette
⌘O	open a .md file
⌘⇧O	open a folder of notes
⌘N	new untitled buffer
⌘T	new untitled tab
⌘S	save
⌘⇧S	save as (also handles untitled buffers)
⌘B	toggle sidebar
⌘1…9	switch to tab 1 through 9
⌘.	toggle reading mode (preview only)
⌘⇧.	toggle editor-only mode (preview hidden)
⌘= / ⌘+ / ⌘-	zoom the whole app in / out (50%–300%, persisted)
⌘0	reset zoom
⌘F	find / replace in editor · or find in reading mode
⌘G	find next match
⌘⌥Z	undo last sidebar file op (move / rename / new / delete)
⌘⇧C	copy markdown to clipboard
command palette → copy context bundle	copy the staged context bundle
⌘P	export to pdf (also visible in the top file-action row)
⌃⌘F	toggle fullscreen (macOS) · F11 on Windows/Linux
⌘/	help overlay
⌘,	settings
esc	close any popup

stack

layer	choice
shell	tauri 2.12 (rust + webview), macOS universal (arm64 + x86_64) · Windows · Linux
frontend	react 19 · vite 7 · typescript 7 · bun
editor	codemirror 6 + @codemirror/lang-markdown + @codemirror/search · opt-in vim via @replit/codemirror-vim
markdown	markdown-it + markdown-it-mark + markdown-it-task-lists + shiki (lazy themes + langs) + mermaid (lazy)
icons	lucide-react
styling	css variables, no framework

roadmap

Per-release detail lives on the changelog.

• v1.5 core loop: context tray, file tabs, CSV preview, grouped themes, interface languages, PDF/export polish, file workflow improvements, preview link handling, and scroll memory
• v1.5.12 polish: smoother preview scrolling, cleaner sidebar, refreshed demo doc, quickstart tutorial updates, and smarter command palette search
• v1.5.18 polish: playable media previews and faster tab shortcuts
• v1.6.0 workflow: separate preview windows, command-palette markdown insertions, and Traditional Chinese localization
• v1.6.1 workflow: automatic folder monitoring, native file watching, and lazy markdown highlighting
• v1.7.1 workflow: quick file previews, app-wide zoom, and faster folder watching
• v1.7.2 patch: public updater downloads, active-file reload reliability, and Linux Wayland AppImage startup
• v1.7.6 patch: manual explorer refresh and Tauri 2.12
• v1.7.7 patch: TLS security update for the updater and public updater download links
• v1.7.10 patch: faster large previews, selectable PDF fonts, and export fixes
• v1.7.11 patch: macOS terminal command, cleaner app naming, and Assembly highlighting
• next: native/silent PDF generation
• next: context handoff presets for bring-your-own-ai workflows, starting with markdown and XML-tag bundle formats

Release work follows the release checklist, including the post-release site refresh check.

contributors

Thanks to everyone helping shape marka.md through PRs, issues, testing, and feedback.

Small, focused PRs are easiest to review and ship. Good places to help:

• bug fixes from the issue tracker
• platform polish for Windows, Linux, and Intel macOS
• markdown, mermaid, PDF, and translation edge cases
• small UX improvements with screenshots or short screen recordings

Before opening a PR:

• keep one behavior change per PR when possible
• include screenshots for UI changes
• update help/about/readme copy when the user-facing surface changes
• run bun test, bun run build, and cargo check --release from src-tauri

privacy

local-first. no telemetry, no accounts, no cloud sync. your .md files stay on disk, and clipboard transfers happen only when you copy.

see the full privacy notice for the website analytics caveat (vercel speed insights, cookieless).

feedback

ideas, bugs, or just want to say hi?

• structured form (GitHub) — feedback · bug report
• prefer email? → [email protected]
• landing page hub → markamd.vercel.app/feedback
• security issues → SECURITY.md

support

marka.md is free + MIT. if it saves you time, star the repo, share it with another dev, or support ongoing development through Open Collective.

license

mit · matt enarle (@mattenarle10)