Ornata is a local-first Markdown notes app for macOS and Windows. It keeps the editor fast, the interface quiet, and every note as a plain .md file in a folder you own. No proprietary database. No account required. Just a precise place to write.
macOS 12+ (Apple Silicon) · Windows 10+ (64-bit)
The quarter is about speed and focus — make writing feel instant, then connect the agents you already use.
Most notes apps grow into systems you have to maintain — plugins, sync layers, a private database. Ornata stays an instrument: quick to open, quiet while you write, and honest about where your files live.
# Q3 Roadmap
Make writing feel instant.
- [x] Instant note switching
- [ ] Ship the editor pass
See [Release notes](release-notes.md)
Plain files, real folders
Pick any folder. Ornata writes ordinary Markdown into real directories, keeps frontmatter from other tools, and notices edits made elsewhere. When you need to share, export a PDF with a bookmark outline, or standalone HTML.
Product principles.md
A professional editor
Clean typography, language-aware code, pasted images, and a magnetic outline for long notes — while the file on disk stays readable anywhere.
Product principles
Every note stays readable outside Ornata. Connect ideas with standard Markdown links, not private metadata.
const note = "yours.md";
await write(note);
Linked mentions
Every note lists the notes that reference it, with the linking line as context — and surfaces plain mentions that should become links.
The link graph
Folders gather into soft regions, hovering a note traces its links and which way they point, and search flies straight to the note you need. Any note can also show its own neighborhood beneath the text.
13 notes · 14 links
Side by side
⌘-click a link, or press ⌘↵ in the palette, and the note opens beside this one. Up to four panes, each with its own header and history arrows. Drag a divider to resize, or close a pane when you're done.
Ship the editor pass first, then write it up in Release notes.
Milestones stay on the left while you read on the right.
A quieter release: faster switching, a calmer sidebar, and a link graph.
Command palette
Search titles and content, jump between notes, or run any action from ⌘K.
Vault-wide tasks
Checkboxes from across the vault, with counts and folder context. Tick one here and it's done in its note.
Any agent, one vault
Ornata speaks MCP, so Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, and the rest can search your notes, add to today’s page, and tick off tasks. You decide per vault what an agent may do — off, read only, or read & write — and every edit keeps the old version in the note’s history.
Or from any terminal:
ornata search “roadmap”
echo “ship it” | ornata journal add
$
journal / 2026-10-18.md
FAQ
Storage, compatibility, updates, and exactly what an outside agent can do.
Ornata is free to download and use — no account, no subscription. The macOS build is signed with an Apple Developer ID certificate and notarized by Apple.
On your computer, as plain Markdown files in a folder you choose. The core editor needs no account or proprietary database, and you can open the folder in Finder or File Explorer at any time.
Not built in yet. Because notes are just files in a folder, you can sync them today with iCloud Drive, Dropbox, or git. Native sync is on the roadmap.
Yes. Ornata uses the same plain-Markdown vault with real folders, and preserves frontmatter from other tools. Point Ornata and Obsidian at the same folder and both just work.
Yes. The link graph opens as a tab beside your notes: folders form soft colored regions, hovering a note traces its links and their direction, and you can search, drag, and zoom. Any note can also show its own local graph beneath the text.
Yes. ⌘-click a link, press ⌘↵ on a result in the command palette, or choose Open to the side from a tab or a file's menu. You can have up to four panes, each with its own header and history arrows. Drag a divider to resize, or close a pane when you're done.
They're already Markdown files, so there's nothing to export to keep them. To share, export a note as a PDF — with a bookmark outline built from its headings, plus your choice of paper size and margins — or as standalone HTML. Each export offers Show in Finder when it's done.
Yes. Production downloads are signed with an Apple Developer ID certificate, notarized by Apple, and distributed through Ornata’s signed update feed.
Yes — a 64-bit installer for Windows 10 and later, with the same plain-Markdown vaults and the same update feed. It is newer than the Mac app, so expect rougher edges, and the installer is not yet code-signed: Windows SmartScreen may warn on first run (choose More info, then Run anyway). On Windows, Ctrl takes the place of ⌘, and PDF export goes through the system print dialog. Linux is not available yet.
Yes. Ornata speaks MCP. Open MCP Settings from the plug in the status bar, press Connect, and add it to your agent with the one line shown there — it includes the access token the server requires. Agents that only run commands can start ornata mcp instead, which works even when Ornata is closed. The same tools are available in a terminal as ornata search, ornata journal add, ornata tasks, and more.
Only what you allow, per vault, in Settings: off, read only (the default), read & write, or full access. Read only lists, reads, and searches. Read & write can also create, edit, append, and tick tasks, and every edit keeps the previous version in the note's history. Full access adds rename, move, and delete, and deleted notes go to the Trash. It is set only in Ornata — an agent's own configuration can only lower it — and the server only listens on your computer’s localhost and requires an access token. An agent that can also run shell commands has your file access anyway, so give those the level you'd trust them with.
Ornata automatically checks its signed update feed. When a release is available, you can download it with visible progress and restart to install it. The macOS build is Developer ID signed and notarized by Apple.
English and Simplified Chinese are built in. You can switch languages from Settings without changing the language of your notes.
