Standard Notes: encrypted, password-protected notes app
Threads:
- https://bsky.app/profile/alexglow.bsky.social/post/3lifh2dfpis2w
- https://chaos.social/@alexglow/114020786620722778
Eventually I'll be putting this page into Notion, which will become the consistently updated page. I'll add that link here when it's done.
For now, as I noodle through integrating Ghost into my process, enjoy the partial post below. The threads above contain a bunch of images, which I may add here later, but I'd like to work out the Ghost/Notion duality first.
Did you know that there's a privacy- and security-focused notes app that's cross-platform, freemium, and open-source? Standard Notes lets you password-lock the entire app, and/or individual notes! It also provides end-to-end-encrypted (E2EE) syncing across devices, and encrypted backup to Dropbox/GDrive/etc. – including notes, photos, and any other files you choose to store in the app. And they don't feed your shiz into AI.
Note: Some folks have concerns about Standard Notes joining with Proton; more on that below. For Apple users, iOS Notes can also be saved locally – without iCloud upload – and password-locked.
SN allows you to back up all notes, photos, and other files, either encrypted or as a decrypted ZIP. This is huge for me: I love having a personal wiki / knowledge database, but have lost two apps already (RIP Journler). They're very future-focused, and here's how they protect against their own app vanishing.
Privacy, security, encryption
All the basic security features are available in the free version of the app. I meant to give it a week or so, but then got excited about the security and jumped into a subscription for the aesthetic/usability upgrades ($90 annually unless you also want storage).
Standard Notes' privacy page is here: https://standardnotes.com/privacy
Details on the encryption here (this addresses its being US-based): https://standardnotes.com/help/39/what-country-is-standard-notes-located-in
4x third-party security audits, which you can view here: https://standardnotes.com/help/2/has-standard-notes-completed-a-third-party-security-audit
The iOS app doesn't request any tracking data at all, either. And I'm encouraged by the note about not being able to get anything back if you forget your pw :) https://standardnotes.com/help/6/i-ve-forgotten-my-password-what-should-i-do
You also host notes on your own server: https://standardnotes.com/help/47/can-i-self-host-standard-notes
Compared to Obsidian
I've enjoyed Obsidian for few years. It has a similar wiki/markdown structure, encrypted sync, and ease of backups – but the "vault" structure is a bit opaque, and I don't believe you can password-lock it. I also get frustrated with its automatic handling of characters as markdown; my journal contains lots of text emoji, which challenge any platform that reads ~ and ^ as modifiers (including Ghost, apparently).
I also prefer SN's tags-as-folders, wiki-esque structure. I HATE having to categorize thoughts/info in a strict tree structure! File handling is also a little nicer. I do miss Obsidian's multiple tabs; it's nice to be able to keep a few frequently-used files open, especially since there doesn't seem to be a way to open a specific file directly from the homescreen.
In fact, neither has a screen widget available for iOS, but that's just fine. I don't want anyone accidentally stumbling across those apps anyway.
Both have subscriptions if you want to sync notes between devices, which I don't love, but kinda makes sense for that feature.
Compared to other note apps
Here's how to import from, e.g., Evernote. I stopped using that because they started charging an exorbitant amount and forcing some opaque AI crap.
I've been using Notion for a couple of years, and really appreciate how easy it is to publish a page to the internet. It's really fixed my issues with updating my website: despite the limited design options, the instant updating makes a massive difference. It just doesn't have the security features I want for sensitive stuff, and doesn't work offline.
More features and drawbacks
Although there is a spreadsheet plugin (available by default), I found it pretty rough and buggy on mobile devices. You can insert tables into a regular note instead, but it isn't great either, IMO.
Here's some more cool stuff:
• Switch between multiple accounts on the same device (work/personal, etc.)
• Prevent individual notes from displaying a preview in the list (you can also archive notes to hide them from the list, which doesn't affect them in any other way)
• Note stats: created/modified timestamps; size; unique ID
• Excalidraw plugin (for graphical notes – works well with my iPad + Apple Pencil)
• Built-in password generator