A modern, privacy-focused desktop application for organizing academic notes with professional LaTeX and Markdown support
Features • Download • Getting Started • Documentation • Tech Stack
Notely is a powerful desktop application built for students and academics who need a reliable, offline-first note-taking solution. Combining the simplicity of Markdown with the power of LaTeX mathematical typesetting, Notely helps you organize your academic life across multiple years, semesters, and modules—all while keeping your data private and secure on your local machine.
Unlike cloud-based alternatives, Notely runs entirely on your computer with no account required, no subscriptions, and complete privacy.
- Multi-year structure - Organize content across multiple academic years
- Semester-based - Two semesters per year with flexible module organization
- Color-coded modules - Visual organization with customizable module colors
- Module codes - Professional labeling system (e.g., CS101, MATH201)
- Markdown support - Full GitHub Flavored Markdown (GFM) with tables, lists, and more
- LaTeX mathematics - Beautiful equation rendering with KaTeX
- Real-time preview - Split-screen editor with instant rendering
- Multiple note types - Lectures, Labs, Tutorials, and Extra Exercises
- Quick search - Full-text search across all notes (Ctrl+K / Cmd+K)
- File attachments - Upload PDFs, images, and documents to any note
- Export options - Download notes as Markdown (.md) or LaTeX (.tex)
- Auto-save - Never lose your work with automatic local persistence
- 100% offline - No internet connection required
- No accounts - No registration, no login, no tracking
- Local-first - All data stored on your computer
- Fast & responsive - Built with modern web technologies for optimal performance
-
Download the latest release from the Releases page
- Windows:
Notely-Setup-1.0.0.exe
- Windows:
-
Install the application
- Run the installer and follow the setup wizard
- Requires administrator privileges
-
Launch Notely from Start Menu or Desktop shortcut
- Windows 10 or later (64-bit)
- Application:
C:\Program Files\Notely\ - Your Data:
C:\Users\[YourUsername]\AppData\Roaming\notely\Notely-Workspace\ - Quick Access: Press
Win+R, type%APPDATA%\notely\Notely-Workspace
- Node.js 18.x or higher
- npm or yarn package manager
-
Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/Zerraf-Badreddine/Notely.git cd Notely -
Install dependencies
npm install
-
Run in development mode
npm run dev # Web version npm run electron:dev # Desktop version
-
Build for production
npm run build # Web build npm run release # Desktop build (all platforms)
- Create your first year - Click the + button next to "Academic Years"
- Add a module - Expand a semester and click "Add Module"
- Create a note - Select a note type (Lecture, Lab, etc.) and click "New Note"
- Start writing - Use Markdown for text, LaTeX for math equations
- Search anytime - Press Ctrl+K to quickly find any note
# Headers
## Subheaders
**Bold text** and *italic text*
- Bullet lists
- With items
1. Numbered lists
2. Sequential items
[Links](https://example.com)
`inline code` and code blocks:
```python
def hello():
print("Hello, World!")| Tables | Are | Supported |
|---|---|---|
| Col 1 | Col 2 | Col 3 |
### LaTeX Math
```latex
Inline math: $E = mc^2$
Display math:
$$
\int_0^\infty e^{-x^2} dx = \frac{\sqrt{\pi}}{2}
$$
Common symbols:
$\alpha, \beta, \gamma, \sum_{i=1}^{n}, \frac{a}{b}, \sqrt{x}$
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
Ctrl+K / Cmd+K |
Open search |
Ctrl+S / Cmd+S |
Save note |
Esc |
Close modal/search |
- Next.js 14 - React framework with App Router
- TypeScript - Type-safe JavaScript
- Electron - Desktop app framework
- Tailwind CSS - Utility-first CSS framework
- Zustand - State management with persistence
- react-markdown - Markdown rendering
- KaTeX - LaTeX math rendering
- Lucide React - Beautiful icon library
- Jest & React Testing Library - Testing
- ESLint - Code linting
- electron-builder - Desktop app packaging
notely/
├── app/ # Next.js app directory
│ ├── globals.css # Global styles
│ ├── layout.tsx # Root layout
│ ├── page.tsx # Main page
│ └── providers.tsx # Context providers
├── components/ # React components
│ ├── Sidebar.tsx # Navigation sidebar
│ ├── ModuleView.tsx # Module detail view
│ ├── NoteEditor.tsx # Note editor with preview
│ └── ...
├── store/ # State management
│ ├── academicStore.ts # Main app state
│ └── settingsStore.ts # Settings state
├── types/ # TypeScript definitions
├── electron/ # Electron main process
│ ├── main.js # Electron entry point
│ └── preload.js # Preload scripts
├── __tests__/ # Test files
└── public/ # Static assets
Run the test suite:
npm test # Run all tests
npm run test:watch # Run in watch mode# Development
npm run dev # Start Next.js dev server
npm run electron:dev # Start Electron in dev mode
# Production builds
npm run build # Build Next.js app
npm run electron:build # Build Electron app
npm run release # Full production build
# Version bumping
npm run release:patch # Bump patch version (1.0.0 -> 1.0.1)
npm run release:minor # Bump minor version (1.0.0 -> 1.1.0)
npm run release:major # Bump major version (1.0.0 -> 2.0.0)- Update version in
package.jsonor use version bump scripts - Commit changes and create a git tag
git add . git commit -m "Release v1.0.0" git tag v1.0.0 git push && git push --tags
- Build the application
npm run release
- Find installers in the
dist/directory - Upload to GitHub Releases and add release notes
After building, find the installer in dist/:
- Windows:
Notely Setup 1.0.0.exe
Contributions are welcome! Here's how you can help:
- Fork the repository
- Create a feature branch (
git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature) - Commit your changes (
git commit -m 'Add amazing feature') - Push to the branch (
git push origin feature/amazing-feature) - Open a Pull Request
- Follow TypeScript best practices
- Write tests for new features
- Maintain the existing code style
- Update documentation as needed
- Test on multiple platforms before submitting PR
- Browser storage limit (~10MB) for web version
- Large attachments may affect performance
- No cloud sync (by design - privacy-focused)
- Desktop app size (~150MB) due to Electron
- Dark mode theme
- Export to PDF
- Note templates
- Advanced search filters
- Custom keyboard shortcuts
- Note linking/references
- Tags and labels
- Statistics dashboard
This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.
You are free to:
- Use commercially
- Modify and distribute
- Use privately
- Use for patent claims
Badreddine Zerraf
- GitHub: @Zerraf-Badreddine
- Repository: Notely
- Built with modern web technologies
- Inspired by note-taking apps like Notion and Obsidian
- Icons by Lucide
- Math rendering by KaTeX
- Issues: Report bugs or request features on GitHub Issues
- Discussions: Ask questions or share ideas in GitHub Discussions
Built with love for students who love organized notes
If you find Notely useful, please consider giving it a star on GitHub!