Beaver Notes

Write locally without making an account or permanent network access a prerequisite

The v4.4.0 README describes Beaver Notes as privacy-first and local-first: notes remain on the device and are not sent to cloud infrastructure by default. It also explicitly advertises no sign-up and no tracking.

When synchronization is needed, the design is based on choosing a provider or server rather than requiring one hosted account, so the notes application and sync destination can be evaluated separately.

Sources: [1][4]

Combine Markdown, tags, folders, and note links while the v5 stack moves to Tauri and Rust

Stable Beaver Notes provides Markdown, tags, folders, note linking, locked notes, and flexible sync. v4.4.0 is built as an Electron application with Vue 3.

v5.0.0-beta.2 moves to Tauri 2 with a Rust backend, SQLite, and cryptographic libraries. The README also describes mobile integration, version history, backlinks, real-time collaboration, and plugins as part of the v5 direction.

Sources: [1][3][4][6][7]

For users who want the device, not a hosted workspace, to remain the center of their notes

It fits personal notes, technical writing, meeting notes, and project organization when offline access and control over storage matter. It is especially relevant when you want to choose synchronization later instead of making a hosted account the prerequisite for writing.

Use v4.4.0 as the normal stable baseline and evaluate v5 separately as a beta

As of September 16, 2026, GitHub's latest stable release is v4.4.0, published April 17, 2026. Main and the current prerelease are v5.0.0-beta.2, where the architecture changes substantially from Electron to Tauri and Rust.

Use the stable installers as the baseline for daily work. Test the beta separately when you specifically need the v5 mobile, new sync, collaboration, or architecture changes.

Sources: [2][3][6][5]

v5 beta.2 changes storage layout and makes encryption mandatory, so upgrades need backups

The v5.0.0-beta.2 release notes consolidate note-assets and file-assets into one assets directory and make encryption mandatory. Some Beta 1 installations may require reinstalling or manually running onboarding because parts of the beta-to-beta migration were intentionally skipped.

Assets from the older Electron version are documented as migrating during onboarding, but real data on a beta should still be exported or backed up and verified before the upgraded copy becomes authoritative.

Sources: [5]

Local-first does not automatically solve backup or sync-server transparency

Local storage improves control, but device failure still requires a separate backup strategy. When sync is enabled, the provider or server, credentials, encryption keys, and recovery path still need review.

At the time the v5 beta.2 release was published, its notes said the Beaver Sync backend was not yet a public GitHub repository. Before using sync for primary data, re-check the current documentation and server-side status for the exact version you deploy. Beaver Notes itself is MIT-licensed.

Sources: [5][8]