Help Center

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Tips & Tricks

Is there a way to import my notes?

Yes. You can now import notes into our desktop app for Windows, Linux, and macOS*. To get started, select File > Import Notes from the app menu, then pick the type of notes you will be importing.

You can also import from our web app! When logged in, click the menu on the top left corner (three horizontal lines), then click on Settings and choose the Tools tab. Finally, click on Import Notes.

The options are:

• Simplenote exports (.json)
• Plain text files, including Markdown files (.txt or .md)
• Evernote export (.enex — only supported in the desktop app)

You can browse the notes you want to import or drag and drop a file into the import window. The app takes care of the rest. If you’re importing notes with Markdown formatting and you’d like to keep them that way, check the Enable Markdown on all notes box and they’ll be automatically configured as Markdown notes in Simplenote.

Note: The import tool will import all content in the export file as new notes. It will not merge new changes to existing notes or ignore duplicate notes under your Simplenote account.

*A quick note, Mac users! To use the importer, make sure you’re using the Electron version of the app, available here. The standard version of the app available in the Mac App Store doesn’t support importing yet.

Is there some way to export my notes?

You can export your data, including notes and tags, from the web, Android, and desktop apps for Windows, Linux and macOS*.

Web

You can backup your notes by exporting them from our web app. When logged in, click the menu on the top left corner (three horizontal lines), then click on Settings and choose the Tools tab. Finally, click on Export Notes.

Android

You can export your notes from the Android app by opening the navigation drawer, tapping the Settings item in the drawer, and tapping the Export data option under the Account section. You will be shown the system file explorer where you can choose to save your data locally or remotely via services like Google Drive if you have a Google account on the device. You will also be able to edit the file name, which is simplenote.json by default.

Desktop app (Linux, Windows, macOS*)

You can also export notes in the desktop app at File > Export Notes. Either method will download a .zip file of all your notes. The filename for each individual note is the first line of the note.

*To export notes on macOS, make sure you’re using the Electron version of the app, available here. The standard version of the app available in the Mac App Store doesn’t support exporting yet.

How can I add a checklist?

On our mobile apps, you’ll find a new button in the editor toolbar to add a checklist. On Desktop, head to Format → Insert Checklist. Nested Checklists are also supported, in case you need an extra level of organization.

How can I share a note or collaborate with others?

If you’d like others to view and edit one of your notes or you’d like to collaborate with others, use the Collaborate panel in the Action menu (the ellipsis icon) on the note you want to share and enter their email address. The shared note will then pop up in their list of notes if they have a Simplenote account.

Note that you need to select notes individually to share them as multiple notes cannot be shared at once.

If they don’t have a Simplenote account to access the note in the app, they can create one at https://app.simplenote.com/signup/.

If you’d like to share a view-only version, you can use the publish to web feature. Please note that by publishing your note, everyone with the link to the published note will be able to view the content. Avoid publishing the note if it contains sensitive data not meant for public access.

How can I change the language?

You can change the language on Android and iOS by changing it from your device settings. At the moment Simplenote is not localized in Linux, Windows, or on the web.

How can I change the font?

While you can’t change the font type in the app, you can change the font size with the built-in options in the Android, Electron (Linux and Windows), and the Mac app.

For the iOS app, you can change the font size in the iOS settings: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202828. Please note that the changes will affect all apps on the device.

For the web app, you can adjust the font size using the browser’s shortcut, such as Ctrl/Cmd plus + to increase the font size or Ctrl/Cmd plus – to decrease the font size.

Android

Tap the Navigation drawer, go to Settings, and tap Font size. Select the desired font size that are available: Extra small, Small, Normal, Large, and Extra large.

Electron (Linux and Windows)

Go to the View menu and select the Zoom In or Zoom Out option to adjust the font size. If you’d like to reset the font size to default, choose the Actual Size option.

Mac

Go to the View menu and select Font Size to change the font size. Select the Bigger or Smaller option based on your preference. You can also select the Reset option to change the font to the default size.

How can I sort the notes?

The Simplenote app supports these note sorting options: Modified: Newest, Modified: Oldest, Created: Newest, Created: Oldest, Name: A-Z, and Name: Z-A. To access the sorting options for each app, please refer to the respective steps in the section below. Please note: each note is a separate object. The title is an attribute of the object, so it is possible to create multiple notes with the same title.

Android and iOS

To sort the notes on the Android or iOS app, tap the Navigation drawer, go to Settings, tap the Sort order option, and select one of the sort options.

Electron (Linux and Windows)

Click the View menu and select Sort Type. The available options are Date modified, Date Created, and Alphabetical. Click the “Reversed” option if you want the notes sorted reversely.

Mac

On the Mac app, the note sorting option is at Simplenote > Settings… (or Preferences… on older macOS) > Note sort order.

Web app

On the web app, you can access the note sorting option by clicking the Navigation drawer, going to Settings, selecting the Display tab, and scrolling down to the SORT BY section.

What are the keyboard shortcuts available?

There are keyboard shortcuts for our Android, Electron (Linux, Windows), and macOS apps.

Android

Tap Ctrl  , to see a list of shortcuts available on the current screen. A list of all shortcuts is below.

New Note	Ctrl  Shift  I
Open Search	Ctrl  Shift  S
Toggle Checklist	Ctrl  Shift  C
Toggle Preview	Ctrl  Shift  P
Toggle List	Ctrl  Shift  L
Show Information	Ctrl  I
Show History	Ctrl  H
Show Share	Ctrl  S
Show Shortcuts	Ctrl  ,

Electron (Linux, Windows)

Type Ctrl / to view all shortcuts. Here are some common ones:

New Note	Ctrl Shift I
Search Notes	Ctrl Shift S
Insert a checklist item	Ctrl Shift C
Toggle focus mode	Ctrl Shift F
Toggle Markdown preview	Ctrl Shift P
Increase font size	Ctrl  +
Decrease font size	Ctrl  -
Reset font size	Ctrl  0
Show keyboard shortcuts	Ctrl /

macOS

New Note	Command  N
Print Note	Command  P
Move focus to search field	Command  L
Increase font size	Command  +
Decrease font size	Command  -
Reset font size	Command  0
Delete note	Shift Command Backspace

Can I use Simplenote offline?

All Simplenote apps are designed to be used offline. You can access and edit your notes without an internet connection, provided you have signed in and downloaded all your notes while online.

Important Note: While you can use Simplenote offline, please be aware that changes made to your notes while offline will not be synced to other devices until you reconnect to the internet. This means that if you edit a note on your phone while offline, those changes won’t be reflected on your computer or other devices until you regain an internet connection.

The web app is slightly different in that it requires an internet connection to access the browser tab at https://app.simplenote.com/. If you’re already offline when you want to open the web app, it won’t be accessible. With that said, we have a workaround solution for you, so read on.

To access your notes in the web app offline, use a browser that supports Progressive Web Apps (such as Chrome, Edge, or Firefox with an appropriate extension). By installing the app as a Progressive Web App when you are online and logged in to your Simplenote account, you’ll have offline access to Simplenote on your desktop.