Notesnook
✓ Verified by EU AltsZero-knowledge encrypted note-taking app — an alternative to Evernote.
Overview
Notesnook is a Berlin, Germany-based European company building open source, privacy, and productivity software since 2021. Despite its EU base, EU Alts has verified that Notesnook owned by Streetwriters (Private) Limited (Pakistan), and hosts customer data with Hetzner (primary encrypted note data); iDrive e2 (attachments, since Aug 2024); Cloudflare (CDN) in Germany (Hetzner) / United States (iDrive Inc. is a California-based company), so it may still fall under the reach of the US CLOUD Act — worth weighing against well-known US incumbents on this specific point.
Why European teams pick Notesnook
Teams in Europe still consider Notesnook for its open source product and Germany presence, operating since 2021, but unlike a fully EU-owned provider, Notesnook owned by Streetwriters (Private) Limited (Pakistan), and hosts customer data with Hetzner (primary encrypted note data); iDrive e2 (attachments, since Aug 2024); Cloudflare (CDN) in Germany (Hetzner) / United States (iDrive Inc. is a California-based company) — so it does not fully avoid US CLOUD Act exposure the way some other alternatives to well-known US incumbents do.
See more EU open source tools or browse other startups from Germany.
About
Notesnook is an open-source, end-to-end encrypted note-taking app. Notes are encrypted using XChaCha20-Poly1305 before syncing — the Notesnook server cannot read note content. The client apps (iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, Linux, Web) are open-source under the GPL licence. Notesnook offers a European data region option and provides a GDPR DPA for business users. It is a strong alternative to Notion and Evernote for individuals and teams who need note-taking with verifiable end-to-end encryption and open-source client code.
Details
- Founded
- 2021
- Headquarters
- Berlin, Germany
- Ownership
- Owned by Streetwriters (Private) Limited (Pakistan)
- Hosting
- Hetzner (primary encrypted note data); iDrive e2 (attachments, since Aug 2024); Cloudflare (CDN), Germany (Hetzner) / United States (iDrive Inc. is a California-based company)
- CLOUD Act
- Exposed
- Company size
- 1–10 employees
Categories
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Frequently asked questions
What is Notesnook?
Notesnook is an open-source, end-to-end encrypted note-taking app. Notes are encrypted using XChaCha20-Poly1305 before syncing — the Notesnook server cannot read note content. The client apps (iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, Linux, Web) are open-source under the GPL licence. Notesnook offers a European data region option and provides a GDPR DPA for business users. It is a strong alternative to Notion and Evernote for individuals and teams who need note-taking with verifiable end-to-end encryption and open-source client code.
What does Notesnook do?
Notesnook is zero-knowledge encrypted note-taking app — an alternative to evernote. It is listed under open source, privacy, and productivity on EU Alts because its core functionality serves teams looking for a European open source tool with EU data residency, typically as a switch away from well-known US incumbents.
Is Notesnook a good European open source alternative?
Notesnook is a fit for European businesses evaluating open source options where data residency and GDPR alignment matter — typical buyers include EU-based SaaS teams, public-sector projects, regulated industries (healthcare, finance, legal), and any organisation that needs to demonstrate that customer data does not leave the EU. It also overlaps with privacy and productivity use cases.
Is Notesnook GDPR compliant?
Notesnook is headquartered in Berlin, Germany and processes user data under the GDPR by default. Customer data processing is supervised by Germany's data protection authority, the Bundesbeauftragte für den Datenschutz und die Informationsfreiheit (BfDI). However, EU Alts has verified that Notesnook owned by Streetwriters (Private) Limited (Pakistan), and hosts customer data with Hetzner (primary encrypted note data); iDrive e2 (attachments, since Aug 2024); Cloudflare (CDN) in Germany (Hetzner) / United States (iDrive Inc. is a California-based company), which means — unlike a fully EU-owned provider — it may still be reachable under the US CLOUD Act, similar to well-known US incumbents in that respect.
How do teams switch from well-known US incumbents to Notesnook?
Teams evaluating a move from well-known US incumbents to Notesnook should note: Notesnook owned by Streetwriters (Private) Limited (Pakistan), and hosts customer data with Hetzner (primary encrypted note data); iDrive e2 (attachments, since Aug 2024); Cloudflare (CDN) in Germany (Hetzner) / United States (iDrive Inc. is a California-based company), so this switch narrows but may not fully close the US CLOUD Act gap. Weigh that against the open source workflow fit before treating it as a complete Schrems II fix.
Where is Notesnook based?
Notesnook is headquartered in Berlin, Germany. The company was founded in 2021. Its main website is https://notesnook.com.