Standard Notes alternatives for Mac
Standard Notes — Free, open-source, and completely encrypted notes app — is installed 98 times a month through Homebrew. These are hand-picked alternatives that occupy the same slot, ordered by how comparable their user base is.
Run
brew install --cask standard-notes to install Standard Notes itself.- Joplin4.7× the installs
- Anytype174 installs/mo
- Obsidian201.9× the installs
- Typora9.8× the installs
- Zotero17.1× the installs
- Craft106 installs/mo
- bear8.2× the installs
- Logseq3.7× the installs
Full comparison
| Standard Notes | Joplin | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | GUI app | GUI app |
| Category | Security & Privacy | Productivity |
| Open source | Not declared | Yes (inferred) |
| Licence | Not declared | Not declared |
| Apple silicon | Universal | Universal |
| Latest version | 3.202.10 | 3.7.21 |
| Dependencies | 0 | 0 |
| Installs (30 days) | 98 | 463 |
| Install command | brew install --cask standard-notes | brew install --cask joplin |
How we picked these
The list comes from a hand-maintained set of same-purpose apps, not from keyword matching. Alternatives are removed automatically when Homebrew no longer carries them. Ordering reflects 30-day install volume, not paid placement. Data updated 2026-10-26.