Private Markdown
Write in Markdown. Keep the key.
mdwn is a private home for your writing. Organize your Files, reach them from every device you approve, and publish a page when you want to — everything is sealed in your browser before it reaches us.
Passkeys only · No ads or tracking
End-to-end encrypted Markdown
Why we built mdwn
In this agentic era, the only human thing we can defend is our privacy.
Agents now read, summarize and learn from almost everything we put online. Drafts become training data, notes become someone else’s context, and the unfinished thinking that makes writing human turns into input.
We can’t stop that, but we can keep your words out of it. mdwn encrypts your writing in your browser before it leaves your device, so neither we nor any agent we could run can read it. Privacy here is not a promise in a policy; it is how the product is built.
Getting started
Three steps, and not one password
The only things to keep safe are the ones only you should have.
- 01
Create an account with a passkey
Your device generates the keys. There is no password, because there is nothing for us to check it against.
- 02
Keep your recovery phrase
Twenty-four words and ten one-time codes, shown once and kept offline by you — never by us.
- 03
Write, organize, publish
Keep Files in folders, open them on every device you approve, and publish a page when it is ready.
Features
A quiet place for serious writing
No feeds, no plug-ins, no lock-in. Just your Files, the pages you choose to publish, and a way to take everything with you.
Write
A calm editor with live preview and autosave. Every File holds up to 256 KiB of Markdown.
.md / 256 KiB
Organize
Folders and Files you can rename, move and reorder. Their names are encrypted too.
Files + folders
Publish
Turn a File into a clean public page, live with every save, and take it down whenever you like.
Read-only link
Discuss
Each File keeps a private comment thread; a published page gets its own, separate public one.
Separate threads
Export
Download every File you own as a portable archive, whenever you like.
Portable archive
Import
Bring Markdown files, folders or an mdwn archive. You review it all before anything uploads.
Review first
Privacy
Your words never reach us readable
mdwn encrypts your writing on your device first. Our servers store ciphertext, not the keys to read it.
The storage formula
- Your Markdown
- Encryption in your browser
- Ciphertext on our servers
- Keys live on your devices
- Each browser holds its own non-exportable keys. Adding a device is something you approve, on a device you already trust.
- Even names are encrypted
- File names, folder names, ordering, front matter and comments are sealed alongside the Markdown itself.
- Nothing to sell
- No ads, no analytics, no trackers, no paid tier. There is no business that depends on reading you.
This protects stored content, not a compromised browser, malicious extension, or altered app code. Your browser and the code it runs remain part of the trust boundary.
Publishing
Publish one page. The key travels in the link.
When a File is ready for the world, publish it. Readers open a clean, read-only page that decrypts in their browser — no account needed.
- 01
Publish a File
One click creates a read-only public link to its latest saved version.
- 02
Share the complete link
Everything after # is the key. Browsers never send it, and the copy we keep for you is encrypted with your keys, so we can’t read it.
- 03
Rotate or unpublish anytime
Retire a leaked link instantly, or delete the public copy and its comments for good.
Questions
Before you trust us with your words
Your writing is encrypted in your browser before upload. Here’s what that protects, and what stays in your hands.
Can mdwn read my Files?
No. Your Markdown, the names of your Files and folders, and your comments are encrypted in your browser with keys that stay on your devices. We store ciphertext, plus what any service must know to run: that your account exists, roughly how much it stores, and when it is used.
What happens if I lose my passkey?
Use one of your ten one-time recovery codes to add a new passkey. Recovery codes restore sign-in only; on a new browser you still unlock your Files with another device or your recovery phrase.
What is the 24-word recovery phrase for?
It restores access to your encrypted Files on a new browser when no other device is available. It never leaves your browser, and nobody — including us — can reset it for you.
Can I use mdwn on more than one device?
Yes. Approve a new browser from one you already use by scanning a QR code. Each device holds its own keys, and you can remove any of them later.
Who can read a published page?
Anyone with its complete link. The part after # is the key: browsers never send it to us, and the copy that lets your own devices show you the link again is encrypted with your keys, so we can’t read it. Rotating the link retires the old one; unpublishing deletes the public copy and its public comments.
How is mdwn paid for?
It isn’t monetized: no ads, no tracking, no paid tier. Optional, anonymous donations help with the domain, and mdwn works exactly the same whether or not anyone donates.
Free, private, portable
Your writing, sealed and yours to take anywhere.
Create an account with a passkey. Export everything you own whenever you like.