The idea
Not a workspace. Not a second brain.
Just a small, self-hosted timeline for notes you want to capture quickly and keep close.
Open. Write. Done.
No folder decision, no workspace setup, no title required before a thought is worth saving.
Private timeline.
Memos feels closer to posting into your own quiet feed than maintaining a formal notebook.
Yours to run.
Self-host it, keep Markdown-native notes, and choose the database and server you trust.
Product
Small on purpose. Fast by default.
Memos keeps one loop sharp: capture now, organize later, and keep every note on your side of the line.
Explore every featureYour notes stay with you
Run Memos on your server and keep the entire data path under your control.
Open, type, move on
No folder choice, template step, or title required before a thought is worth saving.
Plain Markdown
Write in a format that stays readable, portable, and easy to back up anywhere.
Small enough to run anywhere
Start on a Raspberry Pi, VPS, NAS, or cloud box with a lightweight Docker deploy.
Open source you can inspect
MIT licensed, public on GitHub, and shaped by contributors who run it themselves.
Free because you host it
No paid unlocks or seat pricing. Bring the infrastructure that already fits your setup.
Deploy
Your server. One command.
Start a private Memos timeline in minutes, then move it whenever your setup changes.
View deployment optionsOne command to start your Memos server
docker run -d --name memos \
-p 5230:5230 \
-v ~/.memos/:/var/opt/memos \
neosmemo/memos:stableUse cases
Small notes, many kinds of work.
Memos fits wherever context arrives in fragments and needs somewhere private to stay.
Self-hosters
Infrastructure notes, configuration history, and the fixes you will need again.
Developers
Code snippets, debugging trails, and the small decisions behind a shipped change.
Writers
Lines worth keeping, early drafts, and research captured before the idea disappears.
Journals
Daily observations and private idea trails without turning life into a database.
Makers
Build logs, measurements, parts, and the next thing to try when you return.
Students
Lecture notes, sources, and questions that connect one study session to the next.
Families
A private stream for updates, shared memories, and the people closest to you.
Privacy-conscious teams
Sensitive working notes kept on infrastructure your organization controls.
Next steps
Go deeper when you need to.
Start with the product, then reach for the guide or tool that matches your next question.
Before you install
A few useful answers.
- Is Memos free?
- Yes. Memos is free and open source under the MIT license. You run it yourself, so there are no accounts, subscriptions, or per-seat fees — your only cost is the server you choose to host it on.
- Can I self-host Memos?
- Yes — self-hosting is the whole idea. Deploy Memos with a single Docker command in a few minutes on your own server, NAS, or homelab. It stores notes in SQLite by default, with MySQL and PostgreSQL supported for larger deployments.
- Does Memos support Markdown?
- Yes. Memos is Markdown-native: every memo is written and stored as plain Markdown, including headings, lists, code blocks, tags, and task lists, so your notes stay portable and never locked into a proprietary format.
- Is Memos a good open-source alternative to Google Keep, Notion, or Evernote?
- Memos is a strong fit if you want fast, private capture you fully control rather than a hosted cloud workspace. It is lighter than Notion and self-hosted unlike Google Keep or Evernote, while keeping Markdown notes, tags, and search.
- Where is my data stored, and is it private?
- On your own infrastructure. Because you self-host Memos, your notes live in your database on your server — there is no third-party cloud, and the project ships with zero telemetry by default.
Start here
Start with one memo.
Run it yourself or try the public demo before choosing where your timeline will live.