Locus

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Locus is a local-first Markdown notebook for macOS, Windows, and Linux. Notes stay ordinary files in a folder you choose, so you can read and organize them in Locus while editing them in any app you like.

Features

• Each note is a folder with an index.md; nested folders form the tree, and attachments sit beside the note.
• Read Markdown, local images, summaries and custom YAML properties in one window.
• Map the workspace's note hierarchy and links in a full-window relation graph.
• Give a note its own HTML and JavaScript page for dashboards, charts and other canvases.
• Let external Agents find notes through optional read-only MCP, and open your shell or Agent CLI in a built-in terminal.
• Use light and dark themes, five languages, back/forward history and remembered sidebar state.

Install

Download the latest release from GitHub Releases.

• macOS: open the disk image and move Locus.app to Applications. macOS 13 or later, Apple Silicon or Intel.
• Windows: run the Locus Setup installer for your architecture. Windows 10 or later, with the WebView2 runtime, on x64 or ARM64.
• Linux: install the .deb, or unpack the tar.gz and run locus. GTK 3 and WebKitGTK are required, on x64 or ARM64.

A packaged app checks for updates once a day and shows them in Settings > About, where you can install and restart; development builds and the .deb package do not update themselves.

Releases are not yet signed or notarized. On first launch, allow Locus under System Settings > Privacy & Security > Open Anyway on macOS, or choose More info > Run anyway in Windows SmartScreen.

Getting started

1. Launch Locus and choose Open library to select the folder for your notes. Initialize it as a Git repository so every change has history.
2. Open Settings with Command/Ctrl+, to choose your shell and Agent, and install the skills that teach Agents to work with Locus.
3. Enable MCP in Settings and add http://127.0.0.1:2301/mcp to your Agent; you can send it the address and ask it to configure itself. See MCP access.
4. Start writing: ask your Agent, or use any editor, to create a folder with an index.md. Locus follows file changes automatically.

Command/Ctrl+F searches notes and commands, Command/Ctrl+O switches libraries, and the sidebar's graph button shows how notes connect.

Development

Build and test from source/ with Go 1.27.1 or later:

cd source
GOWORK=off go test ./...
GOWORK=off go vet ./...
GOWORK=off go tool mygo dev
GOWORK=off go tool mygo build -platform darwin/arm64,darwin/amd64,windows/amd64,windows/arm64,linux/amd64,linux/arm64

See Running and building for dependencies, checks and packaging, Architecture for design boundaries, and AGENTS.md for contributor rules. User-visible changes are listed in CHANGELOG.md.

License

MIT © 2026 ONEO.