Document, outliner and database in one app
Write paragraphs, outline, or build a table, and mix them on one page. Make your own tags and fields. See anything in more than one way: a page as an outline or as prose, and a set of entities as a table, a board or a calendar. You never have to pick one style.
Free forever on your own computer
The Fennick app on your computer is free, with no account and no time limit. Your notebooks stay yours. We charge only for our sync, the web app and sharing, and all of it is free during the alpha.
Write paragraphs and outlines on the same page
In many outliners every paragraph turns into a bullet, which makes long writing hard to read. In Fennick, paragraphs stay paragraphs. Each one is a block, and so is every bullet. Press Tab to indent a block under the one above it, and ⇧Tab to move it back out, so you can write a long piece and outline inside it on the same page.
- Fold any block that has blocks under it, or open it as its own page.
- Headings, to-dos, quotes, callouts and code blocks come from the / menu, or from Markdown as you type.
- Pasted Markdown or rich text keeps its headings, nested lists and to-dos.
Tag a block and it becomes an entity with fields
Type #book or #task at the end of a sentence. The block becomes an entity of that tag and gets the tag’s fields. They sit after the tag in short form, so the sentence still reads normally, and the entity appears on the tag’s page. Edit a field in the sentence or in the database and both change.
- Field types are text, number, rating, choice (one or many), date, checkbox, web link, email, a relation to another entity, formula, rollup and progress.
- For each field you choose how it shows: on the block as just its icon, short, in full or with its name, when the block is unfolded, or only on its page. A checkbox can sit before the name.
- An entity mentioned on many pages is one entity. Its backlinks list every page it appears on.
- Tag templates add the fields that every new
#meetingor#bookstarts with.
Your knowledge in a file you own
Fennick is local-first. Each notebook is one SQLite file in a folder you choose. It works offline, and you don’t need an account to use it. The tables have plain names and the file includes a readme table that explains each one, so a database browser, a script or your own agent can read it. The tables can change between versions; export, an agent connection and the fennick command stay the same. Fennick never encrypts the file on your device.
Sync is optional. Sign in to keep a notebook in step on your Mac, your iPhone and the web. Synced notebooks are encrypted on the way to our server and where they’re kept. End-to-end encryption, with keys only you hold, is coming as a choice for each notebook after the alpha.
- Export a whole notebook as Markdown, CSV or JSON.
- Import Markdown folders, Obsidian vaults, CSV files, and exports from Notion and Tana.
See anything in more than one way
A view is a way to see, and it is not tied to a tag. A set of entities can show as a table, board, list, calendar, gallery or chart, with several saved views. Sort, filter and group by any field, and hide the columns you don’t need. A page can show its blocks as an outline, as prose, numbered, or as a checklist.
- A live query is a block you write on any page, such as open tasks due this week. Its results appear under it and update while you work.
- Rollups count, sum or average related entities, such as the books by one author.
- Formulas work on an entity’s own fields, with arithmetic, dates, if-then and joined text.
Daily notes, with pages for each week, month and year
Fennick opens on today’s daily note. Anything you tag there also shows on its tag’s page and in every query it matches. Type @fri or @oct 15 in a block to link it to that day, and it also appears on that day’s page.
- Week, month and year pages are one click from today.
- A date range, such as a trip, shows on every day page it covers.
- Dates can have times.
- A repeating task stays one task and keeps its whole history, instead of making a new copy each time.
- A tasks dashboard lists overdue, today’s and upcoming tasks.
Agents can work in your notebook, and AI stays off unless you turn it on
Fennick works fully without AI. During setup you pick No AI, On-device only, or AI allowed. If you skip the question, the answer is No AI.
To work with an agent such as Claude, connect it through the MCP server or the API, using a key you create for that notebook. Blocks it writes are marked as its own, and you can make its edits wait for your approval.
Ask your AI about Fennick
Copy a plain description of Fennick and paste it into your AI chat.
Your notebook stays yours, and every change can be undone
The Op Log lists every change by every person and agent as a plain sentence, and each page has its own version history. Undo this reverts one change and keeps everything after it. Restore to here takes the notebook back to that point.
- Your notebook is a file on your computer. You keep it, and it opens in other tools, whatever happens to Fennick.
- The app on your computer is free forever.
- You can export a whole notebook as Markdown, CSV or JSON whenever you like.
- Our roadmap is public, so you can see what we are building and what comes next.
- Every change to a synced notebook is copied to a backup within moments, and a full copy is made every day. We restore the backups every day to check that they work.
- Fennick is made by a small team with no investors. We plan to earn money from sync, the web app and sharing.
Also in the alpha
Here is the rest of the list. The roadmap shows which parts are in the app today.
Writing
- Simple tables inside a page
- Transclusion: one block shown in two places, editable in both
- Images and files in blocks
Links and entities
- Mentions with @ and [[
- Backlinks, unlinked mentions and outgoing links
- Hover a link to preview the entity and edit it
- Copy a link to any block
- Aliases for entities
- Any icon and colour for a tag
- Edit many entities in a filtered list at once
Getting around
- ⌘K to open any page, entity or day, or run an action
- A sidebar you can rearrange, with Recents
- The page’s headings as an outline in the margin
- Who last edited a block, and when
- A Trash you can open and look through
Apps and settings
- Mac, iPhone and web apps
- Offline editing that syncs when you reconnect
- Lock with Face ID or a passkey
- The iPhone share sheet
- A page of instructions that every agent reads first
Pricing
The local app is free forever.
Sync, the web app and sharing will be paid after the alpha, and they are free until then. We haven’t set prices yet.
Questions
What is Fennick?
A notes app with long-form writing, an outliner and databases in one editor. When you tag a block, it becomes an entity with fields and stays where you wrote it. You can see any set of entities as a table, a board and more. Each notebook is a local file.
Can I use it now?
Not yet. We’re getting it ready for a small first group. Join the waitlist and we’ll email you when your invite is ready. Invites are free, and we send them out a few at a time.
Where are my notes kept?
In a file on your computer, in a folder you choose. If you turn on sync, a copy goes to our servers so your other devices stay up to date.
Do I have to use AI?
No. Fennick works fully without it. During setup you choose No AI, On-device only, or AI allowed. If you skip the question, it’s No AI.
Can an agent change my notes without me knowing?
An agent needs a key that you create for that notebook. You can make its edits wait for your approval. Every change it makes is in the Op Log under its name, and you can undo any of them.
Can I get my notes out?
Yes. You can export a whole notebook as Markdown, CSV or JSON, or copy blocks as Markdown or rich text. The notebook file also opens in any SQLite tool.
Which devices does it run on?
There are Mac, iPhone and web apps. Windows and Android apps will come after the alpha.
How much does it cost?
The app on your computer is free forever. Sync, the web app and sharing will be paid after the alpha, and they are free until then.
Who makes Fennick?
A small team with no outside investors.
I already have an account. How do I sign in?
In Fennick, press ⌘K, type “sign in” and press Enter. Sign in is also in Settings, under Account. How signing in works
Join the waitlist
We send invites to small groups, and they’re free. Leave your email and we’ll write when it’s your turn. We only email about Fennick.