Deft Sync
Your vault on every computer you use, encrypted on your device so nobody else can read it, us included. Deft is free. Sync is an optional add-on, and it's free too while it's in beta.
The whole folder
Sync takes the whole vault: Markdown notes, LaTeX projects, images, PDFs and the folders they live in. Everything in the folder syncs, so there's no list of exclusions to maintain. Save a note and your other computers have it within seconds.
Deft runs on macOS, Windows and Linux. There's no phone app yet.
Works offline
Your notes are files on your disk, so you can keep writing on a plane. When you're back online, Sync sends only what changed and merges in whatever your other devices did in the meantime. The editor never waits on the server.
End-to-end encrypted
Your device makes a random key and keeps it in the operating system's credential store. File contents and file names are encrypted with it before they leave your machine, so the server only holds ciphertext. We can't read your notes or even see what they're called. Neither can anyone who gets a copy of the server.
The cipher is XChaCha20-Poly1305 with a 256-bit key, the same key strength as AES-256. Every stored byte is authenticated, so a tampered file gets refused instead of opened. Data travels over TLS and is stored in Frankfurt, Germany.
The key isn't derived from your password. Change your password, or leak it, and your notes stay encrypted exactly as they were.
Don't take our word for it. The format is documented byte by byte, and we publish a short script that decrypts a note outside the app.
New devices are approved by one you already have
A new computer shows a six-digit code. Type it into a device that already syncs and the key crosses over without the server being able to read it. No other device around? The twelve-word Recovery Key from setup does the same job.
30 days of history
Read or restore any version of a note from the last 30 days. Recent ones are kept close together: every five minutes for the last hour, hourly for a day, then daily. Deleted files can be recovered for the same 30 days. History gets its own 1 GB and never eats into your storage. If it fills up, the oldest versions go first.
Edits merge
Edit the same note on two devices and the changes merge, as long as they don't touch the same lines. If they do, Deft keeps the other version beside yours as a conflict copy. Delete a file on one device, edit it on another, and it comes back.
What you get
Free during the beta, then €4 a month or €36 a year. Either way:
- 1 GB of end-to-end encrypted storage
- Files up to 100 MB
- No device limit
- 30-day version history in its own 1 GB
We don't charge anything during the beta or ask for a payment method. At launch, a first subscription starts with 14 days free. Cancel any time from your account.
If you stop paying
Nothing gets deleted and nothing locks up. Your notes are files on your disk, and Deft keeps editing them. Sync turns read-only: your devices keep pulling from the server and stop sending. Subscribe again and it picks up where it left off.
Still just a folder
Sync never moves your notes into a database. The vault stays a folder of ordinary files, and Deft edits them directly. Turn sync off and the folder is exactly as it was. Delete the remote vault from your account page and the server copy is gone, while your disk keeps everything.
Getting started
Create an account or open Settings › Sync in the app and click Set Up. Already have an account? Sign in.
Sync is rolling out gradually. If Settings doesn't show it yet, email support@usedeft.com.