Your notes, your way

👋 Welcome to Kept

Kept is designed for people who love fast, low-friction note capture. Whether you need a quick checklist, a drawing, or a simple text note, Kept makes it effortless to jot things down and organize them visually with colors and labels.

If you're migrating from Google Keep, we've even included a simple import tool to bring all your existing notes over seamlessly.

✨ What you get with Kept

🚀 How to Install

Just want notes on your phone or tablet? Install a native iOS or Android app and choose Use on this device. You do not need to set up a server.

Set up a Kept server

For web access, sharing, and sync across devices, choose Kept Cloud or run your own Kept server using the published Docker image, ghcr.io/ericerkz/kept:latest.

git clone https://github.com/ericerkz/kept.git
cd kept
docker compose up -d

That's it! Open your browser and go to http://localhost:6767. You'll be greeted by a friendly setup wizard to create your admin account.

Kept Cloud — hosting handled for you

Want web access, sharing, and sync across devices without setting up Docker or managing a server? Kept Cloud runs and maintains your own private Kept server for you, with automatic backups and updates included.

1. Open Kept Cloud and follow the steps to create your account and set up your server.
2. Create your Kept login when prompted, then open your private server address.
3. Connect the iOS or Android app to the same server to sync your notes across devices.

Add family, friends, or teammates to the same server. Everyone shares one subscription, with no per-user charge. Kept remains free to self-host, and device-only mode in the native apps needs no subscription.

git clone https://github.com/ericerkz/kept.git
cd kept
docker compose -f docker-compose.yml -f docker-compose.dev.yml up -d --build

Reverse proxy examples

For public HTTPS access, point your domain at Kept and proxy traffic to 127.0.0.1:6767. Online status and live collaboration use WebSockets at /api/realtime, so that rule must come before the catch-all app proxy.

If you still need to set up HTTPS certificates, DigitalOcean has clear walkthroughs for Apache with Let's Encrypt and Nginx with Let's Encrypt. This is not a referral; we just love their detailed knowledgebase.

Apache

# Required once:
# sudo a2enmod proxy proxy_http proxy_wstunnel rewrite ssl
# sudo systemctl reload apache2

<VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerName kept.example.com
    Redirect permanent / https://kept.example.com/
</VirtualHost>

<IfModule mod_ssl.c>
<VirtualHost *:443>
    ServerName kept.example.com
    ProxyRequests Off
    ProxyPreserveHost On

    # WebSocket realtime: online status + live collaboration.
    ProxyPass /api/realtime ws://127.0.0.1:6767/api/realtime
    ProxyPassReverse /api/realtime ws://127.0.0.1:6767/api/realtime

    # Normal app/API traffic.
    ProxyPass / http://127.0.0.1:6767/
    ProxyPassReverse / http://127.0.0.1:6767/

    SSLEngine on
    SSLCertificateFile /etc/letsencrypt/live/kept.example.com/fullchain.pem
    SSLCertificateKeyFile /etc/letsencrypt/live/kept.example.com/privkey.pem
</VirtualHost>
</IfModule>

Nginx

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name kept.example.com;
    return 301 https://$host$request_uri;
}

server {
    listen 443 ssl http2;
    server_name kept.example.com;

    ssl_certificate /etc/letsencrypt/live/kept.example.com/fullchain.pem;
    ssl_certificate_key /etc/letsencrypt/live/kept.example.com/privkey.pem;

    # WebSocket realtime: online status + live collaboration.
    location /api/realtime {
        proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:6767/api/realtime;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection "upgrade";
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
    }

    # Normal app/API traffic.
    location / {
        proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:6767;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
    }
}

External access, MCP, and SSO

Kept can connect to trusted external tools, but these paths stay off until each user enables them from Settings. Normal Kept setup does not require OAuth, MCP, or SSO.

BASE_URL=https://kept.example.com
KEPT_OIDC_ISSUER=https://accounts.google.com
KEPT_OIDC_CLIENT_ID=your-client-id
KEPT_OIDC_CLIENT_SECRET=your-client-secret
KEPT_OIDC_NAME=Google

Install on iOS and Android

Choose a native app to use Kept on your device, with Kept Cloud, or with your own server. You can also install the server's web app as a Progressive Web App.

Use Kept locally without a server

With the 1.9 native iOS and Android apps, choose Use on this device on the welcome screen to start without a server or Kept account. Create and organize notes, checklists, images, drawings, attachments, labels, and reminders on the device.

Sharing, collaboration, web access, access across devices, and server integrations still require a Kept server. If you want those later, choose Settings → Notes on this device → Move my notes to a server. This seamlessly transfers your entire local library to your Kept server, including images and attachments.

Device-only libraries can be saved with Save a complete backup and restored on an iOS or Android device with Restore a backup. Keep a backup outside the app: deleting the app or losing the device can mean losing its local notes.

PWA setup (requires a server)

The browser-installed PWA connects to a Kept server. Device-only mode is available in the native apps. Location-based reminders also require a native app.

• Put Kept behind a public https:// domain. Mobile push will not work from plain HTTP or a raw local network address. Need help with certificates? See the Apache or Nginx Let's Encrypt tutorials linked above in the Reverse proxy section.

Install the PWA on iPhone or iPad

1. Open your Kept URL in Safari.
2. Tap Share, then Add to Home Screen.
3. Open Kept from the new Home Screen icon, not from the Safari tab.
4. Sign in and allow notifications when Kept asks.

iOS only allows web push for installed home-screen web apps, so the Safari tab is just for installing.

Install the PWA on Android

1. Open your Kept URL in Chrome or another browser with PWA support.
2. Use the browser menu and choose Install app or Add to Home screen.
3. Open Kept from the installed app icon and allow notifications when prompted.

If PWA notifications do not arrive

• Check that the installed app is using your HTTPS domain.
• Confirm notifications are allowed in the browser or OS settings.
• Kept auto-generates VAPID keys for web push. If push still fails behind a reverse proxy, set VAPID_SUBJECT in docker-compose.yml to your public Kept URL, for example https://kept.example.com.
• On iOS, remove and reinstall the Home Screen app after changing domains or VAPID settings.

💾 Peace of mind with Backups

For device-only notes, use Settings → Notes on this device → Save a complete backup. The backup includes your notes, images, attachments, reminders, and preferences. Use Restore a backup in either native app to restore the library on a device. Optional backup reminders are in-app prompts; backups are saved when you choose to create them.

For self-hosted servers:

• Automated Schedules: Set Kept to automatically back up your data daily, weekly, or monthly. You never have to think about it.
• One-Click Restore: If you ever need to set up a new server or recover your data, you can upload your backup file during setup to restore everything instantly.

Server data is stored in a single folder (./data), making it easy to copy, move, or back up to your own storage.

Privacy Policy

Short version: your Kept library lives on your device in device-only mode, or on the server you choose in connected mode.

• What Kept stores: Device-only notes, images, attachments, reminders, and settings are stored on your device. Connected libraries and account details are stored on your Kept server, with downloaded notes also kept on your device for offline use.
• Location data: If you use location-based reminders or saved places, Kept may access your device location and store the places, coordinates, reminder radius, and arrive/leave preference needed to make those reminders work. These are stored with your device-only library or on your Kept server, depending on the mode you use.
• Who controls it: You control your device-only library. Whoever runs a connected Kept server controls the data stored there.
• Third-party services: Apple Reminders integration follows the Reminders account and sync settings on your device. Google Calendar and CalDAV connections are optional server features.
• Moving your data: You can back it up, export it, delete it, or move it somewhere else.
• This docs site: This page has no accounts, forms, cookies, ads, or analytics scripts. Your web host may still keep normal server logs.

This is not fancy legal armor. It is the basic truth of the app: Kept is built so your notes stay under your control.