Markdown in Simplenote: the toggle, the preview, the trade
Yes, Simplenote does Markdown — once you flip a per-note switch, and only as a preview beside your raw text. That's not a flaw; it's a philosophy. It just may not be yours.
Simplenote is the most honest name in note-taking: plain text, synced everywhere, free. Markdown support exists inside that philosophy rather than instead of it — the note stays raw text; the rendering is a view you visit. If you write in Markdown all day that split feels natural. If you were hoping for text that formats itself as you type, it's the first thing you'll notice missing.
Three things to know before you rely on it
01It's a switch, not the default
Markdown is enabled per note, from the note's info panel. Flip it and the note gains a preview; leave it off and your asterisks are just asterisks. Fine once you know — invisible until someone tells you, which is why this page exists.
02Writing and reading are separate rooms
With Markdown on, you write raw syntax in the editor and see the rendered result in a separate preview. The syntax never disappears while you type — Simplenote is a plain-text tool at heart, and the preview is a window onto it, not a replacement for it.
03The notes live in Simplenote's cloud
An account is the deal: notes sync through Simplenote's servers to every device, free, courtesy of Automattic. Genuinely generous — and the opposite of local-first. Your Markdown is on your machine as a cache, not as files you keep.
If you want the Markdown without the toggle
Locus starts from the opposite corner: type **bold** and the marks dissolve into bold as you finish them — no mode, no preview pane, no syntax left on screen — and the note is already structure: real checkboxes, real tables, code highlighted in 18 languages. The other flip is where the writing lives: plain files in a folder on your Mac, no account anywhere. How the typing works is shown in Markdown that types itself; what “your notes, your disk” means in practice is local-first notes. Weighing Bear too? Its Markdown story has its own fine print — Markdown in Bear covers it.
Questions people ask
Is Simplenote's Markdown standard?+
For the common marks, yes — headings, emphasis, lists, links, code render the way you'd expect in preview. Notes themselves stay plain text, which also sets the ceiling: there's no attachment storage, so images only appear if they're links to pictures hosted somewhere else.
Is Simplenote really free? What's the catch?+
Really free — Automattic (the WordPress company) runs it, and there's no paid tier to upsell. The catch isn't money; it's architecture. Notes live in their cloud behind an account, and plain text is the whole format: no tables that hold shape, no real checkboxes, no covers, no version history you control as files.
Can I move Simplenote notes into Locus?+
Yes, with one small chore. Export from Simplenote (the web app produces a zip of plain-text files), rename the notes you care about from .txt to .md, then File → Import in Locus and point it at the folder — each becomes a page of native blocks, with your Markdown converted to real formatting.
Who should stay with Simplenote?+
Anyone whose first requirement is free sync on every platform — iPhone, Android, Windows, Linux, the lot. Locus can't do that and doesn't try: it's Mac-only with no sync service, and trades reach for a native editor and notes that live in your own folder.