How keepthis.site Keeps Bookmarks Encrypted and Synced Without Accounts

Updated

keepthis.site encrypts your bookmarks on your own device using a passphrase only you know, then syncs the encrypted data directly between your devices peer-to-peer — with no account and no server in between. That design means the service itself cannot read what you save. It applies to the Mac and Android apps plus the Firefox extension; the browser extension only works when the Mac app is running in the background to receive saves.

Where encryption happens

Encryption takes place before data leaves your device. The passphrase is the key: keepthis.site states your data is encrypted on your device with a passphrase only you know. Because the encrypted form is what moves and what is stored, the readable version of a bookmark — URL, title, tags, notes, screenshot — never exists on anyone else's machine.

A practical consequence: the passphrase is not recoverable through a "forgot password" flow, because there is no account system or server-side copy to reset against. Treat it like a disk-encryption key and store it somewhere you trust.

How sync works without a server

Sync is peer-to-peer between your own devices. There is no intermediary server holding your library, so there is nothing for the operator to read and nothing to breach on their side. The site describes it plainly: your data "syncs peer-to-peer between your own devices — no accounts, no server in between."

This is a different model from cloud bookmark services, where a company account holds your data and sync means "upload to our servers." Here, sync means "copy ciphertext from one of your devices to another."

What that implies in practice

Aspect What it means for you
Account None required — no sign-up, no login
Who can read your saves Only you, with your passphrase
Where data lives On your devices; encrypted before it leaves them
Offline use Works — pins live on your device, so saving and searching continue on a plane or a flaky connection
Recovery Depends on your passphrase; there is no server-side reset

What you can save and find

  • Any link you want to return to — articles, docs, videos, tools. There are no folders to maintain; search is the organizing tool.
  • Real screenshots — each saved link gets an actual screenshot of the page rather than a generic thumbnail, so you can scan your library visually.
  • Instant full-text search — find items in milliseconds by title, note, or anything you wrote about them.

Saving from the browser

The Firefox extension saves the active tab — URL, title, your tags, your notes — straight to the desktop app in one click, with no login or sign-up. It requests only the activeTab permission. The Mac app must be running in the background to receive saves. A Chrome Web Store version is listed as coming soon.

Requirements and availability

  • Mac: macOS 12 or later
  • Android: Android 8 or later (arm64), version 1.1.2
  • Browser: Firefox extension available now; Chrome listed as coming soon

Is this the right fit?

Choose keepthis.site if you want a private, search-first bookmark library on your own devices and are comfortable managing a passphrase as your only key. It suits people who save links across Mac and Android and want offline access plus visual previews.

Look elsewhere if you need a web-only client, team sharing, or account-based password recovery — none of those are described in the product's materials, and the no-account, no-server design is precisely what rules them out.