flotes.app

Yes. Flotes is built on plain Markdown, and the site states that you can import and export freely with "no lock-in." Two specific portability details are worth knowing: backlinks in the Wiki view are stored as standard Markdown links, and the Canvas view exports using the open JSON Canvas specification.

Markdown as the foundation

Flotes describes itself as "Powered by Markdown" and lets you write in plain Markdown rather than a proprietary rich-text format. That matters for two reasons:

• Your notes stay readable outside the app. Because the source is plain text, the content isn't trapped in a format only Flotes can render.
• Import and export are first-class. The site explicitly lists "Import and export freely. Open format with no lock-in" as a feature, and separately notes you can "easily publish or share your notes on the web."

If your main concern is whether you can move notes in and out, the answer from the site's own description is yes — Flotes positions open format and no lock-in as core selling points, not add-ons.

What "no lock-in" covers in practice

Different parts of the app store data in different ways, and the site is specific about two of them:

The backlink detail is the one people usually miss. In many note apps, links between notes are stored in a proprietary database, so exporting gives you the text but breaks the connections. Flotes says its backlinks are stored as standard Markdown links "for seamless export and compatibility" — meaning the link structure should come along with the export rather than being stripped out.

The Canvas export is a separate format from Markdown. JSON Canvas is an open specification for infinite-canvas tools, so a canvas you build in Flotes is intended to be portable to other canvas apps that read the same format, not just to Flotes itself.

How to check this for yourself

The site doesn't document exact menu paths for import/export in the material available here, so the reliable way to confirm behavior is to test it directly:

1. Create an account (the site says "Start for Free" and "Free to use, unlimited notes, all views").
2. Write a note in Markdown, including a link to a second note so a backlink is created.
3. Use the export option and open the resulting file in a plain text editor.
4. Check that (a) the Markdown formatting is intact and (b) the link to the other note still appears as a Markdown link rather than as plain text or a broken reference.
5. If you use Canvas, build a small canvas and export it, then verify the output is JSON Canvas.

Expected result: the note text and its links should be usable in another Markdown-based tool without cleanup. If a link comes out as plain text, that's the specific thing to flag.

Common sticking points

• Markdown support doesn't mean every Markdown extension. "Plain Markdown" is the site's wording; if you rely on a specific flavor or plugin syntax, test it before committing.
• Canvas is not Markdown. Don't expect a canvas to export as Markdown — it uses JSON Canvas, a different open format.
• Pricing and account limits aren't specified here. The site links to a Pricing page and says "Free to use, unlimited notes, all views," but the available material doesn't state whether any features sit behind a paid tier. Check the Pricing page directly if that affects your decision.
• Sync is separate from export. The site lists seamless sync across devices, but sync keeps your notes current inside Flotes; export is what gets them out. They solve different problems.

Who this suits

Flotes fits you if you want to write in Markdown, keep the ability to leave with your notes intact, and use learning-oriented views (study with fill-in-the-blanks, spaced repetition, canvas, wiki backlinks) on top of that text. It's a weaker fit if you need a documented, versioned export API or a specific Markdown dialect — the site describes open formats and free import/export, but doesn't publish those deeper technical guarantees in the material available.

Flotes is a Markdown-based note-taking app that turns what you write into study material. Its core loop is: write notes in plain Markdown, then review them through interactive views and spaced repetition. It fits people who already take notes and want to actually retain them — students, self-learners, and anyone building a long-term knowledge base. According to the site, it is free to use with unlimited notes and all views, and there is a separate Pricing page if you want to check current plan details.

What Flotes does

The site frames the product around one idea: "Turn Notes into Knowledge." Notes live in Notebooks — customizable folders that carry interactive views. From there, the same notes can be studied, visualized, connected, or compiled.

Core capabilities

Markdown as the foundation

Flotes is "powered by Markdown." You write in plain Markdown, and the site states you can import and export freely — an open format with no lock-in. Backlinks in the Wiki view are stored as standard Markdown links, so they survive export. This matters if you care about portability: your notes are not trapped in a proprietary format.

How the learning loop works

1. Write — Capture notes in Markdown inside a Notebook.
2. Study — Turn note content into fill-in-the-blank and concealed-section prompts. You grade yourself.
3. Review — A spaced repetition algorithm schedules when you see material again, based on your self-grading and tracked progress.
4. Reorganize — Use views to see the same notes differently: canvas for spatial grouping, wiki backlinks for connections, summary for long-form output.

The distinguishing point versus a general note app is step 2 and 3: the app assumes your notes are study material, not just an archive.

Who it's for

• Students and exam preppers who want notes and flashcards in one place instead of two tools.
• Self-directed learners who read and write a lot but lose the material afterward.
• People who want Markdown portability and are wary of lock-in.
• Writers and documenters who want to compile scattered notes into long-form content.

It is less suited if you only need a plain scratchpad, or if you want a mature ecosystem of third-party plugins — the site presents Flotes as an independently owned project created and maintained by Erik Verduin, not a large platform.

Getting started

1. Go to flotes.app and choose Create Account (there is also a Login link for existing users).
2. Create a Notebook to hold related notes.
3. Write notes in Markdown.
4. Switch to the Study view to generate fill-in-the-blank and concealed-section prompts, then grade yourself.
5. Let spaced repetition schedule your reviews.
6. Optionally explore Canvas, Wiki, and Summary views on the same notes.

The site lists a Start for Free entry point and states free use includes unlimited notes and all views. Check the Pricing page for anything beyond that, since plan specifics are not detailed in the material available here.

Practical notes

• No lock-in is a real feature here, not a slogan — Markdown import/export and the open JSON Canvas export format mean you can move your content out.
• Sharing and publishing are built in — the site says notes are free to share and publish on the web.
• Support channels exist — Documentation, Discord, and a Blog are linked from the site, useful if you hit questions during setup.
• Sync is included across devices, which matters if you study on a phone and write on a laptop.

If your goal is to stop re-reading notes you never remember, Flotes is designed around exactly that problem: write once in Markdown, then let the app quiz you and schedule the reviews.

Flotes provides four interactive views on top of plain Markdown notes: Study, Canvas, Wiki, and Summary. Each view serves a different purpose — reviewing material, mapping ideas spatially, connecting concepts, or compiling long-form content. You can switch between them without converting or duplicating your notes, because all views read from the same Markdown source.

Study View: Turn Notes into Review Sessions

Study view is built for active recall. It converts your notes into fill-in-the-blanks and concealed sections, so you test yourself rather than re-reading.

• Fill-in-the-blanks and concealed sections hide parts of your note and prompt you to recall them.
• Self-grading lets you mark how well you remembered each item.
• Spaced repetition schedules the next review based on your grading, so items you struggle with come back sooner and items you know well come back later.
• Progress tracking shows where you stand across your material.

This is the view to use when you have written notes and want to actually memorize them. The workflow is: write in Markdown, switch to Study, grade yourself, and let the spaced repetition algorithm decide when you see each item again.

Canvas View: Spatial Thinking on an Infinite Canvas

Canvas view places your notes on an infinite canvas where you can arrange and relate them visually.

• Group and link nodes to show how ideas connect.
• Embed web content directly alongside your notes.
• Export using the open JSON Canvas specification, so your canvas isn't trapped in Flotes.

Use Canvas when relationships matter more than sequence — brainstorming, mapping a topic, or planning a project. Because the export format is open, you can move the canvas elsewhere if needed.

Wiki View: Build a Second Brain with Backlinks

Wiki view turns your notes into a connected knowledge base.

• Backlinks connect related ideas in both directions, so you can see what links to a note, not just what it links to.
• Links are stored as standard Markdown links, which keeps them portable and compatible with export.

Use Wiki view when your notes accumulate over time and you want to navigate by association rather than by folder. Because the links are plain Markdown, the structure survives export.

Summary View: Aggregate Notes into Long-Form Content

Summary view pulls notes together into longer-form content.

• Aggregate notes into a single long-form piece.
• Suited to blog posts, documentation, or summarizing a notebook in one place.

Use Summary when you have scattered notes on one topic and want a single readable draft. It's the opposite direction from Study: instead of breaking notes into recall prompts, it combines them into prose.

Choosing Between the Views

You don't have to pick one permanently. The same Markdown notes feed all four views, so a typical pattern is to write once and then choose the view that matches the task at hand — Study before an exam, Canvas while planning, Wiki while researching, Summary while writing.

Practical Notes

• All views are built on plain Markdown, and Flotes supports free import and export with no lock-in.
• Notes are organized into Notebooks — customizable folders that hold these interactive views.
• Full-text search and sync across devices apply across your notes regardless of which view you're in.
• Flotes states it is free to use with unlimited notes and all views; check the pricing page for current details, since plan terms can change.

If your goal is to decide where to start: write your notes in Markdown first, then open Study view to begin reviewing, and add Canvas or Wiki links once your collection grows large enough to need them.

Flotes is free to use, and the free tier is not a stripped-down trial: according to the site, it includes unlimited notes, all views, and no lock-in. A separate Pricing page exists at flotes.app/pricing, but the homepage does not state what paid tiers cost or what extra features they add, so the only confirmed pricing facts are the free offering and the existence of a pricing page.

What the free plan includes

The site's closing call to action states the terms directly: "Free to use, unlimited notes, all views, no lock-in."

That translates into these concrete capabilities:

• Unlimited notes — no cap on how many notes you create.
• All views — Study, Canvas, Wiki, and Summary are described as part of the product, not as paid add-ons.
• No lock-in — notes are written in plain Markdown and can be imported and exported freely, so you can leave with your data.
• Sharing and publishing — the site lists "Free to share & publish," so publishing a note to the web is not behind a paywall.

What the pricing page covers

The site links to a Pricing page in its navigation and footer, which means a paid tier or tiers exist. However, the homepage content provided here does not list plan names, prices, billing periods, or which features are gated. If you need those specifics, the Pricing page is the place to check — treat any number you see there as the current source of truth rather than assuming a figure.

How to decide whether the free plan is enough

Practical steps to confirm before committing

1. Open flotes.app/pricing and read the plan comparison, since the homepage does not disclose paid-tier details.
2. Create a free account and test the workflow you actually care about — for example, write a Markdown note, convert it into study cards, and export it.
3. Verify the export path early. The site promises open format and no lock-in, so a quick export test tells you whether your data moves cleanly if you later switch tools.

Common sticking points

• Assuming "free" means limited. Here the free tier is described as unlimited notes with all views, which is unusual — but confirm on the Pricing page whether any future limits apply.
• Confusing "no lock-in" with "no account." You still create an account to use the app; no lock-in refers to your data being portable Markdown, not to anonymous use.
• Expecting prices on the homepage. They are not there. The Pricing link is the only pricing reference in the provided content.

Flotes is an independently owned project created and maintained by Erik Verduin, so plan changes are likely to be announced on the site itself rather than through a large vendor's channels.

Flotes turns the Markdown notes you already write into review material, then schedules that review with a spaced repetition algorithm. The core loop is: write notes in Markdown, study them through fill-in-the-blanks or concealed sections, grade yourself, and let the app decide when each item should come back. This works best if you take notes you actually want to remember — the study features operate on your own content rather than a separate flashcard deck you maintain by hand.

From notes to review material

Flotes is a Markdown note-taking app, so the starting point is plain text. Notes are organized into Notebooks, which the site describes as customizable folders with interactive views. Because the study features sit on top of that Markdown, you don't have to copy content into a second tool to make it reviewable.

The site frames the overall product as transforming Markdown notes into flash cards, mind maps, wikis, and summaries. For studying specifically, the relevant piece is that your notes become the cards.

The two study modes

Flotes supports two ways to test yourself on a note, both built around active recall rather than re-reading:

• Fill-in-the-blanks — parts of your note are hidden and you supply the missing content.
• Concealed sections — whole sections are hidden until you reveal them.

Both modes force you to retrieve information before seeing the answer, which is the mechanism that makes recall practice more effective than passive review.

Self-grading and progress tracking

After attempting recall, you grade yourself. Flotes then tracks your progress across study sessions. The grading step is what feeds the scheduling algorithm — your own assessment of how well you knew an item determines how soon it reappears. This means the quality of your scheduling depends on honest self-assessment; grading everything as "easy" will push items further out than your actual retention supports.

How the spaced repetition scheduling works

The site states that a spaced repetition algorithm helps you study notes efficiently and that you "review at the right time." In practice, that means:

1. You study an item and grade your recall.
2. The algorithm assigns a review interval based on that grade.
3. The item resurfaces when the interval elapses.
4. Each new grade adjusts the next interval.

Items you recall well get pushed further into the future; items you struggle with return sooner. The goal is to hit each item near the point where you're about to forget it, which is where review does the most work per unit of time.

What else supports the study workflow

Several surrounding features make the review loop easier to sustain:

The site also lists interactive views — canvas, wiki with backlinks, and summary — which are more about connecting and compiling ideas than about drilling recall, but they help you build the note base that spaced repetition then works on.

Practical conditions to keep in mind

• Your notes are the ceiling. Spaced repetition schedules whatever you wrote. Vague or incomplete notes produce vague cards.
• Grading accuracy matters. The algorithm's timing is only as good as your self-assessment.
• It's built for Markdown writers. If you don't take notes in Markdown, the main advantage — studying the notes you already keep — is weaker.
• Pricing and account limits aren't specified here. The site shows a Pricing page and a "Start for Free" / "Create Account" path, but the exact free-tier limits and paid terms aren't detailed in the available material, so check the Pricing page directly before committing.

If your goal is to remember what you write rather than to collect notes, the fill-in-the-blanks and concealed-section modes plus self-graded spaced repetition are the parts of Flotes worth trying first.