# saber-notes/saber

The cross-platform open-source app built for handwriting

Repository: https://github.com/saber-notes/saber
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/saber
Homepage: https://saber.adil.hanney.org
Language: Dart
License: GPL-3.0
License Family: copyleft
Topics: flutter, notes, notes-app, saber, android, cross-platform, dart, handwritten-notes, ios, linux, windows, f-droid, flatpak, macos
Last push: 2026-08-24T17:10:51+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 99/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-02T17:46:02.011165+00:00)
- activity 99, release rhythm 98, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 1503, "days_push": 9, "days_rel": 13, "gap_med": 11.0, "n_releases_24m": 51}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 4729, forks 354 (observed 2026-08-28T04:08:57.618557+00:00)

## What it is
Saber is a free, open-source, cross-platform notes app built for handwriting with a stylus or finger. It offers encrypted note sync across devices, PDF annotation, a non-overlapping highlighter, and dark-mode note inversion.

## Use cases
- take handwritten notes on a tablet
- annotate pdfs with a stylus
- sync handwritten notes between phone and laptop
- read notes comfortably in dark mode
- organize notes into nested folders
- encrypt notes so even the server can't read them
- highlight text without the highlighter changing color

## When to choose
- you want a free, open-source alternative to OneNote or GoodNotes
- you need handwriting notes across Android, iOS, Linux, Windows, and macOS
- you want end-to-end encrypted note sync or self-hosted sync
- you annotate PDFs and lecture slides by hand

## When to avoid
- you need plain-text or markdown note-taking with wiki links
- you require collaboration or real-time multi-user editing
- you need OCR or handwriting-to-text conversion
- you want a web-only app without installing anything

## Facets
- artifact type: application
- maturity: active
- function: gui, file-upload, pdf-viewer, cryptography
- domain: developer-tools, education, cross-platform, privacy
- platform: windows, cross-platform
- tags: handwriting, note-taking, stylus, pdf-annotation, flutter-app, encrypted-sync, dark-mode, open-source, android, ios, linux, macos, flutter

## Member repositories
- saber-notes/saber (main) score 99

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:08:57.618557+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-29T18:19:02.497465+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/saber-notes/saber (fetched 2026-08-28T04:08:57.618557+00:00, sha f2998d540d05)
  - homepage: https://saber.adil.hanney.org (fetched 2026-08-29T09:02:36.245011+00:00, sha 4b61b687747b)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.