Use case · security
To password-protect a sensitive document — not just trust a folder permission — Markd.ly encrypts documents with AES-256-GCM. This page states exactly what is and is not encrypted, because vague security claims are worse than none.
Encryption on Mac · Windows · Linux · one purchase, every platform · $19.99 one-time
On Mac, Windows and Linux, Markd.ly encrypts a document with a passphrase you choose, using AES-256-GCM, a standard authenticated-encryption algorithm, with the key derived from your passphrase. The encryption is applied to the document file itself: the protected file is encrypted at rest on your disk. We never receive the passphrase and cannot recover it. We name the algorithm deliberately: if you are choosing an encrypted editor, you should be able to verify the algorithm, not take “encrypted” on faith.
An encrypted file is never uploaded. Markd.ly will not add one to your cloud library, so a locked document stays on the disk you saved it to.
Included in the one purchase
The one-time $19.99 purchase unlocks Markd.ly on every platform, and document encryption is part of it on Mac, Windows and Linux.
Mac, Windows and Linux
All three desktop apps encrypt and open encrypted documents. On a Mac you can also choose to keep the passphrase in your Keychain.
Not on the phone apps
The iPhone, iPad and Android apps do not encrypt documents.
It encrypts the file, not your cloud
This is at-rest encryption of a document file on your machine, not end-to-end-encrypted sync. Once you unlock a document it is ordinary text in the editor: if you then add it to your cloud library or export it, the unlocked text is what is sent. If you need encrypted sync across devices, that is a different product category and Markd.ly is not it.
Unlocked means unlocked on your device
While an unlocked document is open, the copies Markd.ly keeps so your work survives a crash hold it unencrypted on your device.
Lose the passphrase, lose the document
Authenticated encryption with no recovery backdoor means exactly that. There is no “reset password” for an encrypted document — that is the point, and it is your responsibility.
It protects the file at rest, within its threat model
It is not a substitute for full-disk encryption, OS account security, or operational discipline. It is one strong, specific protection: this document, encrypted, on this disk.
Desktop only
Document encryption is on Mac, Windows and Linux, not on the phone apps.
People who keep individual sensitive documents — drafts under NDA, legal notes, personal records — and want that specific file encrypted, in a real editor. Anyone who wants to verify the algorithm (AES-256-GCM) rather than trust a marketing word.
If you need encrypted sync across devices, Markd.ly does not offer it and will not meet that need. Choose a tool built for encrypted sync, and do not let this page talk you out of it.
AES-256-GCM encrypted documents on Mac, Windows and Linux, in a native markdown editor. One purchase: $19.99 one-time.
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