Deskcrumbs Download for Mac · v0.11.1

Deskcrumbs Sticky notes that live on your Mac desktop, each one a plain Markdown file.

Free Download
for Mac macOS 14+ · 4.3 MB

Drag a sticky by its top bar onto the Trash. Changed your mind? Press ⌘Z, or Undo Delete in the menu bar panel.

  • Lives in the menu bar. Click its icon in the example for its panel.
  • These are the app’s real editor. Click a sticky and give it a shot.
  • Press ⌃⌥N for a new sticky at the mouse, or ⌥‑click the desktop. ⌃⌥S hides this desktop’s stickies.

Each sticky stays on the desktop it belongs to. Switch desktops, or swipe sideways on the example.

  • Lives in the menu bar. Click its icon in the example for its panel.
  • These are the app’s real editor. Click a sticky and give it a shot.
  • Press ⌃⌥N for a new sticky at the mouse, or ⌥‑click the desktop. ⌃⌥S hides this desktop’s stickies.

Every sticky is a plain file

The sticky and its .md file are the same note, its color and place in a short header on top. Type in either one below, or change color: yellow to pink, and watch the other follow.

sticky-20261021-091512.md— ~/Notes/stickies

In the app it’s a real file in ~/Notes/stickies. Change it from your editor, a script or an AI agent and the sticky on your desktop updates within a second, and one click on Teach My AI shows Claude Code, Codex, Cursor and other agents how. No database and no account, and nothing to export: they’re already files.

What Deskcrumbs does

Live Markdown
Headings, bold, italic, code, strikethrough, links (⌘-click), bullets, clickable checklists, quotes and dividers. The symbols show only on the line you’re editing.
Images
Paste or drop an image into a sticky and it shows right there. It’s saved as a file in your stickies folder, and the note stays plain Markdown: ![](images/photo.png). ⌘-click opens it.
Snooze
Put a sticky away for 3 hours, until tomorrow morning, for 2 days, until next week or until a date you pick, and it comes back with a notification. Or someday: it stays away until you bring it back. Or make it repeat, like a monthly invoice on the third Tuesday: check it off with ✓ and it comes back next time.
Six colors
New stickies copy the color and size of the nearest one. Yellow Pink Blue Green Purple Mocha
Snapping
Drag or resize and stickies snap to their neighbours and the screen edges with a 10 px gap. Hold ⌘ to place one freely.
Arrange
Press ⌃⌥A, or Arrange… in the menu bar panel, and try layouts the way ⌘Tab tries apps: Tidy, Compact, Grid, Side rail, Top row, By color, Frame, Cascade. The stickies glide into each one; Return keeps it, Esc puts them back, ⌘Z undoes it.
Search
Find any sticky on any desktop with ⌃⌥L. Enter jumps to it, switching desktops if needed.
Live stickies
Put a command in a sticky and it shows what the command prints, kept up to date: every few minutes, at set times, when a folder changes, when you unlock your Mac, switch desktops or open an app. Buttons and checkboxes in it can run commands too, like merging a PR. Set one up from the ⚡ button: pick a ready-made one, like today’s calendar with Join buttons, your reminders or the weather, or write your own.
Shortcuts app and Focus
Shortcuts actions make a sticky, add to one, check things off, find, show, snooze, recolor, arrange or delete stickies, from the Shortcuts app, Siri or Spotlight. In System Settings → Focus, a Deskcrumbs filter picks which stickies show: only the blue ones during Work, or none while you present.
Command line
A deskcrumbs command comes with the app: list, show, add, edit, check off, snooze, arrange and delete stickies from Terminal, with --json for scripts and AI agents.
Teach My AI
One click in Settings gives pi, Claude Code, Codex, Cursor and other agents a skill for your stickies: they can add one, check things off, snooze it, use the deskcrumbs command or make you a live sticky. The skill updates with the app.
Desktop extrasOptional, needs Accessibility
⌥‑click the desktop for a new sticky, drag a box to select several and move them together, and drop stickies on the Dock’s Trash to delete them. ⌘Z brings them back, and so does dragging one from the Trash onto the desktop.

Getting started

  1. Download

    Get the DMG from this page. It’s free.

  2. Drag to Applications

    Open the DMG and drag Deskcrumbs into the Applications folder.

  3. Open it

    It lives in the menu bar, not the Dock. Press ⌃⌥N for your first sticky.

Or with Homebrew: brew install --cask laureldaigneault-hehim/tap/deskcrumbs. Either way, Deskcrumbs updates itself.

Optional: the desktop extras. To ⌥‑click the desktop, box-select and drop stickies on the Trash, allow Deskcrumbs in Accessibility. macOS asks first: click Open System Settings, then switch Deskcrumbs on. It only looks at mouse clicks on the desktop and never reads what you type. Everything else works without it.

Shortcuts

⌃⌥Space
Open the menu bar panel (⌃⌥M if your Mac uses ⌃⌥Space to switch input sources)
⌃⌥N
New sticky at the mouse, from any app
⌃⌥S
Hide or show the stickies on this desktop
⌃⌥L
Search all stickies
⌃⌥A
Arrange this desktop’s stickies
⌥+ click the desktop
New sticky right there
⇧+ click a sticky’s bar
Add it to the selection, or remove it
⌘B ⌘I
Bold and italic, inside a sticky

Specifications

RequiresmacOS 14 Sonoma or later
Runs onApple silicon and Intel (universal)
Version0.11.1, 4.3 MB
PriceFree
SignedDeveloper ID, notarized by Apple
UpdatesChecks once a day. One click to install, or turn on automatic installs.
Your notes~/Notes/stickies/*.md
App StoreNot on the Mac App Store: it needs Accessibility and desktop APIs the App Store sandbox doesn’t allow.

Privacy

  • No account, no sign-in, no analytics in the app.
  • The only network request the app makes is a daily update check to this site, plus anything you put in a sticky yourself, like a web image or a live sticky’s command.
  • This site counts downloads and update checks anonymously: app version and country only. No IP addresses, no cookies.
  • Accessibility is optional and only used to see mouse clicks and files dropped on the desktop. It never reads what you type.

Frequently asked questions

Is Deskcrumbs free?

Yes. Deskcrumbs is free to download and use: no account, no ads, no trial. If it earns a spot on your desk, you can leave a tip at deskcrumbs.com/support.

What does Deskcrumbs do?

It puts sticky notes on your Mac desktop. Each sticky belongs to one desktop (Space) and slides with it when you switch desktops, formats Markdown as you type, and is saved as a plain .md file in ~/Notes/stickies.

How is Deskcrumbs different from Apple’s Stickies?

Deskcrumbs keeps each sticky on the desktop it belongs to, formats Markdown as you type, and saves every sticky as a plain Markdown file you can open, edit and script from anywhere. It lives in the menu bar and has global shortcuts. Apple’s Stickies keeps its notes in its own rich-text format.

Where are my notes stored?

In ~/Notes/stickies on your Mac, one Markdown file per sticky (for example sticky-20261021-091512.md). Edit a file in any editor and the sticky updates within a second. Nothing is stored online or in a database.

Can scripts or AI agents create stickies?

Yes. Write a new .md file into ~/Notes/stickies and it appears as a sticky on your current desktop; edit the file and the sticky updates; delete it and the sticky closes. A short header at the top of the file sets its color, desktop, position and snooze. Teach My AI, in Settings, shows Claude Code, Codex, Cursor and other AI agents how in one click. A sticky can also run a command and show what it prints, kept up to date: a live sticky. The deskcrumbs command and the Shortcuts app can create, edit, check off and snooze stickies too.

Which Macs does Deskcrumbs run on?

macOS 14 Sonoma or later, on Apple silicon and Intel Macs. It is a universal app.

Why does Deskcrumbs ask for Accessibility permission?

Only for the optional desktop extras: ⌥-click the desktop for a new sticky, drag a box to select stickies, and drop stickies on the Dock’s Trash. It only looks at mouse clicks and files dropped on the desktop, and never reads what you type. Everything else works without it.

Is Deskcrumbs on the Mac App Store?

No. It needs Accessibility and macOS desktop (Spaces) features that the App Store sandbox doesn’t allow. It is signed with a Developer ID, notarized by Apple, and checks deskcrumbs.com for updates once a day.

Does Deskcrumbs collect any data?

No account, no sign-in and no analytics in the app. Its only network request is a daily update check to deskcrumbs.com, plus anything you put in a sticky yourself, like a web image or a live sticky’s command.

What are the keyboard shortcuts?

⌃⌥Space opens the menu bar panel, ⌃⌥N creates a new sticky at the mouse, ⌃⌥S hides or shows the stickies on the current desktop, ⌃⌥L searches all stickies and ⌃⌥A arranges them. They work from any app, and you can change them in Settings.

Can I install Deskcrumbs with Homebrew?

Yes: brew install --cask laureldaigneault-hehim/tap/deskcrumbs. After that, Deskcrumbs updates itself, the same as the download from this page.

Does Deskcrumbs work with Shortcuts and Focus?

Yes. The Shortcuts app has Deskcrumbs actions to create, add to, check off, find, show, snooze, recolor, arrange and delete stickies, and Siri and Spotlight can run them too. In System Settings → Focus, add the Deskcrumbs filter to a Focus to show only some colors of stickies, or none, while it’s on.

Put your notes where the work is.

Free for macOS 14 and later, from this page or with Homebrew. Checks for updates on its own. If it earns a spot on your desk, you can leave a tip.

Free Download
for Mac macOS 14+ · v0.11.1