# Deskcrumbs > Free Markdown sticky notes for the Mac desktop. Each sticky lives on its own desktop (Space) and slides with it, formats Markdown as you type, and is a plain `.md` file in `~/Notes/stickies` that any editor, script or AI agent can read and write. Website: https://deskcrumbs.com (also in French: /fr/, Spanish: /es/) · Download: https://deskcrumbs.com/download · Current version: https://deskcrumbs.com/latest.json The app's interface is in English, French and Spanish and follows the Mac's language. ## What it is Deskcrumbs is a native macOS app that puts sticky notes on your desktop. It lives in the menu bar (no Dock icon and no main window). It is free, made by Laurel Daigneault, and distributed directly from deskcrumbs.com as a signed (Developer ID) and notarized DMG. It is closed source. Two ideas define it: 1. **Stickies belong to a desktop.** Each sticky is tied to one macOS desktop (Space) and slides with it when you swipe between desktops, so your work desktop holds work notes and your home desktop holds home notes. Full-screen apps show no stickies. 2. **Every sticky is a plain file.** Each sticky is one Markdown file in `~/Notes/stickies`, synced live in both directions. There is no database, no account and no export step. ## Features - **Live Markdown editor:** headings, bold, italic, inline code, strikethrough, links (⌘-click to open), bullets, clickable checklists (`- [ ]` / `- [x]`), quotes and dividers. Markdown symbols are shown only on the line being edited. - **Images:** paste or drop an image into a sticky and it shows inline. It's copied into the `images` folder in `~/Notes/stickies`, and the note holds plain Markdown: `![](images/photo.png)`. ⌘-click an image to open it. - **Per-desktop stickies:** stickies stay on their desktop; hide or show the stickies on the current desktop with ⌃⌥S. - **Snooze:** put a sticky away for 3 hours, until tomorrow morning, for 2 days, until next week or until a date and time you pick; it comes back with a notification. Or someday: it stays away until you bring it back from the menu bar panel. - **Six colors:** yellow, pink, blue, green, purple and mocha (dark). New stickies copy the color and size of the nearest sticky. - **Snapping:** dragging or resizing snaps to neighbouring stickies and screen edges with a 10 px gap. Hold ⌘ to place a sticky freely. - **Menu bar panel:** click the menu bar icon or press ⌃⌥Space. One page shows this desktop with a switch to hide or show its stickies, buttons for the stickies folder, a new sticky and search, Undo Delete right after a delete, its stickies in their colors with checklist progress and the snoozed ones, then Settings, updates, a tip link and Quit. About is in Settings. - **Arrange:** ⌃⌥A, or Arrange… in the menu bar panel, opens a ⌘Tab-style switcher: ←/→ tries each layout on the stickies themselves (Tidy: no overlaps, each moved as little as possible; Compact, Grid, Side rail, Top row, By color, Frame, Cascade), Return keeps it, Esc puts them back. ⌘Z undoes a kept one. It works on this desktop's stickies, or the selected ones. A sticky with `arrange: no` in its header stays where it is. - **Search:** ⌃⌥L, or start typing in the panel, searches all stickies on all desktops; Enter jumps to the sticky, switching desktops if needed. - **Live stickies:** put a command in a sticky's header (`run:`) and the sticky shows what it prints below your own text, kept up to date: every few minutes (`every: 10m`), at set times each day (`at: 9:00, 13:30`) or whenever a file or folder changes (`watch: ~/code/app`), or on events (`on: unlock, network, power, desktop, appearance`; `apps: Zoom` when an app opens or quits), plus at launch, after the Mac wakes and from the sticky's refresh button. Set one up from the ⚡ button in its bar, or pick a ready-made one (today's calendar with Join buttons, reminders, weather, pull requests…). Buttons and checkboxes in the output can run the sticky's own actions (merge a PR, check off a reminder), then refresh it. A command runs only after you allow it on the sticky, and asks again whenever it changes. - **Shortcuts:** actions for the Shortcuts app: New Sticky, Add to Sticky, Set Sticky Text, Check Off Item, Find Stickies, Show Sticky, Snooze Sticky, Change Sticky Color, Arrange Stickies and Delete Sticky. Siri and Spotlight can run them too. - **Focus filters:** in System Settings → Focus, add the Deskcrumbs filter to a Focus to choose which stickies show while it's on: only some colors (say, only the blue work stickies during Work), or none. - **Settings:** open at login, the notes folder, the color and size of new stickies, text size, snapping, live stickies, each desktop extra, rebindable keyboard shortcuts, and update preferences. - **Desktop extras (optional, need the Accessibility permission):** ⌥-click the desktop for a new sticky; drag a box on the desktop to select several stickies and move them together; drag stickies onto the Dock's Trash to delete them. A deleted sticky dragged from the Trash back onto the desktop becomes a sticky again right where it was dropped (other Markdown files on the desktop are left alone). - **Delete and undo:** deleted stickies go to the macOS Trash. ⌘Z (in Deskcrumbs, or on the desktop within 10 minutes) or Undo Delete in the menu bar panel brings them back. - **Updates:** checks deskcrumbs.com once a day; one click to install, or turn on automatic installs. ## Keyboard shortcuts | Shortcut | Action | |---|---| | ⌃⌥Space | Open the menu bar panel (⌃⌥M if the Mac already uses ⌃⌥Space to switch input sources) | | ⌃⌥N | New sticky at the mouse (works from any app) | | ⌃⌥S | Hide or show the stickies on the current desktop | | ⌃⌥L | Search all stickies | | ⌃⌥A | Arrange this desktop's stickies (the last layout picked) | | (Settings → Shortcuts) | Every global shortcut can be changed | | ⌥-click the desktop | New sticky right there (needs Accessibility) | | ⇧-click a sticky's bar | Add it to the selection, or remove it | | ⌘B / ⌘I / ⌘Z / ⌘⇧Z | Bold / italic / undo / redo, inside a sticky | ## Install 1. Download the DMG from https://deskcrumbs.com/download. 2. Open it and drag Deskcrumbs into the Applications folder. 3. Open Deskcrumbs. It appears in the menu bar. Press ⌃⌥N for a first sticky. Or with Homebrew: `brew install --cask laureldaigneault-hehim/tap/deskcrumbs`. Either way, Deskcrumbs updates itself afterwards. Optional: to use the desktop extras, allow Deskcrumbs in System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility. macOS asks first; click "Open System Settings", then switch Deskcrumbs on. Deskcrumbs only looks at mouse clicks and files dropped on the desktop and never reads what you type. Everything else works without the permission. ## Files, scripts and AI agents - Notes live in `~/Notes/stickies`, one Markdown file per sticky, e.g. `~/Notes/stickies/sticky-20261021-091512.md`. - Editing a file in any editor, script or AI agent updates the sticky on the desktop within about a second, and edits made in the sticky are written back to the file. - Creating a new `.md` file in that folder makes a new sticky appear (by default yellow, on the current desktop). Deleting a file closes its sticky. - Each file starts with a short header holding the sticky itself, so a note file stands on its own. Every line is optional; Deskcrumbs fills in what's missing and keeps it up to date when the sticky is moved, resized, recolored or snoozed: ```markdown --- color: blue # yellow, pink, blue, green, purple or mocha desktop: 2 # the desktop (Space) number, from 1, on the main display position: 1404, 97 # top-left corner, in points from the display's top-left size: 260 x 220 # width x height, at least 170 x 110 snooze: 2026-10-23 09:00 # put away until then (local time), then it comes back; or: someday --- # Groceries - [ ] Oat milk - [ ] Lemons ``` - Editing the header recolors, moves or snoozes the sticky. Keys Deskcrumbs doesn't know are kept. - Images are files in `~/Notes/stickies/images`, written in the note as `![](images/photo.png)` (the path from the stickies folder); web images (`https://…`) show too. Pasting or dropping an image into a sticky copies it there. Deleting a sticky leaves its images, so a sticky brought back from the Trash still has them. - Example, from a terminal or an agent: ```sh printf -- '---\ncolor: green\n---\n# Groceries\n- [ ] Oat milk\n- [ ] Lemons\n' > ~/Notes/stickies/groceries.md ``` - A live sticky has a `run` command in its header: one line, or a script on the indented lines below `run: |` (a `#!/usr/bin/env python3` first line works too). It runs with zsh as a login shell (your PATH), from your home folder, for at most `timeout` (default 30 seconds, at most 10 minutes). What it prints (Markdown works) is written into the note below a `` line that Deskcrumbs manages, so search and agents see it too. A run that exits with a code other than 0 keeps the last output and shows the error on the sticky. A command that reads your calendar, reminders, contacts, photos or location, or controls another app with `osascript`, makes macOS ask you once, in Deskcrumbs' name. Nothing runs until you click Run on the sticky; that approval stays in the app, never in the file, so a note written by a script, an agent or a sync can't run anything on its own: ```markdown --- color: blue every: 10m run: | gh pr list --author @me --json title -q '.[].title' | sed 's/^/- /' --- # My PRs ``` - A live sticky can have buttons: `action-` keys in its header are commands, and `[Merge](action:merge/182)` in the output shows a Merge button that runs `action-merge` with `ARG=182`, then refreshes the sticky. On a checklist line, `- [ ] Buy milk [](action:done/42)` makes the checkbox run it. Allowing the sticky allows its actions; changing one asks again. - The ⚡ button in a sticky's bar sets it up without editing the file, in two tabs: Ready-made (a list) and Custom (a command or a script file, and its triggers, added from a menu). Ready-made ones, searchable, for anyone and with nothing to install: today's calendar with Join buttons, tomorrow, this week, reminders you can tick off, weather, sunrise and sunset, what's playing in Music or Spotify, unread mail, battery, free space, time zones and a countdown. Under "And 7 more" (or by searching): your GitHub pull requests and issues, a project's git status, Homebrew updates, Docker containers, the busiest apps and your IP addresses. Calendar and reminders are built into Deskcrumbs (`"$DESKCRUMBS" calendar`, `"$DESKCRUMBS" reminders`), so they need nothing else installed. - **The `deskcrumbs` command:** Deskcrumbs puts a `deskcrumbs` command on your PATH (or Settings → General → Command Line installs it): `deskcrumbs list --json`, `show `, `new "text" --color pink --desktop 2`, `edit --append "- [ ] Milk"`, `check milk`, `set color=blue`, `snooze "tomorrow 9:00"` (or `someday`), `delete `, and with the app running `arrange grid`, `open `, `refresh `, `where`. A sticky is its file name or a bit of its title. It can set a live sticky's command but never approve it. - **Teach My AI** (Settings → General, or the welcome window): one click writes a Deskcrumbs skill (`SKILL.md`) to `~/.agents/skills`, the shared skills folder read by pi, Codex, Gemini CLI, Cursor, OpenCode, GitHub Copilot, Amp and Windsurf, and to `~/.claude/skills` (Claude Code) and `~/.kiro/skills` (Kiro) when those are installed. The skill explains this format, live stickies and the user's stickies folder, and Deskcrumbs keeps it up to date with each version. For other AI apps it copies the same instructions as a prompt. ## Requirements and specifications | | | |---|---| | Requires | macOS 14 Sonoma or later | | Runs on | Apple silicon and Intel (universal) | | Price | Free (optional tips: https://deskcrumbs.com/support) | | Signed | Developer ID, notarized by Apple | | Updates | Daily check, one-click install or automatic installs (Sparkle) | | Notes | `~/Notes/stickies/*.md` | | App Store | Not available there: it needs Accessibility and desktop (Spaces) features the App Store sandbox doesn't allow | ## Privacy - No account, no sign-in, no analytics in the app. - The app's only network request is a daily update check to deskcrumbs.com. (Web images you put in a sticky load from their sites, and commands you add to live stickies run as you and can do whatever they do.) - The website 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 https://deskcrumbs.com/support. ### 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. 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 (Settings → General) installs a skill that shows pi, Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI, Cursor, OpenCode, GitHub Copilot and other agents how. The `deskcrumbs` command and the Shortcuts app can create, edit, check off and snooze stickies too. A sticky can also run a command and show what it prints, kept up to date (a live sticky); each command runs only once you allow it. ### Which Macs does Deskcrumbs run on? macOS 14 Sonoma or later, on Apple silicon and Intel Macs. ### Why does Deskcrumbs ask for Accessibility permission? Only for the optional desktop extras (⌥-click for a new sticky, box-select, drop on the Dock's Trash). It only looks at mouse clicks and files dropped on the desktop and never reads what you type. ### Is Deskcrumbs on the Mac App Store? No. It is signed with a Developer ID, notarized by Apple and downloaded from deskcrumbs.com. ### 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, plus anything you put in a sticky yourself, like a web image or a live sticky's command. ### 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 deskcrumbs.com. ### 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. ### Can a sticky show images? Yes. Paste or drop an image into a sticky: it's saved as a file in `~/Notes/stickies/images` and the note holds a Markdown image line, `![](images/photo.png)`. ## Links - Website: https://deskcrumbs.com/ - Download (newest DMG): https://deskcrumbs.com/download - Latest version (JSON): https://deskcrumbs.com/latest.json - Release notes feed: https://deskcrumbs.com/appcast.xml - Short summary for language models: https://deskcrumbs.com/llms.txt - Leave a tip: https://deskcrumbs.com/support