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A free alternative to Typora

Typora made a simple idea popular: write Markdown and see it styled in the same place, with the symbols out of the way. AmberText works the same way — and it is free and open source.

At a glance

Typora prices and platforms as listed on typora.io in October 2026.

What feels the same

• One view, no preview pane. Headings, bold, lists and tables look finished as you type; move your cursor into them and the Markdown comes back.
• Plain files. There is no library or database: open a folder and your notes are just Markdown files you can take anywhere.
• Rich content from plain text. Tables, code with highlighting, LaTeX math and Mermaid diagrams render right in the document.
• Clean paste. Paste from a web page or Google Docs and it arrives as tidy Markdown.
• Export to HTML or PDF.

What else you get in AmberText

Free and open source

No licence key and no trial. The code is public under the GPL-3.0, so anyone can read it, build it and improve it.

Private writing AI on your own computer

Select a sentence and ask AmberText to improve it, fix the grammar, shorten it, change the tone or translate it. It runs a small open model locally, so nothing you write leaves your computer — or connect Ollama or LM Studio, or switch AI off.

Write, Split and Read

Stay in the styled editor, put the finished page beside it, or read without distractions. One shortcut switches between them.

A slash menu and a command palette

Type / to insert a table, diagram, callout or code block, and press ⌘K or Ctrl K for every command.

GitHub-style callouts and front matter

> [!TIP] blocks show as coloured boxes, and properties at the top of a file show as a tidy card.

Moving your notes over

There is nothing to import. Typora notes are Markdown files, so open the same folder in AmberText and start writing. Both apps save plain .md, so you can keep using them side by side. New to the syntax? Keep the Markdown cheat sheet open.

When Typora is the better choice

If you need Linux, or an app you can download and use today, Typora is a mature choice and worth its price. If you want a free, open-source editor with private AI on Mac or Windows, AmberText is made for you.