Marginalia
EPUB reader · iPhone & iPad
You read it.
Now keep it.
Marginalia is an e-book reader for people who underline. Highlight a passage, write or draw a note in the margin, tag what kind of thought it was — then export the whole book's notes as Markdown into Obsidian, Notion, or wherever you keep your thinking.
Your books and notes stay on your device as plain files. No account, nothing to sign up for.
Marginalia in one paragraph
Marginalia is an iOS app that opens EPUB files from your device, lets you highlight text in five colours, attach a typed or handwritten note to any highlight, tag it with one of nine reading tags, and export every note for a book as Markdown, Word or PDF. Notes are kept as plain Markdown files on the device — there is no account and no sync server. The interface is available in English and Turkish. The reader and Markdown export are free; Premium adds handwritten notes, PDF and Word export, and the full tag set.
- Category
- EPUB reader & annotation app
- Platform
- iPhone & iPad, iOS 15.5+
- Opens
- EPUB files from your device
- Notes
- Typed and handwritten, tagged, searchable
- Exports
- Markdown (free), Word, PDF
- Storage
- On-device Markdown files, no account
- Languages
- English, Turkish
- Contact
- marginalia.mobile@gmail.com
Built around the act of marking a page
A reader that gets out of the way
Full-screen pages, chrome hidden until you tap the middle. Set font size, line height, paragraph spacing, margins, text and background colour, and the page-turn animation. Read paginated like a book, or scroll.
Five colours, one gesture
Select a passage and the popup follows your thumb: copy, highlight, note, translate, share — and a colour to mark it with.
Type it, or write it by hand
Keyboard notes for the quick thought. Or switch to the drawing canvas — pen, eraser, undo, clear — and write in your own hand, the way you would in the margin. Handwriting is saved with the note. Premium.
Nine tags, three questions
What do I think of this? What kind of claim is it? What should I do about it? Tag a note and filter your whole book by it later.
Straight into Obsidian or Notion
Each book's notes are one Markdown file: page link, quoted passage, your comment, your tags. Export it as .md free of charge, or as Word or PDF with Premium. Nothing to reformat, nothing to copy out by hand.
Search, sort, and find it again
The notes screen holds every mark you made in a book. Search the text, sort by page or by date, filter by tag, and tap a note to land back on the page it came from.
What you walk away with
One file per book. Plain Markdown.
This is what an export actually looks like: the page you were on, the passage you marked, the note you wrote, and the tags you gave it. Nothing proprietary, nothing to unpack.
Drop it in an Obsidian vault, paste it into Notion, keep it in a folder for ten years. It is your reading, in a format that will still open.
- [Page 42](pg:41) A book you have written in is a conversation you can return to. This is the whole argument for keeping notes inside the book, not beside it. [tags: agree, key_idea] - [Page 57](pg:56) Marking is reading twice: once with the eye, once with the hand.  [tags: question] - [Page 91](pg:90) The margin is where the page meets the person holding it. Use this in the seminar on Thursday. [tags: discuss, apply]
How it compares
Most reading apps are built for finishing books. Most note apps are built for everything except books. Marginalia sits in between, and keeps the output in a file you own.
| Marginalia | Typical e-reader app | General note app | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Opens your own EPUB files | Yes | Varies by store | No |
| Highlight and margin note in one gesture | Yes | Usually highlight-first | Not in the book |
| Handwritten note attached to a passage | Yes (Premium) | Rare | Separate document |
| Tags designed for reading | 9 fixed tags | Colours only | Free-form tags |
| Export all notes for a book as Markdown | One tap, free | Plain text at best | Yes, but you typed it |
| Notes stored as plain files on your device | Markdown files | App database | Varies |
| Account required | None | Usually | Usually |
Nothing about your reading leaves your phone
-
No account, no sign-up
You install the app and start reading. There is no profile, no email verification, no login.
-
Books and notes are local files
Your EPUBs, covers and notes live in the app's own folder on the device. Notes are readable Markdown, not a locked database.
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Deleting means deleting
Removing a book removes its file, its cover, its notes and its reading position in one step.
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Purchases go through Apple
Premium is handled by the App Store, so payment details never touch the app. Restore purchases any time from Settings.
Questions people actually ask
What is Marginalia?
An iOS EPUB reader built for active reading. You open your own EPUB files, highlight in five colours, attach a typed or handwritten note to any highlight, tag it, and export every note for a book as Markdown, Word or PDF.
Can I export my notes to Obsidian or Notion?
Yes. Each book's notes are one Markdown file, exported with a tap. Every entry carries its page link, the quoted passage, your comment and its tags, so it lands in Obsidian, Notion, Logseq or any Markdown editor without cleanup. Markdown export is free; Word and PDF are Premium.
Does it help me remember what I read?
That is the point of it. Every highlight, comment, drawing and tag from a book collects in one list you can search, sort by page or date, and filter by tag — then keep as a file long after you have finished the book.
Which formats does it open?
EPUB files stored on your device. PDF reading is in development and not yet enabled.
Where are my notes kept?
On your device, as plain Markdown files in the app's own folder. No account, no sync server. Deleting a book deletes its notes with it.
Is it free?
The reader, highlights, typed notes and Markdown export are free. Premium adds handwritten notes, PDF and Word export, and the Content and Action tag groups.
Can I write notes by hand?
Yes. Choose "By drawing" when you save a note and write with your finger or a stylus — pen, eraser, undo and clear. The drawing is stored with the note. Premium feature.
Is there an Android version?
Not yet. Marginalia is on the App Store for iPhone and iPad. Write to us if you want to be told when Android arrives.
Which languages does it speak?
English and Turkish, switched in Settings at any time.
Does it work offline?
Yes — your books and notes are local. The reader fetches one small helper file the first time it opens a book, so keep a connection for that first launch.
Your notes belong to you.
Read the book, mark it up, take the file with you. Marginalia is free to start and lives entirely on your phone.