docs/help/contents/attachments-and-files.md
Open the insert menu in the editor and pick {{image}} or {{attachment}}. The file is encrypted on your device before it is uploaded, so nobody — including us — can read it. Attaching files requires a Notesnook account, and how large a file can be depends on your plan.
::: info You need an account to attach files
Trying to insert an attachment while logged out shows {{notLoggedIn}} with the message Login to upload attachments. Attachments are stored on Notesnook's servers in encrypted form, which is why an account is required. See why login is needed to upload attachments.
:::
+ button on the toolbar).{{attachment}} for any file, or {{image}} → {{uploadFromDisk}} for a picture.Shortcuts: Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + A for an attachment, Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + I for an image. You can also drag files straight into the editor.
Notesnook hashes each file first, so attaching the same file twice reuses the copy that is already uploaded instead of consuming your storage again.
| Free | Essential | Pro | Believer | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maximum file size | 10 MB | 100 MB | 1 GB | 5 GB |
| Storage per month | 50 MB | 1 GB | 10 GB | 25 GB |
Storage counts attachments only — images, files, audio and web clips. Your notes never count against it. If a file is over your plan's limit, the upload is refused with a message telling you the size you are allowed. Full details are on Plans & limits.
By default Notesnook compresses images before uploading. The {{imageCompression}} setting offers {{askEveryTime}}, {{enableRecommended}} and {{disable}} — and {{disable}}, which uploads at full quality, needs Pro or Believer.
Go to {{settings}} → {{behaviour}} → {{imageCompression}}.
The attachment manager lists every file in your account with its name, upload status, size and upload date.
Go to {{settings}} → {{profile}} → {{attachments}} and press {{open}}.
Both apps group attachments by type. On desktop and web the sidebar has All files, Images, Documents, Videos, Audios, {{uploads}} and {{orphaned}}, each with a count. Mobile shows All files, Images, Audios, Videos, Documents, {{orphaned}} and Errors.
{{uploads}} — files that are still waiting to be uploaded.{{orphaned}} — files that are no longer referenced by any note, usually left behind by a note you deleted. These are safe to delete once you are sure you don't want the file itself.The search box at the top filters the list by filename. On desktop and web you can also sort by clicking the {{name}}, {{size}} or {{dateUploaded}} column headers.
Open an attachment's menu — right click desktop and web, tap the item on mobile — for:
| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
{{previewAttachment}} | Opens images and PDFs without downloading them (desktop and web) |
{{linkedNotes}} | Lists the notes that use this file; picking one opens it |
{{fileCheck}} | Verifies the uploaded file is intact and decryptable |
{{rename}} | Changes the filename |
Download | Saves the file to your device |
Reupload | Replaces a broken upload — you must pick the same file, the hash has to match |
{{deletePermanently}} ({{delete}} on mobile) | Removes the file from your account and from the notes that use it |
Download, {{fileCheck}} and {{delete}} also work on a multi-selection from the toolbar at the top of the desktop and web list.
::: tip Fix a failed attachment
A file that shows an error usually needs {{fileCheck}} first. If the check reports a problem, Reupload with the original file repairs it.
:::
<!-- TODO: screenshot — the attachment manager with the type sidebar and the toolbar actions -->The download button at the bottom of the desktop and web sidebar is {{downloadAllAttachments}}; on mobile it is the download icon in the header. A progress ring appears while it runs, and pressing the button again cancels it. This is the quickest way to get a local copy of everything you have uploaded.
{{clearCache}} removes the local copies of files without touching what is on the server. The confirmation spells out what happens: downloaded images and files are cleared, pending uploads are cleared, and uploaded images and files are unaffected.
Use the {{clearCache}} button at the bottom of the attachment manager's sidebar.
::: warning Pending uploads are cleared too Anything that has not finished uploading is lost when you clear the cache. Let uploads finish first.
:::
PDFs open in a viewer inside Notesnook, so you can read one without saving it to your device first. The file is downloaded to the local cache, decrypted in memory and shown — it is never handed to another app unless you ask for that.
To open one, click or tap the PDF attachment where it sits in the note. On desktop and web there is a second route: open the file's menu in the attachment manager and choose {{previewAttachment}}. That entry appears only on images and PDFs, and the attachment manager on mobile has no preview action — go through the note instead.
The PDF opens in a side pane to the right of the editor, so you can read it and write at the same time. Drag the divider between the two to resize them.
The pane's toolbar has:
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
{{search}} | Searches the text of the PDF and highlights the matches |
{{goToPreviousPage}} | Back one page |
| Page number | Shows the current page and the total; type a number to jump |
{{goToNextPage}} | Forward one page |
{{zoomOut}} / {{zoomIn}} | Steps the zoom down or up; the current percentage sits between them |
Download | Saves the PDF to your device |
{{enterFullScreen}} | Hands the whole screen to the PDF |
{{close}} | Closes the pane and returns the space to the editor |
The table of contents and the note properties share this space, so opening the PDF preview closes whichever of those was open.
::: info Password-protected PDFs
A PDF with a password on it opens on a {{pdfLocked}} screen instead of the document. Enter the PDF's own password to read it. This is the password whoever made the file set on it — it has nothing to do with your Notesnook account password or your vault password, and Notesnook cannot recover it for you.
:::
Deleting an attachment removes it from your account and from every note that references it — attachments are not moved to Trash the way notes are.
Deleting a note does not delete the files it contained — they stay in your account as orphaned attachments, listed under {{orphaned}} in the attachment manager. Delete the ones you no longer want the file for.
Your plan's storage figure is a monthly allowance, not a measure of how much you are currently storing — that is why every plan is written as 50 MB/mo, 1 GB/mo and so on. Uploading a file spends part of that month's allowance, and deleting the file afterwards does not hand the allowance back. The allowance starts again at the beginning of the next month.
So deleting attachments is worth doing to keep your account tidy, but it is not the way to get more room this month. If you are hitting the ceiling regularly, a plan with a larger monthly allowance is the fix — see plans & limits.
<GetNotesnook action="pricing" title="Need more room for files?" text="The free plan gives you 50 MB a month and a 10 MB file size cap. Paid plans go up to 25 GB a month with 5 GB files — and every file stays end-to-end encrypted on all of them." />