Notion for desktop

In this Article

You can use Notion on your Mac or PC as a downloadable desktop application. Here's what you need to know 🖥️

Why use the desktop app?

Notion's desktop app is a clean, distraction-free interface without all the temptation of tabs.

You'll receive push notifications when something important happens inside Notion, like when someone mentions you, someone assigns you a task, or you set a reminder for yourself.

Download the app

Mac desktop app

To get the Mac desktop app, go to notion.so/desktop and click Download for Mac.
You'll see two options: Intel processors and Apple silicon. To determine which processor type your device is, click the Apple icon in your top bar. In the corresponding menu, you'll see the type listed next to Processor.
Open your Finder and go to Downloads.
Open the .dmg file and drag Notion into your Applications folder.
Open the Notion app and log in using your email.

Windows desktop app

To get the Windows desktop app, go to notion.so/desktop and click Download for Windows.
Open the .exe file and follow the instructions to install.
Open the Notion app and log in using your email.

System requirements

See our system requirements for desktop here →

Update the desktop app

Notion updates automatically! We push updates on a regular basis with bug fixes and performance improvements.

To check for updates:

(Mac) Click Notion in the menu bar and click Check for Updates
(Windows) Click File in the menu bar and click Check for Updates

If there are new features that you can't see yet, try refreshing with cmd/ctrl + R.

Very rarely, you may need to re-install Notion to see an update. We'll let you know when that's the case and tell you exactly what to do.

On desktop, you can use search and Q&A even when you’re outside of the Notion app. Trigger Command Search with a customizable keyboard shortcut, your menu bar on Mac, or your task bar on Windows so you can search or ask Q&A without switching between windows or bringing the Notion desktop app to the foreground. To make it easier to access Notion this way, a few things will happen by default:

Command Search will be turned on. To turn this off, go to Settings & members → My settings → toggle off Enable Command Search. You can also turn off Show Notion in Menu Bar or customize your Command Search shortcut.
Notion will be set to open at login. To turn this off:
- On Mac: Right-click on the Notion icon in the dock → select Options → Open at Login to remove the check mark beside it.
- On Windows: Right-click on the Notion icon in the task bar → select Launch Preferences → Open Notion at Login to remove the check mark beside it.

FAQs

Does Notion have a Linux app?

We don’t have a Linux app at the moment and don't have any immediate plans for it, unfortunately 🐧

For the time being, hopefully you can access Notion with your Chrome, Firefox, or Safari browser!

How do I update to the latest version?

Notion updates automatically! If you click the ? at the bottom right of Notion, it will show you the last time it updated.

If Notion hasn't updated for a few days, you can usually force an update by refreshing with the keyboard shortcut cmd/ctrl + r.

How do I automatically open Notion links in the desktop app?

Click on Settings & members in your sidebar.
Navigate to My notifications & settings.
Under the My settings section, you'll find a toggle to Open links in desktop app.