Karakeep

Karakeep saves links, notes, and images, then automatically tags them with AI to help people find them later. Search includes full-text, keyword, hybrid, and semantic options, while OCR makes text in images and screenshots searchable. Saved articles open in a reader view with highlighting, and the mobile apps support offline reading. Users can create rules to tag or organize bookmarks, subscribe to RSS feeds, publish lists as feeds, and invite friends or teammates to shared lists as editors or viewers. For AI assistant access, Karakeep offers agentic skills, a first-party MCP server, a CLI, and an API with scoped permissions and markdown content. It is open source and can be self-hosted with Docker; self-hosting is free with unlimited bookmarks and storage. The cloud free plan includes 10 bookmarks and 20MB storage. Pro costs $4/mo and includes 50,000 bookmarks and 50GB storage. Cloud primary data is stored in Europe, and personal data is not sold, according to the privacy policy. Self-hosted data remains on the user's infrastructure.

Karakeep combines bookmark saving with several search methods, RSS features, and shared lists. The free cloud plan has defined bookmark and storage limits, while self-hosting is free with unlimited bookmarks and storage.

Karakeep suits people who want to save and search links, notes, images, and articles across mobile and web apps. Its free self-hosted option may suit users who want unlimited bookmarks and storage on their own infrastructure.

Karakeep is a bookmark archive for links, notes, images, and saved articles, with AI-assisted organization and unusually broad search. It suits researchers, heavy bookmarkers, and teams that want shared lists or self-hosted data control. The main choice is whether its powerful archive features justify the small free cloud allowance or the work of self-hosting.

Overview

Karakeep turns saved links into a searchable collection rather than a browser sidebar. It can archive web pages, detect duplicates, and apply AI tags to new items. That combination is useful for anyone building a long-lived reference library, although the cloud Free plan permits only 10 bookmarks and 20MB of storage.

Its open-source code can run with Docker on your own infrastructure. Self-hosting removes bookmark and storage caps and keeps data on your infrastructure, but it also makes deployment and maintenance your responsibility. Cloud data is stored primarily in Europe, personal data is not sold, and stated protections include encryption in transit, access controls, and regular security reviews.

For a wider category comparison, see Bookmark Managers.

Key features

Search and reading

Full-text, keyword, hybrid, and semantic search cover both exact queries and less precise recollection. OCR also indexes words inside images and screenshots, a meaningful advantage for visual references. Saved articles open in a distraction-free reader with highlighting, while the mobile apps support offline reading.

Organization, feeds, and sharing

Rules can tag or organize bookmarks automatically, reducing repetitive filing. RSS subscriptions bring feeds into the service, and lists can be published as RSS feeds for use elsewhere. Shared lists support editor and viewer roles, so a household or project team can contribute without giving everyone the same access.

Automation and integrations

Agentic skills, a first-party MCP server, a CLI, and an API with scoped permissions and markdown content make Karakeep workable in automated workflows. Community integrations for Raycast and Obsidian are listed, along with installable skills for AI assistants. These options are most relevant to technical users; casual savers may never need them.

Pricing

Free — free. The cloud tier includes mobile and web apps plus browser extensions, but is capped at 10 bookmarks and 20MB of storage. It is suitable for trying the workflow or maintaining a very small reading queue, not for an established archive.

Self-Hosted — free, free forever. You get unlimited bookmarks and storage, complete data control, and community support. This is the strongest value for people comfortable running Docker and handling their own infrastructure; it is not a hosted, hands-off service.

Pro — $4 a month. The plan is billed at $4 per month, or $40 per year (a 17% saving), and raises capacity to 50,000 bookmarks and 50GB of storage. It adds AI-powered tagging and full-text search alongside the mobile and web apps and browser extensions. Pro fits individuals with substantial collections who prefer managed hosting. Paid plans include a seven-day money-back guarantee, and cloud data remains exportable for 30 days after cancellation.

Karakeep for your team — custom pricing per seat. It includes Pro features plus custom deployment and domain, SSO, user management, and priority support. This is the appropriate tier for organizations needing administration and identity controls; the price must be negotiated.

Platforms

Karakeep offers Android and iOS apps, a web app, browser extension, macOS access, API access, and self-hosting. Mobile offline reading is particularly useful when travel or unreliable connectivity matters.

Who it's for

Choose Karakeep for a research archive, image-heavy reference collection, or shared project library where OCR, semantic search, automation, and RSS are valuable. Self-hosting is compelling for technically capable users who require infrastructure-level control. The cloud service is a better fit when convenience matters more than unlimited capacity.

It is a poor match for someone who only saves occasional links and wants a generous free hosted tier: 10 bookmarks and 20MB disappear quickly. Teams that need formal support or centralized identity should budget for the custom per-seat plan.

Pros and cons

• Pro: Four search modes plus OCR make mixed link, note, and image collections easier to retrieve.
• Pro: Reader mode, highlighting, and mobile offline access support actual reading rather than mere storage.
• Pro: Rules, RSS in and out, shared-list roles, and scoped AI/API access cover both personal and collaborative workflows.
• Pro: Self-hosting is free with unlimited bookmarks and storage, and self-hosted data is not collected or accessed by Karakeep.
• Con: The hosted Free plan's 10-bookmark and 20MB limits make it a trial tier for most serious users.
• Con: Self-hosting trades subscription cost for deployment, upkeep, and reliance on community support.

Alternatives

Delinqs is the better pick for a small collaborative group needing unlimited bookmarks and all features free for up to three users; its Team plan is $9.99 per seat per month.

Diigo suits users who want established annotation and highlighting features, with a free allowance of 1,000 bookmarks and notes, 200 highlights, and 50 screenshots or images, but no PDF annotation.

floccus is a free, open-source bookmark synchronizer for Android, iOS, browser extensions, and self-hosting.

LinkAce is worth considering for a self-hosted bookmark archive, with free open-source hosting or a $€4-per-month hosted plan.

Raindrop.io is a stronger fit when unlimited bookmarks, collections, highlights, and devices matter on a free plan, which also includes 100MB of file uploads per month.

Start.me focuses on start pages and widgets rather than an archival search system; its Free plan allows three pages with advertising.

Symbaloo is oriented toward visual, ad-supported start pages and Learning Paths.

Atavi is a straightforward free web bookmarking service with no stated cap on saved bookmarks.

Verdict

Karakeep is a strong recommendation for researchers, power bookmarkers, and technical teams that need deep retrieval, automation, and either collaborative lists or self-hosted control. Its decisive advantage is the breadth of search and archive tooling; look elsewhere if you want a generous, maintenance-free free cloud plan or a simpler bookmark list.