Local-first Software

Local-first means my device holds the truth; sync is optional icing - backup should behave the same way.

Key Concept

• Truth lives on the device first; cloud sync is backup, not the vault.
• Level 1: Your phone or computer holds the real copy first - like keeping your diary in your room and photocopying it for backup, not storing the only copy at school.
• Level 2: Local-first means your device owns the master file - online sync copies changes, it does not replace your copy.
• Level 3: Local-first software keeps truth on the device and treats cloud sync as redundancy - if the service vanishes, your notes survive.
• Level 4: Pick tools that work offline with full features - sync is insurance, not the vault you would crawl to after an outage.
• Level 5: Building a Personal API and Digital Minimalism both assume you can read and write without begging a server - cloud-only stacks fail when the tenant changes the rules.
• Choose what is public, what stays private, and what gets encrypted before it leaves the room.
• Sync should merge edits without picking last-write-wins by clock alone.

Examples

• If the phone dies mid-grocery run, the list on the fridge still works.
• Grandma's recipe cards live in the kitchen drawer - not an app that might vanish.

Note Relationships