NanoPad

NanoPad is a native Markdown scratchpad for Mac. Press a shortcut from any app to jot down an idea, then get back to what you were doing. Quick Open finds notes, tasks, links, and tags from the keyboard. Checkboxes and saved links appear in their own views, where you can tick off a task or jump back to the note a link came from.

The free version includes five editable notes, iCloud sync across Mac, iPhone, and iPad, and export to Markdown, plain text, or PDF. Lifetime is a one-time purchase with unlimited editable notes and extra Mac tools. Pin a checklist beside your work in an always-on-top sticky window, dim the desktop with Focus Writing, or link a folder of Markdown files and edit them in place. You can try Lifetime free for seven days.