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The Bottom Line

Price
From $10/mo, billed monthly (free plan available). Compare plans

Key facts

  • AI-native Markdown editor for macOS with local-first file storage
  • Gemini AI agent searches your vault and suggests edits as diffs
  • Lightweight Tauri app (~15MB) compatible with git and Obsidian

Pros

  • No vendor lock-in, files are plain .md on your disk
  • AI agent can search, read, and create documents in your vault
  • Extremely lightweight (~15MB bundle, ~80MB memory)
  • Offline speech-to-text with no cloud dependency

Cons

  • macOS only, no Windows or Linux version
  • AI features depend on Gemini API key
  • Young project with limited community and plugins
  • No mobile companion app

What is Kuku?

Kuku is an AI-native Markdown editor for macOS that combines local-first file storage with built-in AI capabilities. Files stay as .md on disk, compatible with vim, git, and Obsidian. Features include bidirectional WikiLinks, a force-directed graph view, a Gemini-powered AI agent that can search your vault and create documents, cursor-style diff editing, local speech-to-text via Whisper.cpp, and full-text search with BM25 ranking. Lightweight at ~15MB.

Available on: macOS, Windows, Linux

Key Features

  • Local-first .md files compatible with git and Obsidian
  • Bidirectional WikiLinks with autocomplete and backlinks
  • Force-directed graph visualization of connections
  • Gemini-powered AI agent with tool calling
  • Cursor-style AI editing shown as accept/reject diffs
  • Local speech-to-text via Whisper.cpp (offline)
  • Full-text search with SQLite FTS5 and BM25 ranking
  • Korean tokenization support

Pricing Plans

Pricing checked Nov 5, 2026. Source: kuku.mom/pricing, read Nov 5, 2026

Kuku plans and prices, checked November 2026
Plan Price Details
Free

Free

  • Native macOS Markdown editor
  • Plain files, folders, wikilinks, backlinks, and graph view
  • Local indexing and full-text search
+1 more
  • Bring your own Gemini key for AI chat and edits
Pro

$10 / mo

  • Everything in Free
  • Managed kuku.mom account and dashboard
  • Remote AI requests with usage tracking
+2 more
  • Encrypted sync workspaces, devices, and key envelopes
  • Managed storage quotas and conflict recovery
Team

$15 / seat/month

  • Includes major model providers
  • Everything in Pro
  • Team workspaces for shared vault context
+3 more
  • Shared second brain memory across members
  • AI answers grounded in team docs, decisions, and backlinks
  • Member seats, permissions, and managed onboarding
Enterprise

Contact us

  • Includes major model providers
  • Everything in Team
  • Custom contracts, volume licensing, and invoicing
+2 more
  • Priority onboarding and dedicated support channel
  • Security reviews, deployment options, and custom SLAs

Is Kuku worth the price?

Great value

Kuku's pricing is extremely generous, as it offers a fully-featured AI-native Markdown editor for free.

The only 'cost' is the separate billing for Google's Gemini API key, which is standard for AI integrations. This model is best for users who want advanced AI capabilities in their Markdown editor without a subscription fee.

Full Kuku pricing: every plan, hidden costs and alternatives

How Kuku's pricing compares

At $10/mo, billed monthly, Kuku is the most premium of its 3 comparable direct competitors.

Kuku
$10

Not ranked, different unit or currency: Notion $10/member/mo, billed yearly; Ulysses $5.99/mo flat, whole organisation, billed monthly.

Entry paid plan, monthly price, billed monthly. Pricing checked Nov 5, 2026.

Email me when Kuku changes its price

One email per change, found on the vendor's own pricing page. Unsubscribe any time.

Recent pricing updates

Changes we detected on the Kuku pricing page.

  • Prices first read on the vendor page: Pro $10 a month; Team $15 per seat a month.

Kuku by the numbers

Toolradar data: Kuku's entry paid plan ($10/mo, billed monthly) ranks #15 of 30 (joint) for price among the Writing Apps tools with a verified entry price and no stated unit, where the median is $10/mo. As of Nov 2026.

Kuku compared with 97 Writing Apps tools on Toolradar, as of Nov 2026
Metric Kuku Peer median Position (1 is best)
Entry paid plan $10/mo, billed monthly $10/mo #15 of 30 (joint) tools with no stated price unit, verified price
Free plan Yes 67% have one n/a
Compare-page visits, last 30 days 21 visits 35 #27 of 34 (joint) tools with 20+ compare-page visits

Compare-page visits, last 30 days: #20 on 2026-10-19 to #27 on 2026-11-05 (rank among 34 tools, 1 is best).

Each position is counted among the tools that have data for that row, as noted under it. A lower entry price ranks higher; prices are read on vendor pages and compared only with tools priced on the same basis. All Writing Apps data · How we compute this. Advertising and placement fees are not inputs to any position. Visit counts include visits from every source.

Cite this: Toolradar, “Kuku by the numbers”, Nov 2026.

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Kuku FAQ

How does Kuku facilitate note-taking and knowledge management?

Kuku supports note-taking through local-first Markdown files, which remain compatible with tools like Obsidian and git. It includes features such as bidirectional WikiLinks and a force-directed graph view to help users organize and visualize connections between their notes.

Which teams would benefit most from using Kuku?

Teams that prioritize local file storage, Markdown compatibility, and integrated AI assistance for document creation and search would find Kuku beneficial. Its lightweight nature and offline speech-to-text capabilities also suit users who need efficient, self-contained tools.

How does Kuku compare to Obsidian for Markdown editing?

Kuku, like Obsidian, uses local-first Markdown files, ensuring no vendor lock-in and compatibility with other tools. However, Kuku differentiates itself with a built-in Gemini-powered AI agent for vault search and document creation, and local speech-to-text via Whisper.cpp.

What kind of limitations should users be aware of before adopting Kuku?

Kuku is currently exclusive to macOS, lacking versions for Windows or Linux. Its AI features require a Gemini API key, and as a newer project, it has a more limited community and plugin ecosystem compared to established alternatives.

How is Kuku priced?

Kuku is free to use and does not require any paid plans to access its features. This includes its AI capabilities and local-first Markdown editing.

Can Kuku's AI agent interact with existing documents in a user's vault?

Yes, Kuku's Gemini-powered AI agent is designed to search your existing vault, read its contents, and create new documents based on that information. This allows for intelligent interaction with your local knowledge base.

Does Kuku offer any offline capabilities for its advanced features?

Kuku provides local speech-to-text functionality via Whisper.cpp, which operates without requiring a cloud connection. This allows users to transcribe audio to text even when offline.

How does Kuku pricing compare with other Writing Apps tools?

Kuku's entry paid plan ($10/mo, billed monthly) ranks #15 of 30 (joint) for price among the Writing Apps tools with a verified entry price and no stated unit, where the median is $10/mo. Prices are read on each vendor's own pricing page and compared only with tools priced on the same basis. Source: Toolradar, Nov 2026.

Source: kuku.mom

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