Migrate from Google Keep with a conversion-first workflow.

Important: This is not a one-click move. You export with Google Takeout, turn the files into Markdown (and media) yourself, then import in the Capacities desktop app. Raw Takeout files (HTML or JSON) do not import directly into Bulk Import.

For general import docs, see:

• Import content to Capacities
• Bulk Import Reference

Quick migration flow

1. Decide how Keep labels should map to Capacities object types or tags.
2. Export from Google Takeout and unzip the archive.
3. Convert notes to Markdown + media (or copy a small set by hand).
4. Review mapping in Bulk Import, then import on desktop.
5. Check results, then continue in batches if needed.

Warnings

• Google Keep does not offer a native bulk export to migration-ready Markdown
• Bulk Import runs in the Capacities desktop app, not only in the browser
• Do not continue if mapping looks wrong

Understand the paradigm shift

Keep and Capacities are closer than many note apps. Both are flat: there are no folders you drop notes into. You find things with labels (in Keep) or tags and types (in Capacities), not by digging through a tree.

The jump is that Capacities asks you to say what a note is. A Keep note is just a note with labels. In Capacities, the same content can be a Book, a Person, a Project, and so on, with extra details (dates, status, and similar) on the object, plus links between notes.

Your migration will be cleaner if you first decide which notes should become typed objects (for example Person, Project) and which should stay as Pages with tags.

If you want a deeper explanation of this shift, read Understanding the paradigm shift.

How Google Keep organizes your content

Keep is intentionally flat. There are no folders, notebooks, or nested pages.

Every item is a note. A note is usually one of two shapes:

Notes sit in one continuous feed. You organize them with labels, colors, and pins, not with folders:

A Google Takeout download is a .zip file. Inside, each note usually appears as both an HTML file (easy to open in a browser) and a matching data file. Attachments such as images and voice recordings sit beside those files. The export can include titles, body text, checklist items, labels, colors, pin and archive state, and collaborators.

Keep sticks to labels and colors for organization. It does not have typed objects, extra details on each note type, or automatic backlinks between notes.

Translate to Capacities

Most Keep notes are quick captures. In Capacities, the default destination is often Page, with labels becoming tags.

The Capacities editor works differently

Keep notes are short cards: title, body, maybe a checklist or image. That shape is close to a single Capacities object.

Capacities still uses a block-based editor with linear flow, not a free-form canvas. Content is arranged in blocks from top to bottom, with fewer layout options than tools built for visual arrangement on a page.

If you have long Keep notes that mix unrelated captures, split them into separate objects during conversion rather than one long note. In Capacities, related notes connect through links and backlinks, not by continually appending to the same card.

If you use Keep because it stays minimal (quick cards, almost no setup), Capacities may not be what you need. Capacities is built for structured, linked knowledge work. That is a different bet than a lightweight capture tray.

Use this table as a starting point:

Decide label by label

Labels are the main migration decision in Keep.

Topic labels → Capacities tags:

• Shopping, Home, Travel → tag imported notes (any object type)

Noun labels → object types:

• People, Books, Projects, Ideas → create that object type and import matching notes into it

Workflow labels → tags or collections:

• Inbox, Someday, Waiting → tags, or a collection you review after import

One note can have multiple labels. In Capacities, that usually means multiple tags on one object, not multiple types. Pick one object type per note.

Example mappings

Text note

• Keep: title Birthday gift for Sam, label Gift ideas, body text
• Capacities: Page titled Birthday gift for Sam, tag #Gift ideas

Checklist note

• Keep: title Weekly groceries, list items with checked state
• Capacities: Page with todo blocks, or Task objects if you later split actionable items out

Saved link

• Keep: annotation with URL and page title, label Read later
• Capacities: Weblink object, or Page with the URL in the body, tag #Read later

What does not map cleanly

These Keep features usually need manual cleanup or recreation in Capacities:

• Reminders (often not present in Takeout exports)
• Collaborator permissions
• Pin and archive as automatic sort behavior (recreate with tags, collections, or queries)
• Label-only structure with no nouns (works fine as tagged Page objects)

Map structure before export

Create key object types first (People, Projects, Meetings, and so on), then add core properties.

Look at your Keep labels and group notes into clear noun-based buckets where you can (for example People, Projects, Meetings).

Then create matching object types in Capacities before import.

Keep labels can map well to Capacities tags when a note does not need its own object type. For mixed or non-noun labels (Inbox, scratch notes, planning), either:

1. Restructure notes into noun-based groups before conversion, or
2. Import as Pages (good for free-form notes, but without properties).

Export from Google Keep

Google Keep does not provide a direct export inside the Keep app. Use Google Takeout instead.

1. Sign in with the Google account that holds your Keep notes.
2. Click Deselect all, then select Keep only.
3. Click Next step, choose how you want to receive the archive (for example a download link by email), then click Create export.
4. When Google finishes, download the .zip file and unzip it.

Your download includes note text, list items, attachments (images, drawings, voice recordings), labels, pinned and archived state, and collaborators where applicable.

The export contains HTML and JSON files, not Markdown. You need a conversion step before bulk import.

Convert to Markdown + media

Capacities Bulk Import expects Markdown files (and media next to them). Takeout does not give you that format, so you need a conversion step.

If you only have a few notes: Open each note in Keep, copy the text, and paste it into a new Capacities object. Or save each note as its own .md file by hand, then use Bulk Import. This is slow for large libraries, but it avoids converters.

If you have many notes: Use a Keep-to-Markdown converter that reads your Takeout folder and writes one .md file per note, with images kept nearby. Prefer a tool you trust, and run a small test batch first. Capacities does not provide or endorse a specific Keep converter.

Before importing:

• Put files for one object type in one folder when you can (for example all shopping lists together)
• Keep media files next to the notes that use them
• Use clear, unique filenames
• Apply your label-to-tag or label-to-type decisions consistently

Review mapping, then import

In the Capacities desktop app, go to Settings > Import Content, open the Google Keep guide in Migration guides, then click Start importing and upload your converted folders.

Before importing:

• Confirm recognized object types are correct
• Optionally add an import marker
• Stop and fix setup if preview looks wrong

Then click Analyze, review, and click Import. Keep Capacities open until import completes.

Verify after import

Check:

• Titles and object types
• Key properties (dates, tags, and similar details)
• Checklist items (where present)
• Attachments and media