Privacy

Draft · last updated November 2026

Melvil runs on your Mac. It has no accounts and never reads what is inside your files.

What stays on your Mac

Your files, their contents, your tags, your folder structure and your plans. Melvil keeps its database in your Library folder and your keys in the macOS Keychain.

What leaves your Mac

• AI suggestions: when you ask for them, file names, relative paths, sizes, dates and tags (never contents) go to the AI provider you configure with your own API key, or to the AI app you connect on your Mac. Their privacy policies apply.
• Usage data (off until you turn it on). If you switch it on in Welcome or in Settings › Privacy, Melvil sends which screens and buttons you use, counts in ranges (for example "10–49 files"), errors, and the app and macOS versions and language, to TelemetryDeck, a privacy-focused analytics service. It never sends file names, folders, tags or anything you type. Each install uses a random identifier that is hashed before it leaves your Mac; that makes the data pseudonymous, not anonymous. Settings › Privacy shows what would be sent and can delete it all, and turning it off stops sending.
• Updates: Melvil asks this site whether a new version exists. The hosting provider (Google Firebase) keeps standard request logs, such as IP addresses.

If you write to us

If you email us to get notified, we keep your address only to tell you when Melvil is available.

Contact

Questions or requests about your data: use the Contact link below.