Why the world needs local-first apps

Most apps today use client-server architecture. Users' data lives on someone else's server, and the app is just a fancy interface to that server. This seems convenient until it's not.

What users lose with client-server apps

  • Users don't own their data: Someone else controls it. They can delete it, change their terms, or shut down tomorrow.

  • No internet means no app: While some client-server apps can work offline for a short period of time, local-first apps work offline by default.

  • The data isn't private: While some client-server apps offer end-to-end encryption, for genuine local-first apps, it's fundamental.

  • The server is a single point of failure: Client-server apps depend on a server or a cloud. Local-first apps don't.

Local-first apps

Local-first apps store users' data on users' devices. Not as a cache, but for real. A server is an infrastructure for sync and backup, not the source of truth.

The idea of local-first software isn't new. Solid pioneered decentralized data ownership for the web. Then Ink & Switch's essay defined the principles that shape how we think about local-first today.

For Evolu, local-first software means ownership. That's essential as it encourages care, responsibility, and skills.