If you’re looking for a way to bookmark or archive important Web pages without needing a Web-based service for an intermediary, you’re in luck. Of course, you can always use your browser’s good ol’ bookmark features, so I’m focusing here on apps that offer something different or additional features to make bookmarks more useful. Many of these Mac apps are designed to store PDFs, images, task lists, and more, though, so I’ll start with the bookmark-only options and work up from there.
(Image Caption: Quiet read) is a good option if you just want to store links that are important enough to read at another time, but not keepers for your browser’s built-in bookmarks list. It also has a free version with a typical array of features, and a license unlocks even more features, integration with Pinboard (if you want to take your bookmarks online), exporting to Excel and HTML file formats, and more.
takes an approach similar to Xmarks, as it acts as an intermediary for syncing your bookmarks between browsers, sans a Web service. It works with Safari, Firefox, Chrome, Camino, iCab, Opera, and OmniWeb, and can optionally send bookmarks to Pinboard and Google Bookmarks. BookMacster can also sync your bookmarks between your Macs via Dropbox or Jungle Disk. If BookMacster fits into your workflow, a license is $23.
The rest of your Mac-based options for storing bookmarks take the Mail/iTunes route, so they offer more than just bookmarking. They are generally beefier apps with large window interfaces for organizing bookmarks alongside text notes, photos, PDFs, and other files. They stand out from each other with unique areas of focus, features, and other perks, but in the big picture they are your typical digital filing cabinet.
($50), ($40), and ($40) are all good options. They’re long-standing Mac apps that do bookmarking and Webpage archiving, and they all now have optional iOS companions that sync over your local Wi-Fi network instead of a Web service. ($39) from Reinvented Software is also a good app, as it lets you organize bookmarks and Web archives, but it stores all your stuff in your home user directory using a plain folder and file system.