For many users, Notion has become an indispensable tool for managing notes, tasks, and knowledge repositories. With its seamless cloud integration and versatile interface, it’s no surprise that professionals and students alike rely on the desktop version for macOS. However, a troubling issue has emerged among some users: the Notion desktop app getting stuck in offline mode, even when a stable internet connection is present. This disruption has led to productivity setbacks and increasing concern within the Notion community.
TL;DR
Some macOS users have reported that their Notion desktop app was stuck in offline mode, preventing syncing and access to updated content. Investigation revealed that a corrupted or inaccessible IndexedDB cache was often the root cause. A series of community-developed repair steps, including manual database clearing and app resets, restored functionality in most reported cases. These methods, shared among developers and power users, provide a roadmap for resolving the issue.
Understanding the Issue: Notion and IndexedDB
To comprehend the root of the problem, it’s important to understand how Notion operates offline. Notion relies heavily on IndexedDB, a low-level API for storing large amounts of structured data in the user’s browser or webview. On the macOS desktop app, which functions similarly to a Chromium-based browser, IndexedDB plays a central role in storing session data, cached documents, and queued update operations during offline periods.
However, when this local database becomes corrupted or inaccessible due to file system errors, permission changes, or improper shutdowns, Notion may no longer be able to sync—even when the device is online. This results in the interface remaining stubbornly in offline mode, regardless of network conditions.
Symptoms of the Issue
Users reported a variety of symptoms that helped identify the Offline Mode problem. These included:
- Notion displaying “Offline” status in the upper-left corner persistently
- Inability to sync changes across devices
- Blank pages or missing data that should be accessible in cache
- Unresponsiveness when attempting API-based features like commenting or collaboration
Many confirmed that their internet connection was fully functional, with DNS, VPN, and firewall checks showing no anomaly. This pointed more clearly to a local client-side issue.
How Users Diagnosed the Problem
Tech-savvy users began inspecting the state of the Notion app using browser-like developer consoles embedded in the Electron framework. By accessing Chrome DevTools in the Notion desktop app (Cmd + Option + I), they could examine error logs and network activity.
Some key discoveries included:
- IndexedDB errors: Attempted data writes to IndexedDB failing with quota or corruption errors
- Service worker stalls: Failed network fetches stuck in retry loops
- Application state mismatch: Flags indicating “offline mode” activated despite online status
This investigation confirmed that the app wasn’t misidentifying internet availability—it was instead failing to complete necessary local cache operations that trigger syncing behavior.
The Fix: Repairing the Local IndexedDB Cache
Once it was determined that IndexedDB corruption was the root problem, users tested a few manual interventions, many of which resolved the issue successfully. Here’s a consolidated version of the methods found to be most effective:
1. Access App Cache Directory
First, users navigated to the location where the Notion app stores its IndexedDB and other local data. This is typically found under the following path:
~/Library/Application Support/Notion/Backup is essential at this step. Users created a full copy of this directory in a separate folder for safety before proceeding.
2. Delete IndexedDB Cache
Within the Notion profile directory, users were able to locate IndexedDB-related storage under:
%localappdata%/Notion/IndexedDBThis path may include other cache storage folders such as Local Storage or databases that contribute to IndexedDB functionality. Deleting these folders forced Notion to rebuild them on next launch. After restarting the application, most users saw immediate improvements and restoration of online functionality.
3. Full Application Reset
When deleting IndexedDB alone wasn’t sufficient, performing a complete reset of the Notion local environment typically worked. This included:
- Logging out from the Notion account inside the app
- Quitting the app fully using Cmd + Q
- Deleting the entire
~/Library/Application Support/Notionfolder - Restarting the app and logging back in
This eradicated any leftover state artifacts and allowed a complete re-sync from the cloud. While time-consuming, it guaranteed the removal of corrupted local state files.
Advanced Techniques and Tools
In more sophisticated setups, developers used SQLite tools to inspect Notion’s cache format, revealing indexed tables and delta-logs stored for quick access. For example, executing queries against local cache databases allowed users to measure the size and health of internal data before clearing. However, tampering with these files without explicit instructions was strongly discouraged due to potential data loss.
Additionally, community-created shell scripts were shared on forums like GitHub Gists, automating the process of locating, backing up, and wiping IndexedDB data. This saved time for users who didn’t want to dig through macOS’s hidden Library directories.
Preventing Recurrence
Once functionality was restored, many users wanted to prevent the issue from recurring. Experts suggested several best practices:
- Properly close the app: Always use Cmd + Q instead of force-quitting via the Apple menu or Activity Monitor
- Avoid sleep-mode updates: Large sync operations during macOS sleep or shutdown can lead to file locking
- Limit simultaneous sessions: Running multiple desktop instances (such as on MacBook and iMac) while syncing high-volume pages can increase the risk of IndexedDB conflicts
- Enable system permissions: Ensure Notion has full disk access in System Preferences → Security & Privacy → Privacy
How Notion Has Responded
As of the latest updates, Notion support teams have acknowledged sporadic IndexedDB issues, though a formal patch or automated repair tool hasn’t yet been released. Forums and official support threads indicate that engineers are aware of the problem but view it as a niche issue tied to file system idiosyncrasies on macOS.
In future revisions, it is hoped that Notion will introduce better diagnostics for database corruption and user-facing tools for cache reset from within the app settings, without requiring deep file system intervention.
Conclusion
The Notion desktop app stuck in offline mode on macOS is a frustrating but largely solvable issue. As uncovered by proactive users, the culprit is often a broken IndexedDB cache. With careful troubleshooting steps—ranging from manual cache clearing to full app resets—users have been able to restore full cloud sync capabilities.
While Notion remains an excellent productivity platform, the incident underscores the importance of robust local storage handling in cloud-native applications. Until better tools are included in the app itself, users must continue to rely on community knowledge and careful manual fixes.
For those experiencing the same issue, following the outlined steps here presents a viable path back to a fully functioning Notion environment.
