Why it's a strong pick

This clipper comes from the SiYuan project itself, and it only makes sense if you already use the SiYuan app. It uses Manifest V3, and its source is public on GitHub under the Mulan PSL v2 license, a permissive license. The repo was updated in September 2026.

What it does

It is the browser extension for the SiYuan note app. Select text on a page, choose "Copy to SiYuan" from the right-click menu, then paste it into SiYuan. You can also clip the whole page. You set an API token in the extension options. The README says the token is in SiYuan under Settings, then About.

Key features

Right-click copy. Choose "Copy to SiYuan" on selected text.
Shortcuts. Ctrl+Shift+C copies a selection. Ctrl+Shift+S clips the whole page. You can change both in your browser's shortcut settings.
Whole-page clip. Save a full page, not only a selection.
Article and math support. It bundles the Readability and MathJax libraries.
Token setup. Connect it to your own SiYuan with an API token.

Who it's for

It is for people who already use SiYuan, on the desktop or self-hosted, and want to clip web content into it. If you do not use SiYuan, it does nothing for you. Look at Obsidian Web Clipper or Joplin Web Clipper instead.

What permissions does the SiYuan clipper ask for?

Its manifest asks for contextMenus, storage and commands. It also asks for access to all sites, and it runs a content script on every page at document start. The README does not say why. Read the install prompt before you add it.

Does the SiYuan clipper collect my data?

The README's privacy section says "All data is stored on a device fully controlled by the user" and "No usage data is collected". Those are the developer's own statements, not an audit by us. Read the permissions on its Chrome Web Store listing too, and check the README privacy section yourself before you install.

Do I need the SiYuan app to use it?

Yes. The extension sends clips to a running SiYuan instance, and it needs that instance's API token. Without the app it has nothing to save into. Install and set up SiYuan first, then add the clipper and enter the token. The extension on its own does not store your clips anywhere.

Is the SiYuan clipper open source?

Its source is public on GitHub. The LICENSE file is the Mulan Permissive Software License, version 2, a permissive public license. We say "source available under Mulan PSL v2" so you can read the license yourself. Open the LICENSE file on GitHub to check the terms.

FAQ

Does it work without SiYuan? No.

Can I change the shortcuts? Yes, in your browser's shortcut settings.

Where do I find the API token? The README says it is in SiYuan under Settings, then About.

Good to know

The README is short, and we did not read SiYuan's own setup docs. Start SiYuan first, add the token in the extension options, then try one small clip before you save a long page.

Other note-taking to compare

SiYuan Clipper is one of 8 picks in our note-taking guide:

Notion Web Clipper: Made by Notion. Save a web page into a Notion page or database in a few clicks. Notion account needed.
Google Keep: Google's own extension for saving page info, selections and images into Keep notes. Free, Google account needed.
Evernote Web Clipper: Clip articles, full pages and screenshots into your Evernote account, then mark them up. Free extension, Evernote account needed.
OneNote Web Clipper: Microsoft's extension for clipping web pages into OneNote. Free to use, Microsoft account needed.
Obsidian Web Clipper: Obsidian's own free extension. It highlights pages and saves them into your local vault as Markdown. Needs the Obsidian app.
Joplin Web Clipper: Clip pages, selections and screenshots into your Joplin notebooks. Needs the Joplin desktop app. Open source.
Hypothesis: Open-source extension for highlighting, annotating and tagging web pages and PDFs with your Hypothesis account.

Also see: Evernote Web Clipper alternatives