On Any Webpage. Any Local File.
Draw, highlight, write, and whiteboard — directly on top of any website or offline HTML file. No sign-up. No data collected. Works everywhere.
Free download · Windows · Chrome · v1.2 Stable
Why Self Annotate
A complete annotation toolkit that lives in your browser — lightweight, private, and now fully customizable.
Turn ON once — Self Annotate injects itself on every page you visit, every refresh, every tab. Now works on local file:// pages too.
Buttons are organized into groups. Set each group as Inline (always visible) or Flyout (collapses to one icon, expands on click). Keep your toolbar clean.
Click the extension icon for a full 3-tab popup: toggle ON/OFF, adjust theme and language, and edit your toolbar layout — all in one place.
A full multi-page whiteboard that floats over any website. Resize, minimize, go fullscreen. Export pages as PNG or PDF.
Default, Minimal, Drawing, and Compact — choose a preset for your Annotate and Whiteboard toolbars separately, then customize further.
No accounts. No servers. No tracking. Everything stays in your browser — layout, settings, and annotations never leave your device.
What's New in v1.2
v1.2 is the biggest update yet — the entire toolbar is now dynamic, grouped, and fully customizable through a brand-new popup interface.
Previous versions had no popup — clicking the icon just toggled ON/OFF with no UI. Now it opens a full 3-tab panel.
Every button now belongs to a named group. Two display modes per group:
Fully customize the page annotation toolbar from the popup's Annotate tab:
The Whiteboard toolbar has its own independent layout editor in the popup's Whiteboard tab:
Self Annotate now works on offline HTML files and local web pages opened via file:// URLs — great for annotating downloaded lecture slides or saved web pages.
The thickness slider is now context-aware and toolbar buttons are more compact overall:
New Popup Menu
Everything is now in the popup — no gear button cluttering your pages. Three tabs, all settings in one click.
Full Feature List
Installation
No Chrome Web Store needed. Load it directly as an unpacked extension.
Click the download button to get self-annotate-v1.2.zip.
Right-click → "Extract All..." → extract to a permanent folder:
After extracting, the folder should contain:
In the Chrome address bar, type and press Enter:
Look at the top-right corner of the extensions page.
Toggle ON the switch labelled "Developer mode".
Click "Load unpacked".
Navigate to your extracted folder where manifest.json is visible.
Click "Select Folder".
Click the 🧩 puzzle icon → find Self Annotate → click the 📌 pin icon. The ✏️ icon will always show in your toolbar.
To annotate on local HTML files — go to chrome://extensions → Self Annotate → Details → enable "Allow access to file URLs".
Click the ✏️ Self Annotate icon → the popup opens.
Toggle Annotate Mode ON — badge turns green.
Open any webpage → a ✏️ button appears bottom-right.
Click it to open the toolbar and start drawing!
Live Demo
The real annotation tool running on an actual physics lecture page. No install needed — opens in a new tab.
Download Self Annotate v1.2 for free — the biggest update yet, with the new group toolbar system and popup menu.
Download self-annotate-v1.2.zip