Readwise Highlighter

Save a page to Readwise Reader

Readwise Highlighter is the official browser extension from the Readwise team, designed for power readers who want to save and annotate web content effortlessly. It enables you to save articles directly to Readwise Reader — a modern read-it-later app that consolidates web articles, newsletters, RSS feeds, Twitter threads, PDFs, EPUBs, and more in one place.

With Readwise Highlighter, you can highlight and annotate content on any open web page. All your highlights are synced seamlessly with the Readwise ecosystem and can be optionally exported to popular note-taking apps such as Obsidian, Notion, Roam Research, Evernote, and Logseq. A Readwise account is required to use this extension, and new users can enjoy a free 30-day trial with no credit card needed, making it easy to enhance your reading and knowledge management experience.

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By:: https://readwise.io
Users:: 100,000+
Rating:: 4.19
(57)
Version:: 0.16.9 (Last updated: 2025-03-20)
Creation date:: 2022-12-11
Risk:: High risk impact Low risk likelihood
Permissions:: activeTab
background
contextMenus
notifications
storage
tabs
unlimitedStorage
Host permissions:: <all_urls>
Size:: 3.27M
Email:: te*****@readwise.io
URLs:: Website ,Privacy policy
Full description:: See detailed description
Source:: Chrome Web Store
Updated:: a day ago

Ranking

# 2,205 ▲ 25

Other rankings

#175 in Workflow & Planning ▲ 3 #16 in highlighter keyword 54 ▼ 1 #74 in trial keyword 13 ▲ 1 #79 in reader keyword 88 ▼ 3 #194 in browser extension keyword 79 ▲

Other platforms

Readwise Highlighter (v0.15.24)

6,098+ 4.26

(19)

User reviews

Users find Readwise Highlighter extremely valuable for saving and organizing highlights from web articles, especially when combined with Readwise Reader for knowledge management and distraction-free reading. It helps improve information retention and replaces multiple older apps effectively. However, multiple users report bugs including background activity when the browser is closed, missing or malfunctioning highlight options, browser compatibility issues, and poor customer support. Problems with dark mode highlighting and non-English websites also diminish the experience for some.

Pros

Highly useful for saving and organizing highlights from web pages and articles.
Integrates well with Readwise Reader and note-taking apps, aiding in knowledge management.
Supports distraction-free reading and managing articles for later consumption.
Improves retention and review of information by reinforcing highlights.
Loved by users for replacing multiple outdated apps with a single inclusive reading and highlighting tool.

Cons

Issues with the extension running in the background even when Chrome is closed, raising privacy concerns.
The highlighting feature sometimes fails or disappears, especially context menu options missing or not working.
Compatibility problems with certain browsers (Arc, Vivaldi) and specific content types like PDF imports or code block formatting.
Poor support and communication from developers when issues arise.
Limited or problematic support for dark mode highlights and Chinese website formatting errors.

Recent reviews

"Reader is like those, except it’s built for 2023" It's 2025? This review is for set-up. I hope if I keep at it that I will understand it, maybe by 2023? More handholding please, I really need this.

Michael Sean Comerford, 2025-01-25

Great extension generally but doesnt work on Arc browser - Not sure if others are facing too but i just dont see Save Highlight to Readwise in context menu.

Ritesh Sonawala, 2025-01-15

Why does it run in the background when Chrome is closed? I can't even seem to find a setting a disable this. This is creepy.

Laszlo Stadler, 2024-12-14

View all user reviews

Extension safety

Risk impact

Readwise Highlighter requires some sensitive permissions that could impact your browser and data security. Exercise caution before installing.

Risk impact analysis details

Critical Grants access to browser tabs, which can be used to track user browsing habits and history, presenting a privacy concern.
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Risk likelihood

Readwise Highlighter has earned a fairly good reputation and likely can be trusted.

Risk likelihood analysis details

High This extension has low user count. Unpopular extensions may not be stable or safe.
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