Install Crispdown in Chrome
Install the published extension from the Chrome Web Store for automatic updates. Stuck? Email [email protected] and I'll walk you through it.
Install from the Chrome Web Store
Crispdown is published, signed by Google, and updates itself automatically.
Chrome will show a permissions prompt. Crispdown asks only to read pages where you open a Markdown file, plus storage and clipboard write.
Alternative: manual install
The Web Store version above is recommended. Developers and offline testers can also run the extension directly from a folder on disk.
- Download the package. Crispdown v3.1.0 for Chrome (~1.8 MB, a plain .zip).
-
Unzip it somewhere permanent — for example
~/Documents/Crispdown. Do not delete or move the folder afterwards, and do not just double-click the .zip: Chrome needs the extracted folder, not the archive. -
Open
chrome://extensions— paste that into the address bar and press Enter. - Turn on Developer mode, the toggle in the top-right corner of that page.
- Click Load unpacked and select the folder you unzipped. Crispdown appears in the list.
- Pin it. Click the puzzle-piece icon in Chrome's toolbar and pin Crispdown so you can reach it in one click.
Why can't I just click "Install" on this page?
Because Chrome does not allow it — for anyone. Chrome used to support installing an extension straight from a website, but Google removed that in Chrome 71 (December 2018) after it was widely abused to install unwanted extensions behind people's backs. Since then a page can only link to the Chrome Web Store; the install itself has to happen there.
That is also why the download above is a .zip rather than a .crx. A self-hosted .crx cannot be installed by double-clicking it or dragging it into Chrome — the Developer-mode route is the only one left.
Good to know if you install manually
- It will not update itself. The manual copy is frozen at v3.1.0. When a new version ships, download it again and replace the folder.
- Chrome will warn you that you are running a Developer-mode extension every time it starts. That warning is accurate — it just means Chrome did not get this copy from the store.
- Prefer the store version for everyday use. A manual copy and the store copy are technically two different extensions, so remove the manual one first (its card in
chrome://extensions→ Remove) to avoid ending up with two Crispdowns. - Your licence carries over. Activation is verified locally against your key, so a reinstall does not cost you anything — paste the same key, or recover it.
- Nothing is uploaded. Crispdown renders your files on your machine. See Privacy.
Package: Crispdown v3.1.0 · minimum Chrome 137 · last updated October 9, 2026