Activate Khiip Plus

Khiip Plus adds the platform-styled renders and the deeper per-source extraction on top of the free core. It’s an add-on to the free Khiip you already run, not a separate app — so turning it on means putting three things in the same place:

1. the free Khiip core (you may already have this)
2. the Plus add-on package (khiip-ee) — private, not on public PyPI
3. your license key — emailed to you when you start your subscription

Everything is verified locally — your key is checked offline, and Khiip never phones home to activate it.

The key alone does nothing

A license key with the add-on not installed silently leaves you on the free base tier. Do step 2 and step 3 — then verify with khiipd version.

1. Make sure the core is installed

If you haven’t installed Khiip yet, do that first — see Installation. Note how you installed it (plain pip, pipx, or uv tool); the add-on must go into the same environment, and the command differs per method (step 3).

2. Download the Plus add-on

The add-on ships as a Python wheel from your Polar customer portal — the receipt email from your purchase links to it (“Manage subscription” / your downloads). The file is named like:

khiip_ee-<version>-py3-none-any.whl

Download it somewhere handy (e.g. ~/Downloads). Use the version that matches your installed core (khiipd version prints the core version).

3. Install the add-on into the same environment

Run the line that matches how you installed Khiip. Adjust the path to wherever you saved the .whl.

Installed from source?

The pipx and uv commands assume you installed Khiip from PyPI (the default at launch). If you installed from source, activate that checkout’s virtualenv and use the pip command below.

Installed with pip (a virtual environment)

Activate the same virtualenv your khiip is in, then:

pip install ~/Downloads/khiip_ee-<version>-py3-none-any.whl

Installed with pipx

pipx inject adds the add-on into Khiip’s isolated environment:

pipx inject khiip ~/Downloads/khiip_ee-<version>-py3-none-any.whl

Installed with uv tool

Reinstall the tool with the add-on included:

uv tool install khiip --with ~/Downloads/khiip_ee-<version>-py3-none-any.whl

Same environment matters

pipx and uv tool isolate each tool in its own environment. A plain pip install ./khiip_ee*.whl into your system Python won’t be seen by a pipx/uv-installed Khiip — that’s the #1 cause of “still on base tier.” Use the matching command above.

4. Add your license key

Put the key from your email into ~/.config/khiip/config.toml:

[tier]
license_key = "<paste the whole key here>"

Prefer to keep it in its own file? Point at it instead:

[tier]
license_key_file = "~/.config/khiip/license.key"

Or set the KHIIP_LICENSE_KEY environment variable before starting the daemon (it takes precedence over the config file).

5. Restart and verify

Restart the daemon so it picks up the add-on and the key:

# stop the running daemon (Ctrl-C where it's running), then:
khiipd serve

Confirm Plus is on:

khiipd version
# 0.x.y
# tier: plus — styled renders + deep extraction active

tier: plus means you’re set. Capture something — your renders now use the platform-styled Plus output.

Because Plus runs on the daemon, every surface picks it up at once — the CLI, agents over MCP, and the Obsidian plugin all return the styled renders and deeper extraction with nothing else to install or toggle.

Still on base tier?

khiipd version shows tier: base after activating? Check, in order:

• Add-on installed in the right environment? Confirm khiip-ee is present in the same environment as Khiip, using the check for your install method:

  • pip: pip show khiip-ee (with that virtualenv active)
  • pipx: pipx runpip khiip show khiip-ee
  • uv: uv tool list --show-with — your khiip entry should list khiip-ee (uv tool environments don’t ship pip, so pip show won’t work there)

  If it’s missing, redo step 3 with the command for your install method. Not sure which environment runs Khiip? pip show khiip prints its Location:, or run python -c "import shutil; print(shutil.which('khiipd'))" to find the executable.

• Key picked up? Confirm the path is ~/.config/khiip/config.toml and the [tier] section is spelled exactly as above. A KHIIP_LICENSE_KEY env var overrides the file.

• Key expired? Keys are time-limited and renew while your subscription is active. If yours lapsed, the latest key is in your most recent renewal email.

• Restarted? The daemon reads the key and loads the add-on at startup.

Updating Plus

New Plus versions are delivered the same way: download the newer khiip_ee-<version>-py3-none-any.whl from your Polar customer portal and reinstall it with the step-3 command for your setup (the <version> in the filename changes each release — point the command at the new file). Keep the core and the add-on on matching versions; khiipd version prints both.

Billing, trials, and cancellation

Your subscription, trial, payment method, and cancellation are all managed in your Polar customer portal (linked from your receipt). If you’re on the 30-day free trial, cancel any time before it ends and you won’t be charged — Khiip simply returns to the free base tier (your captured notes stay exactly where they are). Billing questions go through Polar, our merchant of record.