I recently got a reMarkable 2 tablet for digital note-taking and love the feel of writing on it. The tablet connects to my home Wi-Fi network just fine, and I can browse the cloud library on the device without issues. However, when I try to sync my handwritten notes and annotations with the reMarkable companion app on my MacBook, the sync process either hangs indefinitely or fails with a vague "sync error" message.

I've already tried rebooting both devices, reinstalling the app, and making sure both the tablet and MacBook are on the same network. I also checked firewall and VPN settings on my laptop, but nothing seems to block the connection. The tablet’s storage isn’t full, and it shows the latest firmware version installed.

I’d like to get smooth, automatic syncing working so I can review and edit my notes on the bigger screen. Has anyone else run into this kind of issue with reMarkable or similar eInk devices? What steps helped you fix syncing problems between the tablet and desktop app? Am I missing some hidden setting or workaround to enable reliable syncing?

On 02/25/2026 at 12:20 PM, ChatterBee said:

I recently got a reMarkable 2 tablet for digital note-taking and love the feel of writing on it. The tablet connects to my home Wi-Fi network just fine, and I can browse the cloud library on the device without issues. However, when I try to sync my handwritten notes and annotations with the reMarkable companion app on my MacBook, the sync process either hangs indefinitely or fails with a vague "sync error" message.

I've already tried rebooting both devices, reinstalling the app, and making sure both the tablet and MacBook are on the same network. I also checked firewall and VPN settings on my laptop, but nothing seems to block the connection. The tablet’s storage isn’t full, and it shows the latest firmware version installed.

I’d like to get smooth, automatic syncing working so I can review and edit my notes on the bigger screen. Has anyone else run into this kind of issue with reMarkable or similar eInk devices? What steps helped you fix syncing problems between the tablet and desktop app? Am I missing some hidden setting or workaround to enable reliable syncing?

Sounds frustrating that your reMarkable 2 can browse the cloud but stalls when syncing with the Mac app. One quirky thing I ran into was that the companion app sometimes needs a full logout and login cycle to reset the sync token - it’s not enough to just restart the app. Also, double-check if your Mac’s date and time settings are perfectly accurate; even a slight mismatch can cause weird authentication hiccups with the reMarkable servers.

Since you’ve ruled out VPN and firewall issues, another angle is to try syncing over a different network or hotspot just to isolate whether your home Wi-Fi might be subtly interfering. Some users have found that certain routers or ISPs throttle or block the ports the reMarkable app uses, even if general browsing works fine.

Lastly, keep an eye on the app’s logs (you can find them in the app’s preferences under “Help” or by digging into ~/Library/Logs) for any error messages

Sounds frustrating that the cloud library loads fine on the tablet but syncing with the Mac app stalls. Since you already ruled out firewall and VPN issues, one thing that helped me was completely logging out of the reMarkable app on both devices and then logging back in. Sometimes the auth tokens get wonky and cause these silent sync failures.

Also, double-check the app version on your MacBook - I've seen cases where an outdated companion app caused weird sync hangs even though the tablet firmware was current. If you haven’t tried it yet, a full reinstall of the app (not just updating) can clear out corrupted cache files that block syncing.

Lastly, if you’re comfortable with a bit more digging, the reMarkable forums mention checking the sync logs on the Mac app for any error codes. That might give a clue beyond the vague “sync error” message. Hope you get it sorted soon - the seamless sync is what makes the device really shine

On 02/25/2026 at 12:20 PM, ChatterBee said:

I recently got a reMarkable 2 tablet for digital note-taking and love the feel of writing on it. The tablet connects to my home Wi-Fi network just fine, and I can browse the cloud library on the device without issues. However, when I try to sync my handwritten notes and annotations with the reMarkable companion app on my MacBook, the sync process either hangs indefinitely or fails with a vague "sync error" message.

I've already tried rebooting both devices, reinstalling the app, and making sure both the tablet and MacBook are on the same network. I also checked firewall and VPN settings on my laptop, but nothing seems to block the connection. The tablet’s storage isn’t full, and it shows the latest firmware version installed.

I’d like to get smooth, automatic syncing working so I can review and edit my notes on the bigger screen. Has anyone else run into this kind of issue with reMarkable or similar eInk devices? What steps helped you fix syncing problems between the tablet and desktop app? Am I missing some hidden setting or workaround to enable reliable syncing?

Since your tablet browses the cloud fine but syncing to the Mac app chokes, it sounds like the issue might be on the Mac side rather than the tablet or network. Have you tried completely quitting the companion app and then deleting its cache or config files? Sometimes leftover corrupted data causes the app to hang during sync.

Also, double-check if the Mac app has the latest update - there were a few fixes around sync stability in recent versions. If you’re comfortable with the Terminal, running the app with debug logs enabled might reveal where it’s getting stuck. A few folks on this forum mentioned that toggling the “Sync over cellular” option (even if you’re on Wi-Fi) helped kickstart syncing, which is weird but worth a shot.

Lastly, if you haven’t already, try logging out and back into your reMarkable account on the Mac app. Sometimes the auth token expires silently and causes these vague sync errors. Fingers crossed