Bear
Note Taking · Free · since 2016
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Bear is a elegant markdown writing app for Apple devices with tags, themes, and export options. It handles markdown, tags, themes, and focus mode, and it's best suited for writers who want a beautiful markdown editor. It has been around since 2016, giving it a 10-year head start in building out integrations and refining the product.
The free plan is free without sync — enough for most people to evaluate whether it fits. Paid plans start at $2.99/mo, which unlocks the full feature set. It's aimed at individual users, so it's fast to set up but may lack team-management features if you scale.
pros
- Full Markdown support with live preview for clean, structured notes
- Includes Tags as a core feature, purpose-built for note taking workflows
- Free without sync — generous enough for most small teams to get real work done
- Includes themes alongside the core feature set — fewer separate tools needed
cons
- Free plan exists but key features are locked behind the paid upgrade
- Fewer built-in features means you may need additional tools to cover gaps
- Moving notes out to another platform can be difficult — export options vary
- Limited team/admin features if your organization eventually scales up
top Bear alternatives
Roam Research Networked note-taking tool with bidirectional links and graph-based knowledge management. $15/mo 
Coda All-in-one doc platform combining documents, spreadsheets, and app-like functionality. Free 
Craft Native document editor for Mac and iOS with beautiful formatting and real-time collaboration. Free 
Mem AI-powered note-taking that automatically organizes and surfaces relevant information. Free 
Apple Notes Built-in note-taking app for Apple devices with iCloud sync, folders, and basic formatting. Free Bear compared
Notion vs Bear · Obsidian vs Bear · Logseq vs Bear · Roam Research vs Bear · Coda vs Bear · Craft vs Bear · Mem vs Bear · Apple Notes vs Bear
more note taking tools
Notion All-in-one workspace for notes, docs, wikis, project management, and databases. Free 
Obsidian Local-first markdown note-taking app with bidirectional linking and a plugin ecosystem. Free 
Logseq Open-source, local-first outliner for knowledge management with bidirectional linking. Free Roam Research Networked note-taking tool with bidirectional links and graph-based knowledge management. $15/mo Coda All-in-one doc platform combining documents, spreadsheets, and app-like functionality. Free Craft Native document editor for Mac and iOS with beautiful formatting and real-time collaboration. Free