Bear
Free; Bear Pro $2.99/mo or $29.99/yr (15% savings vs. monthly), 7-day free trial
Price checked at source September 18, 2026.
A tag-based Markdown notes app for Mac and iOS with a genuinely usable free tier — Bear Pro adds iCloud sync, more themes, and export formats.
Our take
Notes are organized by nested tags rather than folders, with Markdown formatting that stays readable even before rendering. The free tier is a real inbox — local notes, document scanning, basic export — not a crippled trial; Bear Pro ($2.99/mo or $29.99/yr, 7-day free trial) adds iCloud sync across devices, 28+ themes, PDF/image search, and export to DOCX/PDF/HTML/JPG. Mac App Store only, no direct-download version.
- Price
- Free; Bear Pro $2.99/mo or $29.99/yr (15% savings vs. monthly), 7-day free trial
- License
- Proprietary
- Requires
- macOS; also available on iPhone and iPad. Specific minimum macOS version not published on the developer’s site.
- Get it via
- Mac App Store
- Developer
- Shiny Frog Ltd.
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What it does
Tag-based organization
Nested tags replace folders, with a sidebar for quickly filtering and pinning important tags.
Cross-device sync
iCloud sync keeps notes current across Mac, iPhone, and iPad (Bear Pro).
Rich export
Exports to PDF, HTML, DOCX, and JPG, plus plain Markdown and TextBundle on the free tier.
Encrypted notes
Individual notes can be locked and encrypted; supports Apple’s Advanced Data Protection.
The deal
- Free: local notes, document scanning, limited export, 3 themes, 1 app icon
- Bear Pro: $2.99/mo or $29.99/yr (15% off vs. monthly), 7-day free trial
- Pro adds: iCloud sync, 28+ themes, 15 app icons, PDF/image search, DOCX/PDF/HTML/JPG export
Worth knowing: Mac App Store distribution only. iCloud sync, most export formats, and search inside PDFs/images all require Bear Pro.
Bear — questions people ask
Is Bear free?
Yes — a real free tier covers local notes and basic export; Bear Pro ($2.99/mo or $29.99/yr) adds sync, themes, and more export formats.
Can I buy Bear outside the Mac App Store?
No — it’s Mac App Store only, no direct-download or one-time-purchase option.
Is Bear free?
Bear is free to use with optional paid unlocks.
Does Bear work alongside a notch app like Alcove?
Yes — Bear lives in the screen, so it runs happily alongside any Dynamic Island hub or notch app.
Where can I download Bear?
Bear is available via Mac App Store.
Reviews
No public ratings yet. Reader reviews are coming to Kitsmith soon.
Listing hand-verified September 18, 2026 from the developer's site and public sources.
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