Note-taking apps for Mac and iPhoneHead to head
Obsidian vs Bear
Obsidian ranks #1 and Bear ranks #2 in our guide to the best note-taking apps for Mac and iPhone. Obsidian is our pick for most people.
ObsidianPick Obsidian if you want your notes as plain files you own, with links and plugins to shape your own system.Free to start#2 in the guide
BearPick Bear if you want good-looking private notes that sort themselves with hashtags and need no account.Free to startWhat decides it
- On price: Obsidian is free. Sync is $4 a month and Publish is $8 a month, billed yearly. Bear is free on each device. Bear Pro is $2.99 a month or $29.99 a year.
- Both run on Mac, iPhone and iPad. Only Bear runs on Apple Watch.
- Bear has the higher App Store rating: 4.7 from 6.9K ratings, against 4.5 for Obsidian.
Side by side
Prices are checked every day.
| At a glance | Obsidian | Bear |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free. Sync is $4 a month and Publish is $8 a month, billed yearly | Free on each device. Bear Pro is $2.99 a month or $29.99 a year |
| How you pay | Free, with paid upgrades | Free, with paid upgrades |
| 3 years of use | Depends on the plan | $89.97 Yearly plan |
| Free trial | Free to start | Free to start |
| Runs on | Mac, iPhone, iPad | Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch |
| Where to buy | App Store, Developer | App Store |
| Rating | 4.5 2.8K ratings | 4.7 6.9K ratings Higher |
| Features | No account, Privacy, iCloud sync | No account, iCloud sync, Shortcuts, Free trial |
| Made by | Dynalist Inc. | Shiny Frog Ltd. |
| Last updated | 23 Oct 2026 | 22 Oct 2026 |
Who should get which
Get Obsidian if
You want to build your own notes system with plugins and keep every file on your own disk.
Get Bear if
You want a private, good-looking home for notes and drafts that sorts itself with tags.
Skip Obsidian if
You want notes that work the minute you open the app, and Apple Notes does that for free.
Skip Bear if
You edit notes together with family or coworkers, which free Apple Notes does and Bear doesn't.
Our verdicts
Obsidian
Notes locked inside an app's own format are hard to move when that app changes its prices or shuts down. Obsidian keeps every note as a plain Markdown file in a folder you own, then adds links between notes, a graph view and community plugins. It is free on Mac, iPhone and iPad with no account, but official Sync costs $4 a month, and Apple Notes is simpler if you never want to configure anything.
Bear
Type a hashtag anywhere in a note and it files itself, with nested tags replacing folders and links turning your notes into a personal wiki. Bear writes in Markdown and needs no account, which few notes apps with this polish can say. Syncing between devices needs Bear Pro at $29.99 a year, and there are no shared notes, so Apple Notes is better for lists you edit with someone else.
What each one helps you do
Obsidian
- Link ideas across hundreds of notes
- Keep notes as files no company controls
- See how your notes connect on a graph
- Add features with community plugins
Bear
- Organize notes with tags instead of folders
- Link related notes into a personal wiki
- Lock private notes behind a password
- Find text inside a scanned receipt
Where to get them
Obsidian
Free. Sync is $4 a month and Publish is $8 a month, billed yearly
Bear
Free on each device. Bear Pro is $2.99 a month or $29.99 a year
-
App Store, iPhone, iPad and Apple WatchWith in-app purchasesFree downloadApp Store
-
Mac App StoreWith in-app purchasesFree downloadMac App Store
Neither one quite right?
The other picks in our guide to the best note-taking apps for Mac and iPhone.
NotionPick it if your notes double as trackers and project boards, like a reading list or content calendar.Free to start
GoodnotesPick this if you write with an Apple Pencil in class or meetings and mark up lots of PDFs and slides.Free to start
NotabilityPick it if you handwrite lecture notes and want the recorded audio tied to what you wrote.Free to start
DraftsPick this if you capture quick ideas all day and send each one on to another app.Free to start
CraftPick it if your notes turn into client-facing docs you share as a polished web page.Free to start
LogseqPick this if you think in bullet points and want free, open source linked notes with a daily journal.Free, open source
CapacitiesPick it if you'd rather organize notes as people, books and ideas than as folders.Free to start
AnytypePick this if you like how Notion works but want everything encrypted on your own devices.Free to start
MindNodePick it if you think visually and want a mind map that turns into an outline.Free to start
NotePlanPick this if you want a daily note with your tasks and calendar on the same page.From $12
TotPick it if you only need 7 small scratchpads for text you keep close, synced over iCloud.Free to start
ReflectPick this if you want simple daily notes with backlinks on the Mac, saved as plain files in your own folder.Free, open source
Read the full guideAll Obsidian alternativesAll Bear alternatives