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Free Bear alternatives
Every pick starts with a genuine free tier, which makes it the easiest way to test a full workflow for zero dollars. Start free and upgrade only when it earns it.
What is the best free alternative to Bear?
Obsidian is the free Bear alternative we recommend first. Obsidian edges out Bear in our testing, scoring 4.7 to 4.4 overall. It scores 4.7 in our testing, and at $0 it keeps the monthly bill reasonable. See the full ranked list below to compare every pick.
6 free alternatives worth your time
Obsidian
4.7 out of 54.7A local-first knowledge base you fully control.
Obsidian edges out Bear in our testing, scoring 4.7 to 4.4 overall.
- Local-first with plain markdown files, your data is never locked into a proprietary format or cloud vendor
- Plugin ecosystem with thousands of community plugins covering every workflow from journaling to project management
Raycast
4.7 out of 54.7A blazing-fast launcher that replaces a dozen apps.
Raycast edges out Bear in our testing, scoring 4.7 to 4.4 overall.
- Well established product with an active user base
- Regular updates and clear roadmap
Airtable
4.6 out of 54.6Connected app platform combining relational database power with spreadsheet simplicity.
Airtable edges out Bear in our testing, scoring 4.6 to 4.4 overall.
- Combines the visual simplicity of a spreadsheet with the relational power of SQL.
- Interface Designer creates custom executive dashboards and client portals effortlessly.
Evernote
4.5 out of 54.5The pioneer digital notebook and document scanner for web clipping, OCR search, and multi-device note archiving.
Evernote edges out Bear in our testing, scoring 4.5 to 4.4 overall.
- Web Clipper remains superior to all competitors for clean, unformatted web research archiving.
- OCR text recognition accurately searches typed text, scanned PDFs, and messy handwritten notes.
Craft
4.4 out of 54.4Beautiful documents and notes for Apple users.
Craft is the pick when you want beautiful documents and notes for apple users., and it leads on ease of use.
- Well established product with an active user base
- Regular updates and clear roadmap
Apple Notes
4.2 out of 54.2The capable notes app built into Apple devices.
Apple Notes is the pick when you want the capable notes app built into apple devices., and it leads on ease of use.
- Well established product with an active user base
- Regular updates and clear roadmap
Bear vs the free alternatives
| Tool | Our score | From | Free tier | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bear | 4.4 | $2.99/mo | Yes | An elegant Markdown note app for Apple. |
| Obsidian | 4.7 | $0 | Yes | Writers, researchers, and knowledge workers who want a private, extensible, local-first note-taking system built on plain markdown files they fully control. |
| Raycast | 4.7 | Free | Yes | A blazing-fast launcher that replaces a dozen apps. |
| Airtable | 4.6 | $20/seat/mo | Yes | Ops teams, marketers, product managers, and agencies needing relational databases, Interface Designer apps, and automated workflows. |
| Evernote | 4.5 | $14.99/mo | Yes | Researchers, executives, professionals, and archival users wanting premier Web Clipper capture, PDF optical character recognition (OCR), and handwritten note search. |
| Craft | 4.4 | $10/mo | Yes | Beautiful documents and notes for Apple users. |
| Apple Notes | 4.2 | Free | Yes | The capable notes app built into Apple devices. |
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