Our take
Pick Bear if people on Mac / iPhone / iPad who will stay on Free local while they write a first Polar Bears note — then Pro at US$2.99/mo or US$29.99/yr when they want themes / export / OCR / deeper iCloud, not Obsidian Sync $4 first unless they want a graph vault, and not if they need Windows / Android (Bear is Apple-only). Pick DEVONthink if researchers who will pay Standard $99 — or Pro $199 for AI/automation —
Best for
Bear A note you start at a public $
DEVONthink File a research pile at a public $
Free plan
Bear $0 · local notes, Markdown, tags, tables. No Pro themes / advanced export / OCR / full iCloud depth
DEVONthink No free plan
Lowest paid
Bear Bear Pro $2.99/mo
DEVONthink Extra seats $49
Next step up
Bear
DEVONthink Standard $99
Watch out
Bear Apple platforms only
DEVONthink Learning curve
Last checked
Bear 2026-10-23 · bear.app/faq/features-and-price-of-bear-pro
DEVONthink 2026-10-26 · devontechnologies.com/apps/devonthink
people on Mac / iPhone / iPad who will stay on Free local while they write a first Polar Bears note — then Pro at US$2.99/mo or US$29.99/yr when they want themes / export / OCR / deeper iCloud, not Obsidian Sync $4 first unless they want a graph vault, and not if they need Windows / Android (Bear is Apple-only).
Read the Bear pageresearchers who will pay Standard $99 — or Pro $199 for AI/automation — not Obsidian Sync first.
Read the DEVONthink page
