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 Drafts if apple-only writers who will stay on Free while they capture a first draft +
Best for
Bear A note you start at a public $
Drafts Quick capture you start at a public $
Free plan
Bear $0 · local notes, Markdown, tags, tables. No Pro themes / advanced export / OCR / full iCloud depth
Drafts $0 · unlimited drafts, sync, and actions from the app / Directory
Lowest paid
Bear Bear Pro $2.99/mo
Drafts Drafts Pro (monthly) $2.99/mo
Watch out
Bear Apple platforms only
Drafts Apple platforms only
Last checked
Bear 2026-10-23 · bear.app/faq/features-and-price-of-bear-pro
Drafts 2026-10-23 · docs.getdrafts.com/draftspro
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 pageapple-only writers who will stay on Free while they capture a first draft + Directory action — then Pro at US$24.99/yr (or US$2.99/mo) when they need action editing / Workspaces / Mail Drop, not Obsidian Sync $4/user/mo first unless they want a PKM graph, and not if they need Windows / Android.
Read the Drafts page
