Productivity · head to head
Bear Notes vs Microsoft OneNote
Microsoft OneNote
Productivity
Microsoft's free-form notebook, free with a Microsoft account and synced through OneDrive
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Bear Notes apple only: Bear runs on Mac, iPhone and iPad with no Windows, Android or web app; Microsoft OneNote notes live in a proprietary notebook format on OneDrive or SharePoint and the only exports are a OneNote file, a PDF or a Word document, produced section by section, so a large notebook is effectively unmovable to any other tool.
- They diverge on capability: Bear Notes covers Markdown-based notes, Microsoft OneNote covers Free-form page canvas.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Bear Notes and Microsoft OneNote actually diverge.
| Attribute | Bear Notes | Microsoft OneNote |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | MacOS, IOS, IPadOS | Web, IOS, Android, MacOS, Windows |
| Founded | 2015 | 1975 |
Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (freemium), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Productivity).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Bear Notes
- Markdown-based notes
- Powerful tag system
- Rich text formatting
- Image support
- iCloud sync
- Dark and light themes
- Encryption support
- Backup and restore
Only in Microsoft OneNote
- Free-form page canvas
- Notebook hierarchy
- Indexed handwriting
- Audio recording
- Web clipper and Outlook capture
- Shared notebooks
- Cross-platform clients
- Tags and cross-notebook search
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Bear Notes
- Markdown note taking on Apple devicesnot Microsoft OneNote
- Organising notes with nested hashtags rather than foldersnot Microsoft OneNote
- Exporting notes to PDF, DOCX, HTML or ePubnot Microsoft OneNote
Microsoft OneNote
- Handwritten notes on a pen tablet that you still need to find months later by searching for a word you wrote.not Bear Notes
- Lecture or meeting notes where a recording needs to line up with what you were typing at the time.not Bear Notes
- A team already inside Microsoft 365 that needs a shared notebook without buying anything or seeking approval.not Bear Notes
- Collecting mixed material such as screenshots, clippings and sketches on one page, where a document editor would force a linear structure.not Bear Notes
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Bear Notes
- Apple only: Bear runs on Mac, iPhone and iPad with no Windows, Android or web app
- Sync across devices requires Bear Pro and works through iCloud only
- The free version is limited to 3 export formats, 3 themes and 1 app icon
- OCR search inside images and PDFs is Pro only
- Note encryption is Pro only
- The Pro trial lasts 7 days
Microsoft OneNote
- Notes live in a proprietary notebook format on OneDrive or SharePoint and the only exports are a OneNote file, a PDF or a Word document, produced section by section, so a large notebook is effectively unmovable to any other tool.
- Personal notebooks consume OneDrive quota, which is 5 GB on a free Microsoft account, so a notebook full of scans, images and recordings quietly exhausts the whole account including the space Outlook needs for mail.
- Sync happens at section level and conflicts are resolved by placing both versions on the page, so simultaneous edits to a large or media-heavy section produce duplicated content that somebody has to merge by hand.
- Search behaves differently across clients, so what the Windows desktop app finds inside handwriting, images and attachments is not necessarily what the browser or mobile version finds, and the same query gives different answers on different devices.
- There is no relational structure, no database and no properties, so anything that needs a table of records with fields has to be maintained by hand or moved elsewhere, and OneNote's own tables cannot be queried or filtered.
Pricing, plan by plan
Bear Notes
Free- FreeFree
- Note creation and organization
- Tags
- Local sync
- Premium$1.99/month
- iCloud sync
- Themes
- Markdown export
Microsoft OneNote
FreeNo published plan breakdown. See the Microsoft OneNote review.
Which should you pick?
Choose Bear Notes if
- You need markdown-based notes.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on MacOS, IOS, IPadOS.
- You also want powerful tag system.
Choose Microsoft OneNote if
- You need free-form page canvas.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, IOS, Android, MacOS, Windows.
- You also want notebook hierarchy.
Questions people ask
- Is Bear Notes or Microsoft OneNote better?
- Neither clearly leads. Bear Notes starts at Free and Microsoft OneNote at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Bear Notes or Microsoft OneNote?
- Bear Notes starts at Free and Microsoft OneNote at Free.
- Does Bear Notes or Microsoft OneNote run on more platforms?
- Bear Notes runs on MacOS, IOS, IPadOS. Microsoft OneNote runs on Web, IOS, Android, MacOS, Windows.
- Can I use Bear Notes for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Bear Notes best used for?
- Bear Notes is most often used for markdown note taking on apple devices, organising notes with nested hashtags rather than folders, exporting notes to pdf, docx, html or epub. Of those, markdown note taking on apple devices and organising notes with nested hashtags rather than folders are not what Microsoft OneNote is typically brought in for.
- What can Bear Notes do that Microsoft OneNote cannot?
- Bear Notes covers Markdown-based notes, Powerful tag system, Rich text formatting, Image support. Microsoft OneNote covers Free-form page canvas, Notebook hierarchy, Indexed handwriting, Audio recording.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Bear Notes: How much does Bear Pro cost per month or year?
Bear Pro costs $2.99 per month or $29.99 per year. Annual subscribers receive a 15% discount compared to monthly pricing.
SourceMicrosoft OneNote: Is OneNote really free?
Yes. The application is free with a Microsoft account, with no time limit and no feature gate. What you may end up paying for is the OneDrive storage the notebooks consume.
Bear Notes: Does Bear offer a free trial before committing to a subscription?
Yes, Bear Pro includes a 7-day free trial with no credit card required.
SourceMicrosoft OneNote: Can I keep notebooks off Microsoft's cloud?
The Windows desktop app can keep local notebooks, but they will not sync to other devices and any shared access requires OneDrive or SharePoint.
Bear Notes: What export formats are available with Bear Pro?
Bear Pro subscribers can export notes in multiple formats including TXT, Markdown, TextBundle, RTF, PDF, JPG, HTML, DOCX, and ePub.
SourceMicrosoft OneNote: How do I get my notes out?
Section by section as a OneNote file, a PDF or a Word document. A OneNote package preserves a whole notebook but only for another copy of OneNote. Third-party converters exist and the page layout usually does not survive them.
Bear Notes: Can I sync my notes across devices with the free Bear plan?
No, iCloud sync is only available with Bear Pro. The free plan allows local note access but does not support cloud synchronization across devices.
SourceMicrosoft OneNote: Which version should I install?
Microsoft consolidated onto a single OneNote application on Windows after retiring the Store version, so install the one distributed with Microsoft 365 rather than looking for an alternative.
Bear Notes: What features are included in the free Bear plan?
The free plan includes local note access, document scanning, limited export formats, 3 themes, and 1 app icon. PDF and image search requires Bear Pro.
SourceRelated pages
More on Microsoft OneNote
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