Bear is a streamlined note-taking app optimized for writing and quick capture on Apple devices, while Roam Research is a complex knowledge management system designed for bidirectional linking and networked thinking across all platforms. Bear excels at simplicity and speed; Roam excels at relationship mapping and research workflows.
Bear vs Roam Research — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
Minimalist markdown note-taking app exclusive to Apple devices with elegant design.
Networked note-taking tool designed for bidirectional linking, knowledge graphs, and non-linear thinking with emphasis on daily notes.
Platform Support. Monthly Subscription Cost. Bidirectional Linking. Learning Curve. Offline Access. Export Formats. Maximum Vault Size
Choose Bear if you want a fast, affordable, beautifully-designed note-taking app for Apple users who prioritize quick capture and distraction-free writing. Choose Roam Research if you're building a research database, need cross-platform access, and want to explore networked thinking with bidirectional linking and graph visualization—and are willing to invest in the learning curve.
Bear: iOS, macOS, Web (3) | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: Basic scanning | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: Not available | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: No automatic backlinks; manual tagging only | Roam Research: Native with graph visualization
Bear: Yes, all notes E2EE | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: Tags and folders only | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: iOS, iPadOS, macOS (Apple only) | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: None | Roam Research: Unlimited with real-time editing
Bear: Unlimited | Roam Research: Unlimited
Bear: Markdown, PDF, HTML | Roam Research: JSON, Markdown, EDN
Bear: 2-4 hours for basic use | Roam Research: 40-60 hours for advanced use
Bear: Limited (direct integrations) | Roam Research: 30+
Bear: 49% (annual: $20.99) | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: Yes - native AI assistant | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: 2 modes (limited customization) | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: Full (native offline) | Roam Research: Limited offline functionality
Bear: $29.99/year | Roam Research: $165/year
Bear: ~50 official extensions | Roam Research: ~50 official extensions
Bear: Proprietary (low portability) | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: 95% feature parity with desktop | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: ~10MB practical limit | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: $36/year (premium subscription) | Roam Research: $180/year (only paid option)
Bear: 3 (iOS, macOS, Web) | Roam Research: 2 (Web, limited mobile beta)
Bear: Full offline support on iOS/macOS; sync when online | Roam Research: ~5% read-only mode only
Bear: Not available | Roam Research: Interactive graph showing all connections
Bear: Unlimited | Roam Research: Not available (no free tier)
Bear: 200+ with syntax highlighting | Roam Research: Basic code block support
Bear: No native databases | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: Not supported (external links only) | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: Full offline access with automatic sync | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: Standard markdown (.md) format | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: Unlimited (with free version) | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: 5-10 minutes to productive use | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: Limited API access | Roam Research: N/A
Monthly Subscription Cost (Personal Plan)
Annual Subscription Cost (Personal Plan)
Bear: Unlimited | Roam Research: None (limited daily notes only)
Bear: 3 platforms (Mac, iPad, iPhone) | Roam Research: Web (primary), limited iOS/Android
Bear: Unlimited notebooks | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: No (public links only) | Roam Research: Native multi-user editing
Bear: Yes (full native support) | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: 3 (Mac, iOS, iPadOS) | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: ~50 integrations | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: iOS/Mac only (subscription required) | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: ~5 million active users | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: No free tier (7-day trial only) | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: 3 platforms (macOS, iOS, iCloud Web) | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: Unlimited notes (tested with 50,000+) | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: Not supported | Roam Research: Not supported; 1 user per workspace
Bear: Limited - basic web clipper only | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: Full native markdown with code syntax highlighting | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: 0 - flat folder/tag structure only | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: Full markdown with syntax highlighting | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: 2 levels (Folder > Note) | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: Yes (primary design philosophy) | Roam Research: N/A
Bear: $2.99/month | Roam Research: $15/month
Bear: iOS, macOS only | Roam Research: Web (all browsers), Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android
Bear: No | Roam Research: Native & automatic backlinks
Bear: Full offline support | Roam Research: Limited (web-dependent)
Bear: 5 minutes | Roam Research: 45 minutes
Bear: 3 formats (Markdown, PDF, HTML) | Roam Research: 4+ formats (Markdown, JSON, EDN, PDF)
Bear: $1.99/month (one-time purchase) | Roam Research: $15.00/month
Bear: Under 1 week | Roam Research: 6-12 weeks
Bear: No (tags only) | Roam Research: Yes, automatic
Maximum Document Size (Stable Performance)
Bear: 500,000+ words | Roam Research: 50,000 words
Bear: Full iOS, macOS, and web | Roam Research: Web + limited mobile features
Bear: No | Roam Research: Yes, interactive graph view
Bear: No | Roam Research: Yes (DataScript/Clojure)
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: 44 native tools plus MCP servers
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Multi-provider LLM support with AI agents
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Unlimited collaborators
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Bidirectional linking and networked graphs
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Researchers, knowledge workers, academics
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: API access with scheduled jobs coming soon
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Yes, full API
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: No native support
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Advanced backlink queries
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: None (paid only)
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Not available
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: 60% of desktop features
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Cloud-based (Roam servers)
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Closed-source proprietary
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Datalog with RoamScript
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Unlimited (cloud-based)
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Proprietary JSON (Edn format)
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: 1.5M+ registered (2024)
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Built-in interactive graph with density indicators
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Roam cloud servers (third-party controlled)
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: 30 days free trial
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: AI assistant for summaries
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: ~0.2 million (2024 estimate)
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: 3 (Web, iOS, Android)
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Cloud-hosted; Roam Inc. retains server access
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Automatic backlinks with graph visualization
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Web-only; no native apps
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: 50-100 community templates
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: 15-20 hours (graph mastery required)
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: API + JSON + Markdown + open data model
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: 500+ via Roam Marketplace
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: 2-4 hours to proficiency
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: iOS and Android apps available
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Markdown export available but limited
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: 0 (web-only; third-party clients available)
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Limited (web-based only)
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: No native assistant (requires integration)
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Advanced DataLog queries with filtering/sorting
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Limited (sync only)
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: $15/month (paid) or free (limited)
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: 20-30 integrations
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Core feature with graph visualization
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Collections/blocks only; no structured databases
Bear: N/A | Roam Research: Handles 5,000+ notes smoothly
How to choose between Bear and Roam Research
Bear vs Roam Research — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for Bear vs Roam Research. Contains 155 attribute comparisons, 5 FAQ pairs.
Bear vs Roam Research — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for Bear vs Roam Research.
No. Bear is exclusively available on Apple devices (iPhone, iPad, and Mac). It does not support Windows, Android, or web-based access. If you need cross-platform functionality, Roam Research is the better choice.
Does Bear support bidirectional linking like Roam?
No. Bear uses a traditional tag-based organization system and does not offer bidirectional linking or graph visualization. Roam Research's core feature is bidirectional linking, which automatically maps relationships between notes. If knowledge graph linking is essential, Roam is necessary.
What's the total cost difference over one year?
Bear's annual subscription is $29.99/year while Roam Research costs $165/year—a difference of $135.01 annually. Bear is approximately 82% cheaper per year. Over 5 years, you'd save $675 choosing Bear.
Roam Research is better suited for academic research due to bidirectional linking, graph visualization, and advanced querying capabilities that help map citations and conceptual relationships. However, if you only need a distraction-free writing and note repository without linking features, Bear is simpler and far cheaper.
Bear has full offline functionality on iOS and macOS—you can write, edit, and access all notes without internet. Roam Research is web-dependent and has very limited offline capabilities, requiring internet for most features. For offline-heavy workflows, Bear is clearly superior.
How to Choose Between Bear and Roam Research
Platform Support: Bear has Apple devices only (iOS, macOS), while Roam Research has Web-based (all browsers) + desktop apps.
Monthly Subscription Cost: Bear has $2.99/month or $29.99/year, while Roam Research has $15/month or $165/year.
Bidirectional Linking: Bear has Not supported natively, while Roam Research has Core feature with graph visualization.
Learning Curve: Bear has Minimal (intuitive interface), while Roam Research has Steep (requires knowledge graph methodology).
Offline Access: Bear has Full offline capability on Apple devices, while Roam Research has Limited offline (web-dependent).
Export Formats: Bear has Markdown, PDF, HTML (3 formats), while Roam Research has Markdown, JSON, EDN, PDF (4+ formats).
Maximum Vault Size: Bear has Unlimited with iCloud sync, while Roam Research has Unlimited (depends on browser/storage).