Roam Research is a graph-based knowledge management system optimized for bidirectional linking and complex note relationships, while Bear is a lightweight markdown note-taking app focused on simplicity and speed. Roam excels for researchers and knowledge workers managing interconnected ideas, while Bear suits users wanting distraction-free writing with basic organization.
Roam Research vs Bear — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
Networked note-taking tool designed for bidirectional linking, knowledge graphs, and non-linear thinking with emphasis on daily notes.
Minimalist markdown note-taking app exclusive to Apple devices with elegant design.
Core Architecture. Learning Curve. Monthly Subscription Cost. Backlink Functionality. Platform Availability. Offline Capability. Max Note Size Performance
Choose Roam Research if you're a researcher, academic, or knowledge worker building interconnected idea networks and willing to invest time in learning a powerful system. Choose Bear if you value simplicity, speed, offline access, and want an affordable writing-first tool for journaling, quick notes, and lightweight organization.
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: Web (primary), limited iOS/Android | Bear: 3 platforms (Mac, iPad, iPhone)
Roam Research: Unlimited with real-time editing | Bear: None
Roam Research: None (paid only) | Bear: N/A
Roam Research: Not available | Bear: N/A
Roam Research: Native with graph visualization | Bear: No automatic backlinks; manual tagging only
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: Unlimited | Bear: Unlimited
Roam Research: JSON, Markdown, EDN | Bear: Markdown, PDF, HTML
Roam Research: 40-60 hours for advanced use | Bear: 2-4 hours for basic use
Roam Research: Native multi-user editing | Bear: No (public links only)
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: $180/year (only paid option) | Bear: $36/year (premium subscription)
Roam Research: 2 (Web, limited mobile beta) | Bear: 3 (iOS, macOS, Web)
Roam Research: Not available (no free tier) | Bear: Unlimited
Roam Research: Basic code block support | Bear: 200+ with syntax highlighting
Roam Research: None (limited daily notes only) | Bear: Unlimited
Roam Research: AI assistant for summaries | Bear: N/A
Roam Research: $15/month | Bear: $2.99/month
Roam Research: ~50 official extensions | Bear: ~50 official extensions
Roam Research: ~5% read-only mode only | Bear: Full offline support on iOS/macOS; sync when online
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: Not supported; 1 user per workspace | Bear: Not supported
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: $165/year | Bear: $29.99/year
Roam Research: Web (all browsers), Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android | Bear: iOS, macOS only
Roam Research: Limited (web-dependent) | Bear: Full offline support
Roam Research: 45 minutes | Bear: 5 minutes
Roam Research: 4+ formats (Markdown, JSON, EDN, PDF) | Bear: 3 formats (Markdown, PDF, HTML)
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: $15.00/month | Bear: $1.99/month (one-time purchase)
Roam Research: 6-12 weeks | Bear: Under 1 week
Roam Research: Yes, automatic | Bear: No (tags only)
Maximum Document Size (Stable Performance)
Roam Research: 50,000 words | Bear: 500,000+ words
Roam Research: Web + limited mobile features | Bear: Full iOS, macOS, and web
Roam Research: Yes, interactive graph view | Bear: No
Roam Research: Yes (DataScript/Clojure) | Bear: No
Roam Research: 0 (web-only; third-party clients available) | Bear: N/A
Roam Research: Native & automatic backlinks | Bear: No
Roam Research: Limited (web-based only) | Bear: N/A
Roam Research: 30+ | Bear: Limited (direct integrations)
Roam Research: No native assistant (requires integration) | Bear: N/A
Roam Research: Limited offline functionality | Bear: Full (native offline)
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 | Bear: N/A
Roam Research: Interactive graph showing all connections | Bear: Not available
Roam Research: N/A | Bear: iOS, macOS, Web (3)
Roam Research: N/A | Bear: Basic scanning
Roam Research: N/A | Bear: Not available
Roam Research: N/A | 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: 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: 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: 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
Monthly Subscription Cost (Personal Plan)
Annual Subscription Cost (Personal Plan)
Roam Research: N/A | Bear: Unlimited notebooks
Roam Research: N/A | 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: 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)
How to choose between Roam Research and Bear
Roam Research vs Bear — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for Roam Research vs Bear. Contains 155 attribute comparisons, 5 FAQ pairs.
Roam Research vs Bear — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for Roam Research vs Bear.
Which is better for managing a personal knowledge base?
Roam Research excels at building interconnected knowledge bases with thousands of related notes because bidirectional backlinks automatically surface relevant information. Bear suits smaller, more linear knowledge collections where notes are organized by tags and hierarchy. For complex research or long-form knowledge work, Roam's linking advantage outweighs its learning curve; for simple collections, Bear's ease of use wins.
Bear provides full offline support on iOS and macOS—you can write, edit, and search your entire library without internet. Roam is primarily cloud-based and requires internet for full functionality, though some caching exists in the web app. If offline access is critical, Bear is the clear choice.
Which has better performance with large note collections?
Bear maintains consistent speed even with 500,000+ word documents and thousands of notes. Roam's performance noticeably degrades when individual notes exceed 50,000 words due to its graph database architecture. For users managing large amounts of text, Bear is more performant; Roam users typically split large documents into smaller, linked notes.
Bear costs $1.99 one-time purchase (or $2.99/year for Pro with advanced features)—approximately $2-3 per year total. Roam costs $15/month or $120-180 annually depending on plan. Over 5 years, Bear costs ~$15 while Roam costs ~$750-900, making Bear 50-60x cheaper.
Roam Research offers a 30-day free trial with full features before the $15/month subscription. Bear is a paid purchase ($1.99) with no trial, though you can evaluate it at the low price point. Roam's trial allows you to test the complex workflow before committing; Bear's affordability serves as a low-risk entry point.
How to Choose Between Roam Research and Bear
Core Architecture: Roam Research has Graph database with bidirectional links, while Bear has Hierarchical markdown with tags.
Learning Curve: Roam Research has Steep (6-12 weeks for mastery), while Bear has Minimal (under 1 hour).
Monthly Subscription Cost: Roam Research has $15/month, while Bear has $1.99/month (one-time).
Backlink Functionality: Roam Research has Native bidirectional linking with auto-generated backlinks, while Bear has Limited tag-based cross-referencing.
Platform Availability: Roam Research has Web-first (limited mobile), while Bear has iOS, macOS, web (full cross-platform).
Offline Capability: Roam Research has Limited (primarily cloud-based), while Bear has Full offline support.
Max Note Size Performance: Roam Research has Slows noticeably above 50,000 words, while Bear has Handles 500,000+ word notes smoothly.