# Bear vs Essayist

The clearest difference is monetization model: Bear at freemium against Essayist's subscription. Bear also leads on review sentiment (77% vs 61%) and ratings volume (6.9K vs 423). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Bear sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Essayist sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Bear holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Bear has 6.9K ratings behind it against 423, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 77% of Bear's written reviews are positive against 61% of Essayist's.

Bear ships an update every 2 weeks, Essayist fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Bear | Essayist |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.7 (6.9K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bear-markdown-notes/id1016366447/reviews)** | [4.5 (423 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/essayist-academic-writing-app/id1537845384/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **6.9K** | 423 |
| Positive reviews | **76.9% of reviews** | 60.5% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 weeks** | Fortnightly |
| Monetization | **Freemium** | Subscription |
| Size | 230 MB | 82 MB |
| Requires iOS | **16** | 18.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Shiny Frog Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/527618974) | [Essayist Software Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1537845386) |

## What reviewers say

### Bear

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bear-markdown-notes/id1016366447)

A beautiful and simple Markdown app for capturing, writing, and organizing your thoughts and ideas. It offers a distraction-free writing environment, flexible formatting, and powerful organizational tools like tags and tasks. Ideal for anyone looking to streamline their note-taking and creative processes.

**Highlights:** Distraction-free writing environment, Flexible Markdown formatting, Tag-based organization, Task management, Note linking (WikiLinks), Web clipping extension, Apple Pencil sketching

**Features:** Safari Extension, Siri integration, Apple Watch app, iMessage stickers, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly Pro subscription | $2.99 | per month |
| Yearly Pro subscription | $29.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Elegant and minimalist design
- 🚀 Smooth and fast performance
- 💡 Flexible tagging system for organization
- 🔒 Secure and private notes
- 🎨 Customizable themes and fonts

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔒 Subscription required for syncing and advanced features
- 🔍 Limited search functionality within notes on iOS
- 🖼️ Issues with image handling and resizing
- 🐛 Occasional bugs and crashes reported
- 💻 Lack of web/Windows app for cross-platform access

**Reported bugs**

- Sync issues causing note conflicts and data loss
- Cursor jumping and input issues on iPad
- Inconsistent behavior when importing/exporting content

**Requested features**

- Add password protection for individual notes
- Improve search capabilities to find text within notes
- Implement table support for more robust note-taking
- Develop a web-based version for broader accessibility
- Allow manual sorting and organization of notes


### Essayist

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/essayist-academic-writing-app/id1537845384)

This app simplifies academic writing by automatically formatting essays in various styles like APA, MLA, and Chicago. It includes a universal reference manager, citation tools, and equation support, allowing for distraction-free writing and easy export to PDF or Word.

**Highlights:** Automatic essay formatting, Universal reference manager, In-text citation and footnote insertion, LaTeX equation support, Export to PDF and Word, Minimalist interface

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly Subscription | $5.99 | per month |
| Monthly Subscription | $9.99 | per month |
| Yearly Subscription | $39.99 | per year |
| Yearly Subscription | $79.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Easy to use
- 👍 Helpful for academic writing
- 🚀 Saves time on formatting
- 👍 Accurate citations
- 👍 Intuitive interface

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Bugs and crashes
- 💰 Expensive subscription
- 🔒 Privacy concerns
- 🔒 Locked features behind paywall
- 🔧 Limited functionality

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes when trying to add references
- Formatting issues when copying and pasting
- Inability to edit title pages and section headings
- Inconsistent behavior across devices (iPad vs. Mac)
- Issues with in-text citations and reference lists

**Requested features**

- Add more citation styles (e.g. MHRA, Vancouver)
- Improve table and image handling
- Integrate with reference managers like Zotero
- Add grammar and spell check tools
- Allow more customization of templates and formatting


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Bear free?

Bear is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Essayist free?

Essayist is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Bear or Essayist?

Bear is rated higher. Bear averages 4.7 out of 5 from 6.9K ratings, while Essayist averages 4.5 from 423 ratings.

### Do Bear or Essayist have ads?

Neither Bear nor Essayist shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Bear or Essayist?

Bear ships an update every 2 weeks, and Essayist fortnightly. Most recently, Bear was updated on October 16, 2026 and Essayist on October 14, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*