# Bear Markdown Notes & Journal vs alensoft

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: alensoft at none against Bear Markdown Notes & Journal's 2. Bear Markdown Notes & Journal's advantage is update cadence (every 10 days vs monthly) and device support (4 vs 2). On price, ads and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Bear Markdown Notes & Journal sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. alensoft asks for nothing beyond the download.

Bear Markdown Notes & Journal ships an update every 10 days, alensoft monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Bear Markdown Notes & Journal | alensoft |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.7 (6.9K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bear-markdown-notes-and-journal/id1016366447/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **6.9K** | — |
| Positive reviews | 76.9% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 10 days** | Monthly |
| Monetization | Freemium | — |
| Size | 230 MB | 25 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16 | **15.1** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Shiny Frog Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/527618974) | [Atandra Energy Pvt. Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1211108358) |

## What reviewers say

### Bear Markdown Notes & Journal

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


### alensoft

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/alensoft/id6758040794)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Bear Markdown Notes & Journal free?

Bear Markdown Notes & Journal is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is alensoft free?

alensoft is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Do Bear Markdown Notes & Journal or alensoft have ads?

Neither Bear Markdown Notes & Journal nor alensoft shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Bear Markdown Notes & Journal or alensoft?

Bear Markdown Notes & Journal ships an update every 10 days, and alensoft monthly. Most recently, Bear Markdown Notes & Journal was updated on October 25, 2026 and alensoft on October 24, 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.*