# Calca vs Bear

The clearest difference is price: Bear at Free against Calca's $9.99. Bear also leads on update cadence (every 9 days vs every 5 months) and ratings volume (6.9K vs 153). On review sentiment, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Bear is free to download; Calca costs $9.99 up front. Calca sells 2 one-off in-app purchases and Bear sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 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 153, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 76% and 77% positive.

Calca ships an update every 5 months, Bear every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 26, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Calca | Bear |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $9.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.5 (153 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/calca/id635757879/reviews) | **[4.7 (6.9K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bear-markdown-notes/id1016366447/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 153 | **6.9K** |
| Positive reviews | 76.5% of reviews | **76.8% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months | **Every 9 days** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Size | 78 MB | 230 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 15.6 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Krueger Systems, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/299293363) | [Shiny Frog Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/527618974) |

## What reviewers say

### Calca

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/calca/id635757879)

This app is an advanced symbolic calculator and text editor. It solves equations, simplifies expressions, and allows you to explain your work alongside calculations. Calculations update instantly as you type, and all data is stored as plain text for easy sharing and device syncing.

**Highlights:** Symbolic calculation, Equation solving, Expression simplification, Markdown text editor, Real-time updates, Unit and currency conversion, Matrix operations

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 6-Month Optional Patronage | $4.99 | one-time |
| 12-Month Optional Patronage | $7.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 💡 Unique blend of text editor and calculator
- 📝 Markdown support for documentation
- 🔄 Dynamic recalculation of all values
- ⚙️ Powerful mathematical and algebraic capabilities
- 📊 Unit conversion and unit-aware calculations

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Magic Keyboard input bugs on iPad
- ⚠️ Appears abandoned or poorly maintained
- 🐛 Text selection issues with external keyboards
- 📱 iPad landscape mode problems
- 🐛 Cursor jumping and screen jumping during editing

**Reported bugs**

- Magic Keyboard causes number input to overwrite instead of append
- Text selection before numbers triggers increment/decrement instead of selecting
- Cursor jumps forward and backward with external keyboards
- iPad Pro keyboard truncation in portrait mode
- Arrow key (=>) doesn't work in landscape mode

**Requested features**

- Files app and document browser integration
- Dropbox and Google Drive support
- Date calculation functionality
- Looping and iteration support
- User-defined function storage in separate files


### 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


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Calca free?

Calca costs $9.99, and also offers in-app purchases.

### Is Bear free?

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

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

Bear is rated higher. Calca averages 4.5 out of 5 from 153 ratings, while Bear averages 4.7 from 6.9K ratings.

### Do Calca or Bear have ads?

Neither Calca nor Bear shows ads.

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

Calca ships an update every 5 months, and Bear every 9 days. Most recently, Calca was updated on September 25, 2026 and Bear on September 26, 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.*