iPhone/iPad/Apple Watch – Free (In-App Purchases)
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The new year is a great time to sort through your most-used apps and see if there are any more intuitive or advanced alternatives. If you're looking for an option to replace your iPhone's default Notes app, then I've got a suggestion for you: try Bear. Bear isn't a new app, but I think far too many people don't know what a great productivity tool it can be.
On the surface, Bear is another note-taking app, and if that's all you want to use it for, you can create new notes and keep them organized. But there's much more to it. Bear gives you the tools to plan your day, journal your thoughts, create lists, sketch ideas, organize tables, and even get stuck into much longer projects, like writing a book.
It's no surprise that Bear's developers say users range from writers and lawyers to chefs and CEOs. With Bear, you get a lot of freedom about what you create, how you sort it and even what it looks like thanks to a choice of different themes.
Why Bear could be your new fave note-taking app
The appealing thing about Bear is it's packed with more features than the Notes app on your iPhone and yet it's not complicated to get up-and-running like Evernote or Notion would be.
Yet there is a lot of flexibility, as well as customization options, on offer if that's what you're looking for. For example, you can work in plain text or use Markdown formatting for bold, italics, links, and more, ensuring a clean and readable experience.
Bear also brings you a bunch of cool organizational features. You can add #tags anywhere in a note for quick categorization, pin important tags to the top of the Sidebar, and easily view all notes with tasks. The app's search capabilities, including Spotlight and special searches like @todo, make finding information a breeze, too.
Bear is no secret. It was named the 2016 App Store App of the Year and received the 2017 Apple Design Award. But if you're yet to use it yourself, I highly recommend you sign up to a 14-day free trial before deciding if you want to commit to a subscription. After that, you can choose to pay $2.99/£2.99 monthly or $29.99/£29.99 yearly.
