Comparison

WIP Notes vs Bear: do you need the subscription?

First, credit where due: Bear is one of the most beautifully crafted apps on the Mac, and if you write on your iPhone as much as your Mac, its sync earns its fee. This page isn't "Bear bad." It's a simpler question:

What are you actually paying $29.99 a year for?

Bear's subscription funds a real service — cloud sync across devices, plus premium features. That's a legitimate model. But if you take notes on one Mac, you're paying rent on a cloud you don't use. Ten years of Bear Pro is ~$300. WIP Notes is $27. Once.

Side by side

 WIP NotesBear
Price$27 once, perpetual, 5 MacsFree tier; Pro ~$2.99/mo or ~$29.99/yr
10-year cost$27~$300
StorageLocal SQLite on your MacLocal + cloud sync (Pro)
Account requiredNoSync runs through Apple's cloud
Network activityZero requests — verifiableSyncs by design
PlatformsmacOS 14+Mac, iPhone, iPad
OrganizationNote Pads, groups, color labelsTags, nested tags
Rich text, tables, imagesYesYes (markdown-based)
ExportMarkdown, PDFMultiple formats (Pro)
AI integrationBuilt-in local MCP server — Claude reads notes without uploadNone built-in
Data ownershipA database file you can see, copy, back upManaged library + cloud copy

Which one is right for you?

Choose WIP Notes if…

  • Your notes happen on your Mac. Then the subscription buys you nothing, and the cloud copy is pure downside.
  • Privacy is a requirement, not a preference. Client work under NDA, legal, healthcare, anything confidential.
  • You're done with subscription math. One purchase, perpetual license, free updates.
  • You want AI without the upload. The built-in MCP server lets Claude Desktop search and read your notes locally.

Choose Bear if…

  • You genuinely write across iPhone/iPad and Mac — sync is the product, and Bear's is excellent
  • You live in markdown and want the prettiest markdown editor on Apple platforms
  • The free tier covers you (single device, core features) — in which case, enjoy it

The subscription question, plainly: subscriptions make sense when they fund something that runs every month — servers, sync, storage. Bear runs those; the fee is honest. WIP Notes runs nothing. Your Mac does all the work, so you pay for the software once, like you used to. Neither model is evil. Just pay for what you're actually using.

Start the 30-day WIP Notes trial — no card, no account

FAQ

Is WIP Notes really a one-time purchase?

Yes. $27, perpetual license, activates on up to five Macs, free updates. No subscription tier exists.

Can I import my Bear notes?

Export from Bear as markdown, then import into WIP Notes (markdown import supported).

Does WIP Notes work on iPhone?

No — it's Mac-only (macOS 14+), and deliberately so. One platform, done properly.

How is AI integration private?

WIP Notes ships a local MCP server that assistants you already run (Claude Desktop, Gemini CLI, ChatGPT Desktop) connect to on your machine. The assistant reads notes from the local database; WIP Notes uploads nothing. See the AI setup guide.

What happens to my notes if Intique Software disappears?

Nothing. The app doesn't depend on any server, and your notes are in a SQLite database on your Mac. It keeps working, forever.