A Bear alternative with nothing to renew.
Bear is lovely — the nicest markdown editor on the Mac, and about $30 a year if you want it on more than one device. The Writing Desk is $49 once and syncs through whatever folder you already have.
Bear's paid tier exists to fund sync. It's an honest price for real infrastructure. The Writing Desk sidesteps the question entirely: a file in a synced folder is already on all your devices, and nobody has to run a server for that to be true.
Where Bear wins
Typography, polish, the editing feel. Bear is a craftsman's app and we're not going to pretend a browser file matches it keystroke for keystroke.
Where the Writing Desk wins
Longevity and reach. Your notes open on a Windows laptop at work, a Linux box, a borrowed machine, and in twenty years when the app you loved is a fond memory. Bear stores notes in its own database; we store them in the document itself.
The refund
Thirty days, one e-mail, money back.
Common questions
Can I bring my Bear notes over?
Bear exports Markdown; the Writing Desk imports it. A whole library moves in one go.
Is it as nice to write in?
Honestly, not quite. It is nicer to still own in 2046.
Does it do tags?
Yes, and full-text search across everything, locally and instantly.
Windows or Android?
Yes. It's a browser file — that's the whole point.