Migrate Bear notes to local Markdown on Mac

Bear has earned a devoted following among Mac and iOS users. Developed by Shiny Frog, Bear is renowned for its elegant typography, thoughtful Mac design, and commitment to Markdown formatting. For writers, journalists, and developers, Bear represents one of the cleanest personal writing environments available.

However, many Bear users eventually find themselves constrained by several key architectural limitations:

First, the internal SQLite database and iCloud lock-in. Bear does not store your notes as visible plain text files in Finder. Instead, it encapsulates your notes in an internal SQLite database (database.sqlite) located deep inside ~/Library/Group Containers/net.shinyfrog.bear/. Synchronization is tied exclusively to Apple’s CloudKit, leaving Windows, Linux, and multi-platform teams without access.

Second, the lack of folder organization. Bear relies entirely on tags (#tag/subtag) for categorization. While flexible, tag-only architectures become difficult to manage once an archive grows to thousands of notes across complex corporate and personal domains.

Third, the absence of meeting capture and intelligence. In modern work, meetings are where project decisions, customer feedback, and architectural agreements occur. Bear has no capability to capture call audio, transcribe speech, or extract structured action items.

Migrating your Bear archive to sovereign local Markdown (.md) in Oyma preserves the refined typography and fast writing experience you love, while liberating your files into open folders on your Mac.

Understanding Bear’s architecture: SQLite vs open files

While Bear writes in Markdown, its underlying storage model differs fundamentally from Oyma:

1. Bear’s internal SQLite database

When you create a note in Bear, the application does not create a file on your disk. Instead, it writes a record into an internal SQLite database:

• Hidden files: You cannot open your notes in external editors like VS Code or Obsidian without exporting them first.
• Backup constraints: Backing up requires creating proprietary .bear2bk backup archives.
• Single-app dependency: If you ever cancel your Bear Pro subscription, you retain your notes, but synchronization across devices stops, and you remain dependent on Bear’s UI to access them.

2. Oyma‘s local-first Markdown model

Oyma stores every document as an independent .md file in a directory you choose on your Mac:

• Total transparency: Every note exists as a visible, accessible file in Finder.
• Universal compatibility: Open your vault in Oyma, Obsidian, or any code editor simultaneously without file locks.
• Zero lock-in: If you ever decide to use another tool, no export step is necessary—your notes are already standard plain text files.

Comprehensive transfer matrix: what moves from Bear

Because Bear is built on Markdown, migrating to Oyma achieves the highest fidelity of any note migration:

Bear Feature	Conversion Result	Technical Implementation in Oyma
CommonMark text & headings	Clean	Transferred with 100% fidelity as standard CommonMark headers and paragraphs.
Internal [[WikiLinks]]	Clean	Preserved without modification; resolve seamlessly in Oyma‘s link engine.
Nested tags (#tag/subtag)	Clean	Preserved inline and indexed directly by Oyma‘s ⌘O command palette.
Images & sketch attachments	Clean	Extracted to local asset folders and referenced via relative markdown paths.
GFM tables & task lists	Clean	Preserved as standard Markdown pipe tables and - [ ] task checkboxes.
Footnotes & blockquotes	Clean	Preserved as standard markdown footnotes ([^1]) and quote blocks (>).
Password-encrypted notes	Partial	Must be unlocked prior to export; otherwise omitted from the export archive.
Proprietary theme styles	Unsupported	Visual color skins are app-level styles; content transfers with complete fidelity.

Step-by-step migration playbook: from Bear to Oyma

Exporting your Bear notes to Oyma is fast and straightforward:

Step 1: Unlock any password-protected notes

Bear allows users to lock individual notes with a custom passphrase. Migration tools cannot read encrypted notes:

1. Open Bear on your Mac.
2. In the notes list, look for any notes marked with a lock icon.
3. Open each note, enter your passphrase, click the three dots (...) in the top right, and select Privacy → Remove Password.

Step 2: Export your entire library as Markdown

Bear includes an excellent native export feature:

1. In the macOS menu bar, click File → Export Notes… (or press ⇧⌘E).
2. In the export dialog:
   • Export Format: Select Markdown (.md).
   • Export Attachments: Ensure this checkbox is checked.
   • File Naming: Select Note Title.
3. Choose a destination folder on your Mac (e.g., ~/Documents/Notes/Bear-Vault).
4. Click Export Notes. Bear will write all your notes and attachments to disk in seconds.

Step 3: Choose your organization model: tags vs folders

Bear exports all notes into a single directory (or into folders based on top-level tags, depending on your export settings):

• If you prefer tag-based organization: Keep your notes in a flat directory. Oyma indexes all inline #tags in your notes, and you can navigate them via ⌘O by typing #.
• If you prefer folder organization: Create folders in Finder (e.g., Projects/, Personal/, Archive/) and move your notes into directories that reflect your preferred structure.

Step 4: Open your vault in Oyma

1. Launch Oyma on your Mac.
2. From the welcome screen, select Open vault (or press ⌘O).
3. Select your exported Bear directory.

Oyma instantly loads your entire library:

• Notes open in our fluid live-preview Markdown editor.
• Embedded photos and diagrams render inline with crystal clarity.
• All existing [[WikiLinks]] connect seamlessly, building an interactive visual knowledge graph.
• Local SQLite FTS5 search enables instant full-text searching across your entire library.

What Oyma adds to your Bear workflow

Migrating to Oyma preserves the serene writing aesthetic of Bear while equipping you with advanced capabilities for professional work:

1. Interactive visual graph view

In Bear, it is difficult to see how notes across different tags connect. Oyma features an interactive, force-directed Graph View that visualizes your entire vault, revealing unexpected connections and clusters in your research.

2. High-performance spreadsheet tables

Bear 2 introduced Markdown tables, but editing them requires manual pipe formatting. Oyma provides spreadsheet-like tables with Tab/Enter cell navigation, column sorting, Excel/Numbers clipboard paste, and image insertion—all saved as standard Markdown on disk.

3. Integrated private meeting capture

Bear cannot capture meeting conversations. Oyma records call audio directly on your Mac using ScreenCaptureKit without sending intrusive AI bots to your calls. On-device Whisper models transcribe conversations locally, and private LLMs extract key decisions and action items directly into your notes.

Permanent ownership of your writing

Bear gave you a clean canvas to write your thoughts. Oyma gives those thoughts permanent sovereignty. By keeping your notes as open files on your Mac, you ensure that your intellectual property remains private, fast, and completely under your control.

What transfers from Bear to local Markdown

Migrating from Bear to sovereign Markdown (.md) preserves your core intellectual property while changing how formatting blocks are stored. Here is our empirically tested fidelity matrix:

Step-by-step migration procedure

Follow this sequence to export your Bear library safely and open it in Oyma without data loss:

1. Unlock any encrypted notes in Bear

   Open Bear on your Mac. Identify any notes locked with a custom password, enter your credentials, and remove encryption before running the export. Locked notes cannot be converted while encryption is engaged.

2. Export all notes as Markdown from Bear

   In Bear's menu bar, select File → Export Notes... (or press ⇧⌘E). Set Export Format to 'Markdown (.md)'. Under Options, enable 'Export attachments' and choose whether to export as a flat directory or organize notes into folders based on tags.

3. Adjust tag-based folder hierarchies if desired

   Because Bear uses tags rather than physical folders, decide whether you prefer a flat vault structure with tag indexing, or organize notes into standard directories based on primary project tags.

4. Open the folder directly in Oyma

   Launch Oyma, select 'Open vault', and choose your exported Bear directory. Oyma instantly mounts your notes, builds an on-device SQLite search index, and displays your entire archive in our live-preview editor.

Known conversion gaps and practical workarounds

Every proprietary note system utilizes features that have no 1:1 equivalent in plain Markdown. Here is how to navigate Bear's structural limitations:

• Tag-based versus folder-based storage: Bear organizes notes exclusively via tags (`#tag/subtag`). In Oyma, you can keep this tag-first organization or organize notes into physical directories.
• Highlight syntax variations: Bear 1 used `::highlight::` while Bear 2 and standard Markdown use `==highlight==`. Oyma supports standard `==highlight==` syntax.
• App theme preferences: Bear Pro's proprietary aesthetic themes do not export; Oyma provides clean macOS light and dark modes adhering to system appearance.

Frequently asked questions

Why is Bear relatively easy to migrate compared to other note apps?

Unlike Notion or Evernote, Bear is built natively on Markdown standards. When you export notes from Bear, the resulting `.md` files are already formatted according to CommonMark specifications, requiring minimal cleanup or conversion.

What happens to Bear's nested tags (#project/design/v1) in Oyma?

Bear's inline tags remain inside your note text. Oyma indexes these tags directly in our ⌘O command palette (type `#` to search by tag), and you can use standard frontmatter properties to categorize documents.

Does Oyma support Bear's [[WikiLink]] syntax?

Yes. Oyma natively supports `[[WikiLinks]]` with aliases (`[[Note|Alias]]`) and heading autocompletion (`[[Note#Heading]]`). When you open your exported Bear folder in Oyma, existing links connect seamlessly.

How does Oyma's feature set go beyond Bear?

While Bear is an excellent personal writing app, it lacks integrated meeting capabilities. Oyma records meetings directly on your Mac without bots, transcribes speech locally using on-device Whisper models, generates private AI summaries, and provides an interactive visual Graph View.