# šŸŽ‚ Celebrating 9 years of Bear **URL:** \ **Category:** Announcement\ **Tags:** bear-news\ **Created:** [November 2, 2025, 4:25pm UTC](https://community.bear.app/t/celebrating-9-years-of-bear/18403 "2025-11-02T16:25:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![zowiewho](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/user_avatar/community.bear.app/zowiewho/32/33_2.png) [@zowiewho](https://community.bear.app/u/zowiewho)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2025, 4:25pm UTC](https://community.bear.app/t/celebrating-9-years-of-bear/18403/1 "2025-11-02T16:25:43Z")
![9th bear-thday](https://europe1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/uploads/bear/original/2X/f/fa722c3cc6471214e89705bfe9448d72477970f6.png) Nine years ago, we released the very first version of Bear into the world. It was small, quiet, and full of ideas we hoped might help people write a little more comfortably. Nine years later, here we are, still polishing the little app we are proud to build. ## A fruitful year Over the past year, Bear has had quite a busy schedule. We shipped **20 updates** in total, each one making Bear a little better and smoother. Some of those updates brought the big features many of you have been asking for: **[Read-Only Mode](https://community.bear.app/t/bear-2-3-11-read-only-mode-and-new-themes/15207)** for focused reading, a completely **[new encryption system](https://community.bear.app/t/bear-2-4-better-encryption-auto-todo-sorting-and-pin-within-tags/16571/)** that now protects notes with attachments, **[Callouts](https://community.bear.app/t/new-feature-sneak-peak-callouts/17165)** to make important details stand out, **[Math formulas](https://community.bear.app/t/bear-update-math-formulas/17960)** powered by MathJax, and a better **[Web Clipper](https://community.bear.app/t/bear-web-clipper-2-0-faster-private-and-more-reliable/18278/)** that saves web content faster and more reliable now. We believe that small touches make a big difference too, and this year we made countless improvements under the hood to keep your experience smooth and seamless. For instance, **folding now works in Read-Only Mode** , so you can collapse and expand sections as you browse without risking accidental edits. We also **improved how tables are pasted** , keeping their layout intact when you copy from Excel or Numbers. Every small fix and hidden tweak adds up. You might not notice each one, but youā€™ll feel them when you write in Bear. ## Challenges Like every year, this one had its fair share of challenges. Some were **technical** , from creating a unified codebase for all Bear platforms including Bear Web, to fixing subtle crashes related to Spotlight indexing. **But Bear has never been just about code.** Itā€™s about how writing feels, how the app moves with you, and how every detail quietly helps you write naturally. ![Bear's new UI compatible with "Liquid Glass" style](https://europe1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/uploads/bear/original/2X/a/a0d052c6a04741c74a0186e6c72a665a1a709256.png) One of the biggest challenges this year was **design**. With Appleā€™s new Liquid Glass look, we wanted Bear to feel fresh and modern without losing the simplicity and elegance that makes it Bear. That balance wasnā€™t easy, but we found our middle ground: softer corners, a ā€œboxedā€ style Sidebar, and refreshed icons that add a sense of depth while keeping your writing space clear and focused. Weā€™re still refining every corner until it feels just right. **Balance** has always been a challenge for us, especially this year. As Bear grows, every new feature brings new possibilities, and a touch more complexity. We donā€™t want to be a bloated ā€œone-for-allā€ app, instead, our goal is to **make Bear more capable without ever sacrificing its ease of use**. For example, math formulas stay invisible to most users, yet easily accessible to those who need them through the BIU keyboard or the `$$` syntax. We want Bear to feel light in your hands, simple for quick notes and strong enough to hold everything that matters. ## News on Web ![Bear Web beta](https://europe1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/uploads/bear/original/2X/c/cba63237e1dadec25ba2c2a5d2b07044c0b6c6a1.png) This year also marked a big milestone: We started [**Bear Web Beta**](https://community.bear.app/t/getting-started-with-bear-web/14625). Bringing Bear to the web has been an exciting challenge, and matching the same level of polish and performance as our native apps is no small feat. Weā€™re getting closer every week, thanks to our incredible testers who spot bugs, share ideas, and help us make the experience better with every update. We canā€™t wait to bring Bear Web to everyone soon, one step closer to our dream of writing anywhere. ## Happy 9th Bear-thday! Happy 9th Bear-thday, to Bear, to those whoā€™ve been writing with Bear for years, and to those who just started today. We still have many pages to write in Bearā€™s story, and we canā€™t wait to share them with you. From the tiniest polish to the next big idea, the caret is still blinking, and nowhere near the final full stop. Thank you for being part of this journey. A new note has just been added. āœāœØ šŸ»ā¤šŸŽ‚ ---
**Author:** ![lauren](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b4bc9f/32.png) [@lauren](https://community.bear.app/u/lauren)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2025, 4:55pm UTC](https://community.bear.app/t/celebrating-9-years-of-bear/18403/2 "2025-11-02T16:55:43Z")
Congrats!!! Thank you, bear! ---
**Author:** ![Shyaam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8c91f0/32.png) [@Shyaam](https://community.bear.app/u/Shyaam)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2025, 4:59pm UTC](https://community.bear.app/t/celebrating-9-years-of-bear/18403/3 "2025-11-02T16:59:17Z")
Congrats! Thank you for the great product! The main reason I switched to an iPhone 5 years ago was the desire to write in Bear! ---
**Author:** ![KillerWhale](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/user_avatar/community.bear.app/killerwhale/32/1337_2.png) [@KillerWhale](https://community.bear.app/u/KillerWhale)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2025, 11:07pm UTC](https://community.bear.app/t/celebrating-9-years-of-bear/18403/4 "2025-11-02T23:07:02Z")
Happy Bear-thday! Thank you for your care and attention to detail and making once of the most consistently delightful apps in my arsenal. Bear has been my refuge since leaving Evernote and I absolutely love how it provides me powerful tools for thinking, yet keeps me focussed. At this stage, itā€™s probably one of my used apps and I donā€™t what I would do without it! ā¤ ---
**Author:** ![dahan](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/user_avatar/community.bear.app/dahan/32/575_2.png) [@dahan](https://community.bear.app/u/dahan)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2025, 8:57am UTC](https://community.bear.app/t/celebrating-9-years-of-bear/18403/5 "2025-11-03T08:57:40Z")
Congrats to the whole Dev Team. You did and you do a great job and Bear is awesome on many levels. For me the biggest and latest major contribution to Bear is Bear Web. That makes Bear in a multi plattform environment much more useful for me. ---
**Author:** ![Prometheus](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/user_avatar/community.bear.app/prometheus/32/6621_2.png) [@Prometheus](https://community.bear.app/u/Prometheus)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2025, 1:29am UTC](https://community.bear.app/t/celebrating-9-years-of-bear/18403/6 "2025-11-04T01:29:42Z")
Iā€™ve been using Bear since it was released back in 2016. Itā€™s always been the simplicity, ease of use, and steadfast addition of sensible features thatā€™s kept me. Major bonus that itā€™s a small independent team thatā€™s managed to build such an awesome program. Iā€™ve used it for so many different things. - I am writing a fantasy series, and have been for the past decade. My entire compendium of notes are maintained in Bear. - My own style of personal knowledge management. - Masters in analytics (MathJax has been critical for this!). - Journaling So, a diverse mix of long form text, interconnected notes, technical writing, personal ramblings, etc. all made so pleasant by using Bear. Many thanks to the team! I hope to be a customer for a long time yet! ---
**Author:** ![bened](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@bened](https://community.bear.app/u/bened)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 3:02pm UTC](https://community.bear.app/t/celebrating-9-years-of-bear/18403/7 "2025-11-05T15:02:41Z")
Happy Birthday Bear! And congratulations to the team, not just for shipping some great updates but for all the things you said ā€˜noā€™ to along the way as well šŸ™‚ ---
**Author:** ![mics.almonds\_3z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ccd318/32.png) [@mics.almonds\_3z](https://community.bear.app/u/mics.almonds_3z)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 8:16pm UTC](https://community.bear.app/t/celebrating-9-years-of-bear/18403/8 "2025-11-05T20:16:01Z")
Congratulations! Happy Birthday Bear! ---
**Author:** ![huali](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f08c70/32.png) [@huali](https://community.bear.app/u/huali)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2026, 5:24pm UTC](https://community.bear.app/t/celebrating-9-years-of-bear/18403/9 "2026-01-02T17:24:20Z")
Congratulations! Happy Birthday Bear! ---
**Author:** ![brian](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/user_avatar/community.bear.app/brian/32/6580_2.png) [@brian](https://community.bear.app/u/brian)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2026, 9:26pm UTC](https://community.bear.app/t/celebrating-9-years-of-bear/18403/10 "2026-01-03T21:26:44Z")
Happy 9th in 2026! Fun Fact: Chinese New Year 2026 will be celebrated on February 17, marking the beginning of the Year of the Bear Merch! šŸ˜‰