I've been using the free version of Logos as a secondary/backup for my Bible notes, just as a hedge because Bible programs don't always continue forever. But I like SwordSearcher's navigation and notes configuration, not to mention value. So here is my limited comparison experience. I have them both set up very similarly -- dark mode, 2 columns with tabs, Bible(s) on the left, notes/commentaries on the right, using the same fonts throughout.
I have paid for the full version of SS, and $20 for the Strong's Concordance to go with the free Logos application.
Positives for SS:
The Bible display and navigation in SS is a little nicer IMO (slightly more readable), and when I scroll, I can scroll each line smoothly/individually at a time. With Logos, the Bible scrolls in chunks, which is fairly annoying for me in actual usage as I will scroll too far up or down. The navigation to other books/chapters in SS is really awesome and quick. Drop-down, pick your book/chapter, done. It's not bad in Logos, but SS has it down to a science, as they say. Pretty much effortless. SS includes the book, chapter and verse inline as you read the Bible, and each chapter is contained in its own window (which I like). Logos is a continuous scroll Bible, with just the verse number most of the time. So you have to look at the search window to know where you're at, and it's easy to scroll beyond where you intend to be. So SS wins the reading/navigation ease-of-use category for me.
Logos uses anchors, tagging and notebooks for notes organization. This allows for more flexibility, but it is more time consuming and complicated. You need to have a plan for how you want to organize your notes, make sure you remember to anchor and tag as you go (documentation, documentation), then you can run filters on those anchor-tags to pull them up. With SwordSearcher, you create a book/commentary for notes and they are automatically attached to the verses as you create them (well, you do "set" the verse, but it's a little quicker than anchoring). That fulfills 2 common anchor-tags right there without thinking about it, and goes with the normal flow of Bible study.
That probably denigrates the power of Logo's methodology a bit, but just keep in mind effort-vs-reward. If you really need that kind of complexity, it's there with Logos, but it's not really needed with SS. Maybe tagging would still be useful with SS, but I haven't thought of how just yet.
EDIT: I forgot to include the fact that Logos does auto-sync their notes to their servers, so you have an off-line backup. But I do the same with SS by placing my user modules in a Dropbox folder, and I keep local backups of those. But you do have be careful not to access them simultaneously from 2 PC,s or from PC/Surface. However, SS also includes a good export feature for notes, which Logos does not, and this is a huge plus for me.
EDIT2: I also couldn't help but add one other positive for the SS notes feature -- you can group a few verse references together in a note, and they all pop up together (ie. John 3:2-5, Mark 3:7, etc). So you don't have to hover over the references individually. While the references need to be short enough to fit within the pop-up window, this is a great feature to have.
One thing I do like about Logos, which most will not care at all about, is the updated UI design language. I work in IT so I'm infected by this bias. Most modern apps are moving away from the older menu/small button bar combo for a touch-easy UI with larger, cleaner buttons. You can see that even with Windows 11 File Manager. The Logos button bar is simplified and the program settings are mostly toggle-able and simple, for a cleaner presentation. This might be hard to do with SS because it has such a robust user-customizable interface, and the development IDE has to allow for it. However, since SS is, IMO, as professionally designed as Logos, I think it could benefit from this kind of refresh at some point, and make it more usable on a Surface tablet. That's just my thought on it, but certainly not high-pri for overall usability.
Oh, and there's no getting away from it, but Logos is definitely more market-oriented, with many pre-configured packages costing way up there, almost like purchasing a car. SwordSearcher will never be in the same broad market as Logos because it is more concerned with keeping within a narrower perspective on biblical Christianity. This isn't to pass judgment on the FaithLife folks (I am using their free version, after all), but it might impact your decision what you'd prefer to support if you don't require the broader perspective served by Logos. I hope I said that in a way that isn't objectionable. So that relates to the value: Logos will generally cost a good deal of money and provide a lot of resources you don't necessarily want or need in a very broad scope, and it is a professional setup. Whereas the value of SS is that it includes all (and really, better) features and functionality, plus a more valuable and useful selection of resources, all for a reasonable price.
Just my thoughts.
