Comparison

Personal Diary (Journal) App vs Simpler

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Personal Diary (Journal) App

This app provides a simple and secure digital space for journaling. It offers passcode and biometric protection, iCloud sync across devices, and the ability to add photos, moods, and weather to your entries. It's designed to be an accessible and ad-free journalling experience.

Highlights
  • Passcode & biometric protection
  • iCloud sync across devices
  • Import photos into entries
  • Set mood and weather
  • Daily writing reminders
  • VoiceOver support
  • Dark Mode
Features
Read full description

"When all you want is the digital equivalent of a paper diary, this is the perfect one." - goyyboy "Loving the lighthearted feel of this deceptively powerful app." - plinkplok "Good and accessible with VoiceOver" - Allan.summers Need a simple, free, and easy-to-use journalling app? Meet Personal Diary! With no advertisements, limitations, nor any upfront cost, Personal Diary is your simplest and best journalling tool yet. Easily access all your entries in all your devices with iCloud Sync. Write diary entries without worrying that someone will peek at what you wrote, with passcode & biometric protection. Forgot about your diary? The app can 'summon' you back with a friendly nudge. You can also import as many photos as you wish into your entries. As an optional addition, you can set your mood, and add weather and tags to an entry. Notable Features: - Numeric passcode lock (any number of digits). - Unlock using Touch ID or Face ID on supported devices. - Auto-saves as you type. - Simple & easy to use. - Sync data between devices via iCloud Drive. - Ability to pick a mood and weather of the day. - Mood & weather can be automatically chosen. - Import photos to your entries. - Select a theme to suit your style. - Dark Mode for better night use. - VoiceOver fully supported. - Simple Rich Text editing supported. - Optimized for multitasking on iPad. - Full support for physical keyboards, trackpad, and mice. - watchOS keyboard support on Series 7+, and FlickType keyboard support for legacy watch models. - Fully compatible with all modern iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch* models. - Daily notifications for writing in your diary. - No advertisements & absolutely FREE! :D *Some features may not be available on the Apple Watch. Primary editing and viewing functions, such as the Timeline interface and entry editor, are available on the watch. Don't forget to let me know what you think of Personal Diary by leaving a review on the App Store! Reviews and ratings help and let other users find this app. If you have any problems or questions, feel free to send a feedback; I might be able to help! :) Warning: - Please do not forget your password. If you forget your password and your identity cannot be verified, you may not be able to access your data. This app allows you to tip/donate to directly support the development of this app through in-app purchases. No new features will be provided when you tip, it's just to support the app's development if you would like to. Selecting a Small/Medium/Large Tip will initiate a one-time payment for tipping. A Continuous Tip is an automatic-renewal subscription to tip every month, and will renew automatically every month unless it's turned off or cancelled (through your account settings) at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. For this, your Apple account will be charged when payment is confirmed, and charged for auto-renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period at the selected price. You may locate our terms at https://legal.wern.cc/app/terms and privacy policy at https://legal.wern.cc/app/privacy.

About

Simpler

This prompt-based journal app makes reflection easy and fun. Capture moods, thoughts, and interests with guided questions, photos, videos, and voice-to-text entries. Personalize your diary and sync across devices.

Highlights
  • Prompt-based journaling
  • Add photos and videos
  • Voice-to-text entry
  • Customizable diary cover
  • Daily reminders
  • Touch/Face ID lock
  • Calendar view
Read full description

Write, Reflect, Grow! Simpler Diary is a prompt-based diary with a unique and intuitive way to capture and collect your moods, thoughts, and interests. Start Writing with a Prompt --------------------------- Instead of a daunting blank page, Simpler Diary is designed to make journaling fun and easy. Not sure what to write? Simpler Diary will greet you with daily questions such as; “What did you do to achieve your goal(s) today?” or “What made you smile today?” All you have to do is answer with a simple word or a few sentences. You can also add photos, videos and emoticon (mood) to support your thoughts. Universal App -------------- Supports both iPhones and iPads. Automatically syncs data through iCloud. Your data will be available on all your Apple devices such as your iPhone and iPads. Use our Prompts or Create Your Own. ------------------------------------- Simpler Diary gives you the flexibility to make this diary yours. With each new entry, you’ll be greeted with a prompt and an emoticon to add how you’re feeling. You have the option to: 1. Answer the prompt. 2. Choose a different prompt. 3. Create your own prompt. 4. Choose a mood to describe your feeling. The concept behind Simpler Diary is to use different cards to capture your memories, moods, habits, and interests. Additional Features: -------------------- • Search diary entries. • Personalize your diary cover, by using a picture or different colors for each cover. • Add entries with your voice, speak into your diary and it'll convert your voice to text • Set daily reminders. • Add videos to your Dairy • Lock your diary with Touch/Face ID. • Add emoticon to your diary. • Customize your cards with a different color. • Ability to edit past entries. • No login of any kind is required. • Unlimited storage on all your iPhone/iPads. • Calendar view to track your history. • Add reminders to your diary entries. Free App ---------- Are you ready to share your experiences with your future self in the most delightful and personal manner? Our new prompt-based journal recorder app is all you need to keep a track of your life and keep on improving throughout all the years. Try the new Simpler - Media Diary, Journal today! Simpler Diary is a free app that, don't use Ads. Loving Simpler Diary? Please share the app and leave us a review.

Screenshots

Personal Diary (Journal) App4 screens
Simpler4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Simpler at 4.8 against Personal Diary (Journal) App's 4.4. Simpler also leads on monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and review sentiment (100% vs 87%). Personal Diary (Journal) App's advantage is ratings volume (106 vs 16) and device support (5 vs 3). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Personal Diary (Journal) App sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and Simpler sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Simpler holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Personal Diary (Journal) App has 106 ratings behind it against 16, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 87% of Personal Diary (Journal) App's written reviews are positive against 100% of Simpler's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Personal Diary (Journal) App ships an update every 5 weeks, Simpler every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Personal Diary (Journal) App versus Simpler: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPersonal Diary (Journal) AppSimpler
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (106 ratings)4.8 (16 ratings) — better
Positive reviews87.4% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings106 — better16
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.011.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size26 MB70 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperWern Jie LimWayne Williams

Customer experience

Personal Diary (Journal) App

All ratings104 ratings
Positive82.7%
Neutral9.6%
Negative7.7%
Written reviews183 reviews
Positive87.4%
Neutral4.9%
Negative7.7%

Simpler

All ratings15 ratings
Positive93.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative6.7%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Personal Diary (Journal) App

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Entries sometimes disappear or fail to load
  • Passcode/Touch ID not working reliably
  • Syncing issues between devices
  • Unexpected crashes when opening the app

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add ability to password protect individual entries
  • Implement calendar view for better navigation
  • Allow adding videos and other media types
  • Improve search capabilities with advanced filters
  • Provide better data backup and export options

Simpler

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Personal Diary (Journal) App

Subscriptions1
  • Continuous Tip$1.991 Month
One-time3
  • Small Tip$0.99
  • Medium Tip$2.99
  • Large Tip$9.99
1 purchases

Simpler

One-time1
  • Upgrade to Pro$3.99

Questions

Is Personal Diary (Journal) App free?
Personal Diary (Journal) App is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Simpler free?
Simpler is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Personal Diary (Journal) App or Simpler?
Simpler is rated higher. Personal Diary (Journal) App averages 4.4 out of 5 from 106 ratings, while Simpler averages 4.8 from 16 ratings.
Do Personal Diary (Journal) App or Simpler have ads?
Neither Personal Diary (Journal) App nor Simpler shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Personal Diary (Journal) App or Simpler?
Personal Diary (Journal) App ships an update every 5 weeks, and Simpler every 3 weeks. Most recently, Personal Diary (Journal) App was updated on October 20, 2026 and Simpler on October 24, 2026.

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