Comparison

Card Diary vs Grid Diary

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

Head to head
About

Card Diary

This app offers a simple and beautiful way to journal your daily experiences. Easily record thoughts, emotions, and memories with text or photos, making each day feel meaningful. Customize your entries with backgrounds, fonts, and tags.

Highlights
  • Decorate cards with photos or colors
  • Record multiple diaries per day
  • Calendar view
  • Add photos and videos
  • Track weather and emotions
  • Tag entries and add locations
  • Automatic iCloud backup and sync
Features
Read full description

◆ "App of The Day" in over 100 countries. ◆ Over 1.7 million App Store downloads. ◆ App Store recommendation "Best New App". Card Diary makes journaling a simple, mindful and highly rewarding activity. -- APP OF THE DAY Make every day meaningful. -- Apple Editors’ Notes For concise diary entries -- App Store [FEATURED] "Card Diary" is a simple and easy Diary Journal App. "Card Diary" has the concept of "putting a day on a card". Write today's journal. One line of text or one picture is fine. "Card Diary" makes your day meaningful and special. Record your day easily and beautifully. You can make a pretty diary even if you use only one picture or one line of text. We believe that your every day is very meaningful. We hope that Card Diary will help motivate you to find meaning in every day. This is a simple, clean diary app. You can set a background for each month, using a photo or choosing from 20 colors, 15 pastels and 5 monotones. Then make each day special by choosing between two types of card: photo or text-based. Love, happiness, joy, sad or angry... You can write all your emotions and memories on the card. Try using it as a variety of diaries. (Photo journal, butler journal, reading journal, movie journal, love journal, etc.) ◆ Features ◆ - Decorate your cards. (Photo/Color) - Write multiple diaries per day. - Calendar view provided. - Photos and videos. - Weather and emotions. - Locations and tags. - Favorites. - Automatic backup. (iCloud) - Multi-device synchronization. (iCloud) - Manual backup and restore. - App lock. (Password, Touch ID, Face ID) - File export: TXT and PDF (print). - Various fonts. - Various font styles. (bold, align, color, etc.) - Timestamps and dividers. - Optimized UI for iPhone and iPad. - Dark mode. ◆ Feedback ◆ - Instagram : @carddiary.app - Facebook Messenger : @carddiary.me - Line ID : dreamkitcorp - WeChat ID : dreamkitcorp - Privacy Policy : https://carddiary.me/PrivacyPolicy.html - Terms of Use : https://carddiary.me/TermsOfUses.html

About

Grid Diary

This app offers a guided journaling experience to foster personal development and mindfulness. It helps users build positive habits, manage stress, and enhance various aspects of their lives through customizable prompts and unique layouts.

Highlights
  • Prompted journaling with custom questions
  • Unique grid and mandala layouts
  • Daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly planning
  • Supports various journaling methods
  • Mindfulness and self-care focus
  • Stress and anxiety alleviation techniques
Features
Read full description

Introducing Grid Diary: More than just a journaling app, it's your comprehensive personal development system. Embark on a personal growth journey that covers all aspects: • Embrace mindfulness & self-love • Establish morning & evening routines • Enhance personal health & wellbeing • Develop self-care habits • Alleviate stress and anxiety through Cognitive Behavioral Therapy • Acquire new skills • Boost productivity • Strengthen relationships • Ignite creativity ...and so much more. At Grid Diary, we understand that personal development is a holistic endeavor, not a singular pursuit. Grid Diary empowers you to create a diary system that goes beyond simple daily entries. By utilizing features such as custom prompts, tags, and categories, you can build a personalized framework for cultivating happiness and developing positive habits such as proactivity, optimism, and gratitude. Use Grid Diary to unlock the true power of keeping a diary and start your journey towards a happier, healthier you. # Feature Highlights • Prompted Journaling: Guided Self-Reflections Avoid writer's block with our question library or customize your own prompts for deeper self-reflection. • Unique Grid Format: Elegant and Comprehensive Organize all that matters to you on a single page with our customizable grid layout, fostering a holistic personal development system. • Mandala Layout: Journal like a Mind Map Our 9-grid Mandala-inspired layout, featuring a fixed center, emulates the artful representation of life's organization and connection to the cosmos. Journaling becomes intuitive and mirrors the way our minds work. • Day/Week/Month/Year Dimensions: Create Your Own Rituals Establish rituals that anchor you in time, crafting a framework for planning, acting, and reviewing on a daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly basis. • Compatibility with Various Journaling Methods Whether you prefer morning diaries, success diaries, manifestation journals, or bullet journals, Grid Diary's flexibility accommodates your preferred approach. Discover the transformative power of Grid Diary and unlock your full potential today! # Don't Just Take Our Word for It "New Apps We Love" - Apple "If you've wanted to journal but don't know where to start, meet Grid Diary. Swappable prompts in a lovely, flexible grid format invite you to record and reflect on life's happenings - from noting your habits and goals to sharing affirmation and gratitude." - Google "Grid Diary is a good option for journal writers pressed for time or inspiration." - The New York Times --- As a dedicated three-person team, we believe that privacy is paramount for a journaling app. With no venture capital or advertisers backing Grid Diary, our long-term development relies solely on our members' paid subscriptions. We never sell your data to third parties for profit. # Note about Health App integration: After you have authorized access to health data, you can insert information such as steps or activity energy into your diary. Additionally, you can save your journaling time as mediation minutes to Health app. Grid Diary won't use your health data for other purposes. Privacy Policy https://griddiaryapp.com/support/privacy Terms of Service https://griddiaryapp.com/support/terms

Screenshots

Card Diary4 screens
Grid Diary4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: Card Diary at free with in-app purchases against Grid Diary's subscription. Card Diary also leads on review sentiment (80% vs 48%) and update cadence (every 5 days vs every 2 weeks). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads 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. Card Diary sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month and Grid Diary sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Card Diary against 4.6 for Grid Diary. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1.3K and 963 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 80% of Card Diary's written reviews are positive against 48% of Grid Diary's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Card Diary ships an update every 5 days, Grid Diary every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and November 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Card Diary versus Grid Diary: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCard DiaryGrid Diary
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (1.3K ratings) — better4.6 (963 ratings)
Positive reviews80.4% of reviews — better48.3% of reviews
Number of ratings1.3K — better963
Update frequencyEvery 5 days — betterEvery 2 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterSubscription
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS14.7 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size421 MB80 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDreamkit Co., Ltd.Sumi Interactive

Customer experience

Card Diary

All ratings1,325 ratings
Positive93.7%
Neutral3.8%
Negative2.4%
Written reviews828 reviews
Positive80.4%
Neutral7.2%
Negative12.3%

Grid Diary

All ratings963 ratings
Positive90.7%
Neutral3.3%
Negative6.0%
Written reviews497 reviews
Positive48.3%
Neutral9.3%
Negative42.5%

User reviews

Card Diary

From 1.3K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Simple and easy to use
  • 🚀 Smooth and fast performance
  • 💎 Beautiful and minimalist design
  • 📸 Ability to add photos and videos
  • 🔒 Secure with password/Touch ID protection

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional crashes and bugs
  • 🔍 Limited search and filtering options
  • 🖍️ Lack of rich text formatting options
  • 🗓️ Difficulty navigating between months/years
  • 💰 Some key features locked behind paywall

Grid Diary

From 963 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🌟 Excellent journaling app
  • 📚 Customizable templates and prompts
  • 🧠 Helps with self-reflection and mental health
  • 🗓️ Organized grid layout
  • 🔍 Useful search and timeline features

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Sync issues and data loss
  • 💰 Expensive subscription model
  • 🔒 Lack of account deletion or data export options
  • 🤔 Confusing onboarding and upgrade process
  • 🕰️ Slow loading times and app freezes

Bugs and requests

Card Diary

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Entries not saving properly or disappearing after updates
  • Calendar view not displaying entries correctly on certain dates
  • Issues with iCloud sync causing data loss or inconsistencies

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add ability to rearrange photo order in entries
  • Implement a 'On This Day' feature to view past entries
  • Allow syncing across multiple devices with a user account
  • Introduce more customization options for fonts, colors, etc.
  • Integrate with other services like Dropbox for backup/export

Grid Diary

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Entries disappearing or not syncing properly
  • Password reset functionality not working
  • Subscription issues and inability to access premium features
  • Compatibility problems with newer iOS versions

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add Apple Pencil support
  • Improve sync reliability across devices
  • Provide more customization options for layouts and fonts
  • Integrate with other productivity apps and calendars
  • Implement a one-time purchase option
Show 1 more
  • Allow randomized daily prompts

In-app purchases

5 purchases

Card Diary

Subscriptions2
  • 1 Month3 Days trial$0.991 Month
  • 1 Year3 Days trial$5.991 Year
One-time3
  • Lifetime$9.99
  • Thanks Coffee$12.99
  • Thanks Beer$12.99
4 purchases

Grid Diary

Subscriptions4
  • Monthly3 Days trial$4.991 Month
  • Monthly3 Months trial$4.991 Month
  • Annual7 Days trial$29.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Annual6 Months trial$29.991 Year

Questions

Is Card Diary free?
Card Diary is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Grid Diary free?
Grid Diary is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Card Diary or Grid Diary?
Card Diary is rated higher. Card Diary averages 4.7 out of 5 from 1.3K ratings, while Grid Diary averages 4.6 from 963 ratings.
Do Card Diary or Grid Diary have ads?
Neither Card Diary nor Grid Diary shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Card Diary or Grid Diary?
Card Diary ships an update every 5 days, and Grid Diary every 2 weeks. Most recently, Card Diary was updated on November 3, 2026 and Grid Diary on November 2, 2026.

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