# Gratitude vs Journal

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Journal at none against Gratitude's 17. Journal also leads on ratings volume (338K vs 45K). Gratitude's advantage is update cadence (every 8 days vs every 3 months). On price, rating, review sentiment and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Gratitude sells 15 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Journal asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for Gratitude against 4.8 for Journal. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Journal has 338K ratings behind it against 45K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 86% of Gratitude's written reviews are positive against 80% of Journal's.

Gratitude ships an update every 8 days, Journal every 3 months. Both last shipped on October 31, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Gratitude | Journal |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.9 (45K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/gratitude-self-care-journal/id1372575227/reviews)** | [4.8 (338K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/journal/id6447391597/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 45K | **338K** |
| Positive reviews | **85.9% of reviews** | 79.7% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 8 days** | Every 3 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Size | 100 MB | 6 MB |
| Requires iOS | **17.0** | 17.2 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Hapjoy Technologies Private Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/1372575226) | [Apple Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/284417353) |

## What reviewers say

### Gratitude

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/gratitude-self-care-journal/id1372575227)

This self-care app offers tools for mental well-being, including a private journal, positive affirmations, and vision boards. It provides daily motivation and prompts to foster self-love and a positive mindset.

**Highlights:** Private gratitude journal with voice recording, Hundreds of positive affirmations, Customizable vision boards, Daily motivation and quotes, Journal prompts and reminders, Mindful minutes tracking

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing, Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (15)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly pro plan | $3.99 | per month |
| Monthly pro plan | $4.99 | per month |
| Monthly pro: Free trial | $4.99 | per month |
| Gratitude Pro | $5.99 | per month |
| Gratitude Pro | $6.99 | per month |
| Quarterly Pro | $9.99 | per 3 months |
| Quarterly pro plan | $9.99 | per 3 months |
| Annual pro plan | $19.99 | per year |
| Annual pro plan | $29.99 | per year |
| Annual Pro | $29.99 | per year |
| Gratitude Pro | $34.99 | per year |
| Gratitude Pro | $39.99 | per year |
| Gratitude Pro | $39.99 | per year |
| Gratitude Pro | $39.99 | per year |
| Gift Yearly Pro Subscription | $14.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 💻 Simple and easy to use
- 🎨 Beautiful and customizable interface
- 🔍 Helpful prompts and challenges
- 📚 Useful affirmations and daily quotes
- 🗓️ Convenient daily journaling

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Subscription fees for full access
- 🔧 Some features not fully customizable
- 🐛 Occasional app crashes or bugs
- 🔍 Limited search functionality for affirmations

**Reported bugs**

- Affirmation playback issues
- Inconsistent font changes after updates
- Difficulty canceling subscriptions

**Requested features**

- Allow editing of past journal entries
- Expand vision board capabilities
- Add option to change journal background color
- Improve affirmation playback and customization
- Integrate with more cloud storage options


### Journal

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/journal/id6447391597)

Capture and reflect on life's moments with rich media like photos, videos, and audio. Intelligent suggestions and prompts help you start writing, while multiple journals and goal tracking support a consistent practice. Sync across devices for seamless access.

**Highlights:** Journaling suggestions and prompts, Rich media attachments (photos, video, audio), Handwriting and sketching support, Multiple journal organization, Streaks and insights for habit tracking, Cross-device iCloud sync

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Journaling made easy
- 🔒 Private and secure
- 👍 Organized and intuitive
- 👍 Helpful suggestions and prompts
- 👍 Convenient voice recording

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Cursor jumps around while typing
- 🐛 Occasional crashes and freezes
- 🔍 Lack of search and filtering options
- 🔍 Inability to organize entries into folders or tags
- 🔍 Limited customization options for fonts, colors, etc.

**Reported bugs**

- Cursor jumping to top/bottom of entry while typing
- App freezing or crashing when adding multiple photos
- Inconsistent behavior when editing existing entries

**Requested features**

- Add search and filtering capabilities
- Implement tagging and folder organization
- Provide more customization options
- Expand to iPad and Mac platforms
- Integrate with Health app for mood tracking


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Gratitude free?

Gratitude is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Journal free?

Journal is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Gratitude or Journal?

Gratitude is rated higher. Gratitude averages 4.9 out of 5 from 45K ratings, while Journal averages 4.8 from 338K ratings.

### Do Gratitude or Journal have ads?

Neither Gratitude nor Journal shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Gratitude or Journal?

Gratitude ships an update every 8 days, and Journal every 3 months. Most recently, Gratitude was updated on October 31, 2026 and Journal on October 31, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*