Comparison

Diary! SmartDiary vs JotJournal

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

Head to head
About

Diary! SmartDiary

Record daily life with photos and track your mood and schedule on a calendar. Secure your entries with a passcode and easily access past memories. Customize your diary with various settings for a personalized experience.

Highlights
  • Record memories with photos
  • Track daily mood and schedule
  • Passcode lock with biometric support
  • iCloud backup and data migration
  • Customizable calendar and diary settings
  • Input forgetting notifications
Read full description

Simple and easy operation private diary application. ・Leave memories of daily life with photos easily. ・You can enter in the calendar the mood and schedule of the day. ・You can easily display past memories. ・Passcode lock (Touch ID, Face ID support) ・iCloud backup (iPhone, data migration between the iPad is also possible) [Other functions] ・Cover photo setting ・Calendar display setting (Start Week On, Calendar Position, Cover Photo Size, Transparency) ・Diary text setting (Font Size, Font Depth, Line Spacing) ・Theme color setting ・Notification of forgetting input ・Support for landscape orientation (iPad only) [Credit] ・Designed by Freepik and distributed by Flaticon (https://www.flaticon.com) ・Icons8 (https://icons8.com) ・This software includes the work that is distributed in the Apache License 2.0.

About

JotJournal

This app offers a simple and intuitive journaling experience with an SNS-style interface. Create a private timeline to record your thoughts and emotions without complicated settings. It's designed for users seeking an easy-to-use, visually appealing daily diary.

Highlights
  • SNS style diary
  • Simple and beautiful design
  • Easy to use interface
  • Private timeline creation
  • Stress-free diary management
Features
Read full description

○ Recommend for people like this ・Want to use a SNS style diary. ・Want to keep a daily diary in a simple way. ・Want to use a simple but easy to use diary. ・Tired of using diary with complicated settings. ○ Simple and beautiful design App is designed to be a simple and easy to use diary. This is an application that embodies "simple is best". ○ SNS style diary If you are tired of using a SNS, then this app is for you. You can create your own private timeline and write your emotions in a diary. ○ Easy to use Thanks to its simple design and no extra features, you can use the app intuitively. You can manage your diary in a fun and stress-free manner. Terms of Use: https://diary-notes-app-studio.notion.site/JotJournal-Private-Diary-Terms-of-Use-English-3d895afb722d8103b441e092e31cd129

Screenshots

Diary! SmartDiary4 screens
JotJournal4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: JotJournal at weekly against Diary! SmartDiary's every 3 months. JotJournal also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). Diary! SmartDiary's advantage is rating (4.6 vs 4.4) and review sentiment (93% vs 78%). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Diary! SmartDiary sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and JotJournal sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Diary! SmartDiary holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 45 and 14 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 93% of Diary! SmartDiary's written reviews are positive against 78% of JotJournal's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Diary! SmartDiary ships an update every 3 months, JotJournal weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Diary! SmartDiary versus JotJournal: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDiary! SmartDiaryJotJournal
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (45 ratings) — better4.4 (14 ratings)
Positive reviews93.3% of reviews — better78.2% of reviews
Number of ratings45 — better14
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsWeekly — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size12 MB96 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperHideki OkunoNaohito Muraoka

Customer experience

Diary! SmartDiary

All ratings44 ratings
Positive90.9%
Neutral2.3%
Negative6.8%
Written reviews45 reviews
Positive93.3%
Neutral6.7%
Negative0.0%

JotJournal

All ratings14 ratings
Positive78.6%
Neutral7.1%
Negative14.3%
Written reviews55 reviews
Positive78.2%
Neutral14.5%
Negative7.3%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Diary! SmartDiary

One-time1
  • Remove Ads$2.99
3 purchases

JotJournal

Subscriptions2
  • Premium Monthly$1.991 Month
  • Premium Annual$5.991 Year
One-time1
  • Premium outright purchase2 variants$9.99

Questions

Is Diary! SmartDiary free?
Diary! SmartDiary is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is JotJournal free?
JotJournal is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Diary! SmartDiary or JotJournal?
Diary! SmartDiary is rated higher. Diary! SmartDiary averages 4.6 out of 5 from 45 ratings, while JotJournal averages 4.4 from 14 ratings.
Do Diary! SmartDiary or JotJournal have ads?
Both Diary! SmartDiary and JotJournal show ads.
Which is updated more often, Diary! SmartDiary or JotJournal?
Diary! SmartDiary ships an update every 3 months, and JotJournal weekly. Most recently, Diary! SmartDiary was updated on October 25, 2026 and JotJournal on October 24, 2026.

Other comparisons