Comparison

Digital Journal Diary vs PencilDiary

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

Head to head
About

Digital Journal Diary

Document your life, track goals, and monitor your mood with this versatile journaling app. Enhance well-being, creativity, and productivity through daily reflection. Secure your entries with password protection and sync across devices.

Highlights
  • Add photos, videos, and audio recordings
  • Track mood, goals, and activities
  • Create to-do lists and business plans
  • Password protection for privacy
  • Sync entries across devices
  • Export journal entries
  • Set daily reminders
Features
Read full description

AI Diary & Journal Now document your life with Journal. Never miss a beautiful memory – A sanctuary for your mind and soul Track your goals, mood and happiness. From once-in-a-lifetime events to everyday moments, Journal’s elegant interface makes journaling about your life a simple pleasure. Why you need to jounaling your life? Journaling might be the most underrated activity that can boost your productivity and well-being in just a few minutes a day. Just jot your thoughts down or record what happened during the day for a simple way to manage stress, enhance creativity, increase happiness, improve health, and increase work performance. What is Journal App about? This is a versatile app, and you can turn it in whatever you want to track. Your gratitude diary, Mood tracker, Exercise, Meditate, Eat and be grateful. Take care of your Mental, Emotional and Physical health by reduced anxiety. A Paper notebook and pen are fine for journaling, but we offer you more, We give you more context on what you’ve accomplished and where you might want to go. ►Benefits◄ ●Reach happiness and self-improvement being mindful of your days ●Make reflection a daily habits ●Discover what makes you happy ●Use a big database of beautiful icons for your personalized activities ●Mix and match your own moods with funny emojis ●Deep dive into advanced statistics for every mood, activity or group ●Note down wish list quickly ●Share statistics with your friends ●Turn on Pin Lock and keep your diary safe ►Top Key Features◄ ●Beautiful Designs – Concentrate on your writing with easy layouts that has everything you need ●Tell Your Stories – Add more than one Photos & Videos and Audio recordings, Songs, Location, Weather tag to bring your journal entries to life. ●To-DO list – Journal with pictures helps to organize ideas or thoughts to maximize productivity by making notes and lists instantly ●Trip Journal – Enable travel journal including travel photos in an orderly manner. ●Business Planner – Write Memos, create agendas, craft presentations as notes using journal as a task manager app ●Pleasant interface - A minimalist, uncluttered interface helps you focus on your thoughts and make journaling a pleasant experience. ●Syncing - Syncing will make sure your journal's up to date no matter what device you're using. ●Exporting - Just in case the app stops being developed or you want to move to a different journaling platform, you'll want to be able to export your entries in a format other programs can read, such as PDF or RTF. ●Reminders - Perhaps the biggest challenge to journaling is remembering to do it. Automatic reminders help you keep up the habit. ●Password Protection – Journal with lock helps to keep your data safe and private. Security code and Pin lock allows you to keeping your entires private. Data stored in the app is securely protected. Terms of use: https://popularappsandgames.wordpress.com/ Privacy and policy: https://popularappsandgames.wordpress.com/privacy-policy/ Try this beautifully designed & stunningly simple Micro diary journal App now!

About

PencilDiary

This app provides a daily handwritten journal experience with a new page automatically generated each day, organized by date. It offers seamless light and dark mode adaptation with smart color inversion for optimal readability and a minimalist design for focused reflection.

Highlights
  • New page generated daily, organized by date
  • Automatic light and dark mode with color inversion
  • Pure handwriting input with Apple Pencil support
  • Minimalist and distraction-free interface
  • Ideal for personal growth and reflection
  • No manual sorting or folder management
Features
Read full description

Pencil Diary is the only handwritten journal app that gives you a new page every day, automatically organized by date. Whether you're jotting down daily reflections, tracking your moods, ADHD, every note is instantly saved and accessible by date—so you never have to manage folders or files. With seamless light and dark mode adaptation, your notes automatically invert colors to match your iPad’s theme. This ensures that your handwritten text remains readable and aesthetically consistent, no matter when or where you write. If you love writing by hand with an Apple Pencil, Pencil Diary is your perfect digital alternative to a traditional journal. KEY FEATURES: 1. New Page Every Day, Organized by Date - Automatically starts a fresh blank page every day—just like a real notebook. - No need to create or sort notes—your entries are stored by date for easy browsing. - Go back and review past notes without clutter or folders. 2. Auto Light & Dark Mode With Smart Color Inversion - When switching modes, your handwritten notes automatically adjust, ensuring perfect contrast - In light mode, notes appear on a white page in dark mode, they seamlessly invert for a comfortable nighttime writing experience 3. Pure Handwriting —No Typing, No Distractions - Write naturally with Apple Pencil —no keyboards, just a real pen-on-paper feel. - Perfect for journaling, planning, mood tracking, or creative sketching. - Supports freehand drawing, doodling, and note-taking. 4. Minimalist & Aesthetic Design - A clean, distraction-free interface to help you focus on your thoughts. - Inspired by artful agendas, aesthetic planners, and mindful journaling techniques. 5. Ideal for Personal Growth & Reflection - Use it as a gratitude journal, mood tracker, self-care planner, or time management tool. - Great for stoic journaling, mental health tracking, and personal development. - WHY CHOOSE PENCIL DIARY? Most journaling apps rely on templates, stickers, or typing. Pencil Diary is different. A fresh page every day — just open the app and start writing. No manual sorting — everything is saved by date. Automatic light & dark mode — your notes adapt perfectly. Handwriting only — for a truly paper-like experience on iPad. No clutter — just a simple, elegant space for your thoughts. If you love handwriting, daily journaling, and a clean, distraction-free experience, Pencil Diary is the perfect app for you. Start Your Journaling Journey Today!

Screenshots

Digital Journal Diary4 screens
PencilDiary4 screens

Verdict

The call

Digital Journal Diary and PencilDiary both sit at 4.6 stars, but that hides the real split: 100% of PencilDiary's written reviews are positive against 62% of Digital Journal Diary's. Digital Journal Diary's advantage is ratings volume (6.5K vs 41) and iOS requirement (16.6 vs 18). On price, rating, update cadence 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. Digital Journal Diary sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and PencilDiary sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

PencilDiary holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Digital Journal Diary has 6.5K ratings behind it against 41, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 62% of Digital Journal Diary's written reviews are positive against 100% of PencilDiary's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Digital Journal Diary ships an update every 2 weeks, PencilDiary weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Digital Journal Diary versus PencilDiary: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDigital Journal DiaryPencilDiary
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (6.5K ratings)4.8 (41 ratings) — better
Positive reviews61.7% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings6.5K — better41
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.6 — better18
Further details — not scored
Size42 MB212 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperProtection & Security App LLCRABBITEYE LAB LLP

Customer experience

Digital Journal Diary

All ratings6,516 ratings
Positive88.5%
Neutral5.6%
Negative5.8%
Written reviews384 reviews
Positive61.7%
Neutral11.7%
Negative26.6%

PencilDiary

All ratings41 ratings
Positive97.6%
Neutral0.0%
Negative2.4%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Digital Journal Diary

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Entries not saving on the correct date
  • App crashes when trying to record audio
  • Inability to change or recover password

Requested features

5 requests
  • Longer video/audio recording duration
  • More customization options for moods and themes
  • Ability to edit or delete entries
  • Improved backup and sync functionality
  • Better organization and navigation

PencilDiary

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Digital Journal Diary

Subscriptions3
  • Monthly3 Days trial$4.991 Month
  • Weekly3 Days trial$9.997 Days
  • Yearly3 Days trial$49.991 Year
One-time1
  • Journal Lifetime$19.99
2 purchases

PencilDiary

One-time2
  • Premium$19.99
  • Premium$49.99

Questions

Is Digital Journal Diary free?
Digital Journal Diary is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is PencilDiary free?
PencilDiary is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Digital Journal Diary or PencilDiary?
PencilDiary is rated higher. Digital Journal Diary averages 4.6 out of 5 from 6.5K ratings, while PencilDiary averages 4.8 from 41 ratings.
Do Digital Journal Diary or PencilDiary have ads?
Neither Digital Journal Diary nor PencilDiary shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Digital Journal Diary or PencilDiary?
Digital Journal Diary ships an update every 2 weeks, and PencilDiary weekly. Most recently, Digital Journal Diary was updated on October 20, 2026 and PencilDiary on October 21, 2026.

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