# Time Notes vs Shine

Time Notes and Shine both sit at 4.2 stars, but that hides the real split: 100% of Shine's written reviews are positive against 75% of Time Notes's. Time Notes's advantage is device support (5 vs 3) and ratings volume (13 vs 4). On price, rating, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Time Notes sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $0.49 per month and Shine sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Time Notes holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 13 and 4 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 75% of Time Notes's written reviews are positive against 100% of Shine's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Time Notes ships an update weekly, Shine every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on June 11, 2026 and June 1, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Time Notes | Shine |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.2 (13 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/time-notes/id1542440090/reviews)** | [4.0 (4 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shine-timeline-diary/id1673213224/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **13** | 4 |
| Positive reviews | 75.0% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Weekly | **Every 5 days** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Size | 36 MB | 106 MB |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 | 14.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 9+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [晓庆 张](https://appshunter.io/developer/1268921589) | [晓松 高](https://appshunter.io/developer/1507839334) |

## What reviewers say

### Time Notes

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/time-notes/id1542440090)

This app helps you create a personal timeline of your life's experiences. Record daily stories, track moods, water intake, finances, and movie progress. Enjoy cross-platform support, secure iCloud sync, and privacy-focused local storage.

**Highlights:** Personal timeline creation, Daily story and memory archiving, Mood and water intake tracking, Financial and movie progress logging, Cross-platform and iCloud sync, App lock with Face ID/fingerprint, Offline use and search functionality

**Features:** Family Sharing

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly Membership | $0.49 | per month |
| Annual Membership | $4.49 | per year |
| Life Member | $9.99 | one-time |
| originalPrice | $9.99 | one-time |


### Shine

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shine-timeline-diary/id1673213224)

This app allows you to create a personalized journal with customizable themes, colors, and tags. Record your daily thoughts, track your mood, and even add location and weather data to your entries. Export your diary in PDF or HTML format for easy sharing.

**Highlights:** Customizable themes and colors, Location and weather tracking, PDF and HTML export, Calendar and gallery views, Voice diary recording, Rich emotional expressions with emojis, WebDAV and iCloud sync

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 连续包月 | $0.99 | per month |
| 连续包年 | $6.99 | per year |
| 买断 | $39.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Time Notes free?

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

### Is Shine free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Time Notes or Shine?

Time Notes is rated higher. Time Notes averages 4.2 out of 5 from 13 ratings, while Shine averages 4.0 from 4 ratings.

### Do Time Notes or Shine have ads?

Neither Time Notes nor Shine shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Time Notes or Shine?

Time Notes ships an update weekly, and Shine every 5 days. Most recently, Time Notes was updated on June 11, 2026 and Shine on June 1, 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.*