Comparison

Afterthought Journal vs Complete Journal

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

Head to head
About

Afterthought Journal

Effortlessly capture your daily moments with photos and text in a private, personal feed. Stay motivated with streaks and easily revisit cherished memories. Secure your entries with passcode and Face ID protection.

Highlights
  • Unlimited posts
  • Photo and text capture
  • Daily Post Streak
  • Favorite memory marking
  • Private and device-synced posts
  • Passcode and Face ID security
Features
Read full description

Make journaling feel effortless and familiar. Afterthought helps you build a personal feed of memories. Posting is easy so you can capture a moment in seconds. - Unlimited posts - Capture your day with photos and text - Stay motivated with the Daily Post Streak - Mark your favorites to easily rediscover those memories later - Posts are private and stay on your device and synced with your iCloud account - Keep the snoops out with a Passcode and Face ID. Terms: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Complete Journal

Capture your life's moments, layering them year over year to see your personal growth. Record daily entries, goals, milestones, and associate them with people and places. Organize with hashtags and create downloadable keepsakes of your year.

Highlights
  • Daily entries
  • On this day feature
  • Goal tracking
  • Bucket list creation
  • Milestone recording
  • Location and people tagging
  • Hashtag organization
  • Downloadable year keepsakes
Features
Read full description

The Complete Journal is a perpetual life journal. Not a diary that tracks days forward, but one that layers them — year over year, the same days finding each other across time. Open the app on any day and see who you were on that day last year, three years ago, five years ago. Watch your life deepen. One sentence is all it takes to hold a moment forever. There's no blank page anxiety here. By the time you open the app, the day has already happened — you're not performing or creating, just capturing what was true. YOUR LIFE HAS A CAST AND A SETTING The moments that define you don't happen in a vacuum. They happen somewhere. They happen with someone. Complete Journal captures the full picture — not just what happened, but where you were and who was with you. DREAM IT. DO IT. REMEMBER IT. Bucket List — The things you want to do before you're done. Goals — What you're actively working toward. Milestones — The moments that defined you. The chapters of your story. FIND ANY MEMORY INSTANTLY Use hashtags to organize your life the way you actually live it. #familyvacation. #career. #bestfriend. One tap and every moment with that tag comes rushing back — across every year, every version of you. YOUR YEAR, IN FOCUS At the end of every year, Complete Journal becomes something more — a downloadable keepsake that holds your entries, your milestones, your goals, your people, your places. Not a summary. A document of a life. Complete Journal isn't about writing more. It's about losing less. What's inside: — Daily Entries: A simple, fast way to capture each day in your own words — On This Day: See this date layered across every year you've used the app — Goals: Track what you're actively working toward — Bucket List: Hold onto the things you want to do someday, without pressure or deadlines — Milestones: Permanently record the moments that defined you — Places & People: Tag where you were and who mattered, woven into your story — Hashtags: Organize your life the way that makes sense to you — Reflections: Reflect on your favorite memories with monthly and annual recaps — Keepsakes: Turn your year into a memory card, journal, or photo magazine, professionally printed Complete Journal Premium — optional subscription - Length & price: 1 year for $12.00 (auto-renews yearly until canceled) - Payment is charged to your Apple ID at confirmation of purchase. - The subscription renews automatically unless turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel anytime in your Apple ID Account Settings. - Privacy Policy: https://thecompletejournal.com/privacy.html - Terms of Use (EULA): https://thecompletejournal.com/terms.html

Screenshots

Afterthought Journal4 screens
Complete Journal4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Afterthought Journal at every 4 days against Complete Journal's monthly. Afterthought Journal also leads on ratings volume (11 vs 1). On price, rating, ads and in-app purchases 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. Afterthought Journal sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Complete Journal sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $12.00 per year. 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 — 5.0 for Afterthought Journal against 5.0 for Complete Journal. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Afterthought Journal has 11 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Afterthought Journal ships an update every 4 days, Complete Journal monthly. Both last shipped on October 23, 2026.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Afterthought Journal versus Complete Journal: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAfterthought JournalComplete Journal
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (11 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings11 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 4 days — betterMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS15.015.0
Further details — not scored
Size1 MB14 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSeamount Games LLCTiffany Sanchez

Customer experience

Afterthought Journal

All ratings10 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews9 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Complete Journal

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Afterthought Journal

Subscriptions2
  • Afterthought Premium (Monthly)7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Afterthought Premium (Annual)7 Days trial$11.991 Year
1 purchases

Complete Journal

Subscriptions1
  • Complete Journal Premium$12.001 Year

Questions

Is Afterthought Journal free?
Afterthought Journal is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Complete Journal free?
Complete Journal is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Afterthought Journal or Complete Journal?
Afterthought Journal and Complete Journal are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 11 and 1 ratings respectively.
Do Afterthought Journal or Complete Journal have ads?
Neither Afterthought Journal nor Complete Journal shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Afterthought Journal or Complete Journal?
Afterthought Journal ships an update every 4 days, and Complete Journal monthly. Most recently, Afterthought Journal was updated on October 23, 2026 and Complete Journal on October 23, 2026.

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