# Text Diary vs Journalous

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Text Diary at none against Journalous's 2. Journalous's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 5 days vs every 2 months). On price and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Journalous sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 per year. Text Diary asks for nothing beyond the download.

Text Diary ships an update every 2 months, Journalous every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Text Diary | Journalous |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.6 (7 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/text-diary-journal-notebook/id1620144716/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **7** | — |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Every 5 days** |
| Monetization | Ad-supported | — |
| Size | 10 MB | 38 MB |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | **16.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [FugaPiyo Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1497887610) | [Retrosquare LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1893126574) |

## What reviewers say

### Text Diary

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/text-diary-journal-notebook/id1620144716)

A free and simple text-based journaling app that allows unlimited entries. Organize your thoughts with folders, colors, and tags, and easily search or filter your past entries. Enjoy a comfortable user experience with quick startup and dark mode.

**Highlights:** Unlimited daily diary entries, Organize by folder, color, tag, Searchable diary entries, Filter by date or tag, Quick startup and comfortable operation, Dark mode support, Completely free to use

**In-app purchases:** none


### Journalous

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/journalous/id6762149165)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Journalous Plus - Extended Plan | $14.99 | per year |
| Journalous Plus - Ultimate Plan | $39.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Text Diary free?

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

### Is Journalous free?

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

### Do Text Diary or Journalous have ads?

Text Diary shows ads; Journalous does not.

### Which is updated more often, Text Diary or Journalous?

Text Diary ships an update every 2 months, and Journalous every 5 days. Most recently, Text Diary was updated on October 24, 2026 and Journalous 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.*