Comparison

Moment Diary (journal) vs Diary! SmartDiary

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

Head to head
About

Moment Diary (journal)

This private diary app allows you to record your thoughts and experiences through text, voice memos, videos, and photos, all automatically timestamped. It offers robust backup, restore, and export options, along with security features like passcode lock and the ability to sync with other devices.

Highlights
  • Timestamped entries
  • Text, voice, video, and photo support
  • Export notes and pictures
  • Backup and restore functionality
  • Passcode lock
  • Data sync with other devices
Features
Read full description

Great news! This is a private diary that makes notes with timestamps! You can take a short note and use it as a private diary, simple business note, diet record, food log, lifetime recording, cash flow record, jotting down what you watch on TV, song titles while you listen to radio...etc. You can take a note in the form of text, vocal memos, videos and photos. This app adds a timestamp to it. Please remember you can not post it to online social services. This is for private use. Please feel free to ask any questions. (in English please!) i[at]momentdiary.com Functions: - Exporting your notes to your email address. You can select your intended range of span of dates. - Backup/Restore function is available. To use this function, WiFi connection is required. *Backup: This shows your device's IP address and when you enter it to your web browser on Mac/PC, you can download backup data(.dat) and CSV data(.csv). *Restore: After you get backup data(.dat3) on your Mac/PC, you can transfer it to any of your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch. Restoring does not delete existing data. It adds or overwrites data from backup. Please make sure the latest updated entry will be protected when overwriting. - Passcode (4-digit-numbers) lock supported as a security function. You can easily change on/off of the lock. Please do not forget your passcode. When you forget it, the only way to unlock it is to try entering the numbers until you hit it. - Picture support. Please go to setting page and turn on 'Picture' switch for this function. - You can choose three ways for exporting your picture. 1) email picture with original size, 2) email smaller picture for mobile phone, 3) add to photo library of iPhone/iPod touch. - Changing background color. - Button positions adjustment for Right-handed or Left-handed users. - Function for adding photos to past notes. - Date display option for exporting. You can choose a date display mode from 'every Moment' or 'every Day'. 'every Day' option is for bloggers. - Time Machine Function which enable you to jump to desired date. Please go to Calendar page and tap the month and year display on the top of the page. - Favorite icon can be used. Please go to Setting page-> Options->Sub icon, and select 'star' mark. - Couple Diary (Data sync): It enables to sync your diary to different devices via server. It is easy. Please sync your iPhone-iPad, or share your diary with your friends. Please tap the arrow button on the main page (list page) and select 'Couple Diary' to start. ----------- Cloud Storage (Candy free transferring). Please read followings before you buy: This is MONTHLY charge. Price: Tier 2(1.99USD,1.49GBP,2.79CAD,2.49 AUD,2.99 NZD)/month - Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase. - Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. - Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, and identify the cost of the renewal. - Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user’s Account Settings after purchase. - No cancellation of the current subscription is allowed during active subscription period. Privacy policy: http://momentdiary.com/privacypolicy.pdf Terms of use: http://momentdiary.com/termsofuse.pdf ----------- URL scheme ----------- 1. for launch momentdiary://?t=URL_encoded_string 2. for launch & write momentdiary://?m=edit&t=URL_encoded_string (for launch & search) momentdiary://?m=search&t=URL_encoded_string -- example for 'food' momentdiary://?m=search&t=food -- example for 'birth day' momentdiary://?m=search&t=birth+day (white space should be replaced by '+') -- example for multi-bytes characters '星' momentdiary://?m=search&t=%E6%98%9F (percent escaped characters can be used) --- Many thanks for your feedbacks and have fun!

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.

Screenshots

Moment Diary (journal)4 screens
Diary! SmartDiary4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Diary! SmartDiary at 4.6 against Moment Diary (journal)'s 3.5. Diary! SmartDiary also leads on monetization model (free with in-app purchases vs subscription) and review sentiment (93% vs 73%). Moment Diary (journal)'s advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 3 months). On price, ratings volume, in-app purchases and device support 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. Moment Diary (journal) sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and Diary! SmartDiary sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. 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 3.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 60 and 45 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 73% of Moment Diary (journal)'s written reviews are positive against 93% of Diary! SmartDiary's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Moment Diary (journal) ships an update every 3 weeks, Diary! SmartDiary every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Moment Diary (journal) versus Diary! SmartDiary: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMoment Diary (journal)Diary! SmartDiary
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.5 (60 ratings)4.6 (45 ratings) — better
Positive reviews73.1% of reviews93.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings60 — better45
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscriptionFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS26.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size10 MB12 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTomonari SonodaHideki Okuno

Customer experience

Moment Diary (journal)

All ratings59 ratings
Positive61.0%
Neutral8.5%
Negative30.5%
Written reviews834 reviews
Positive73.1%
Neutral10.0%
Negative16.9%

Diary! SmartDiary

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

Bugs and requests

Moment Diary (journal)

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Entries disappearing or getting corrupted
  • Password reset and recovery not working
  • Syncing issues between iPhone and iPad
  • Calendar and date-related bugs after updates

Requested features

5 requests
  • Cloud backup and sync options
  • More customization for themes, fonts, and layouts
  • Improved search and filtering tools
  • Ability to add reminders and set recurring entries
  • Export options for PDF or other formats

Diary! SmartDiary

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Moment Diary (journal)

Subscriptions1
  • Cloud Storage (monthly)1 Month trial$1.991 Month
One-time9
  • Leopard$1.99
  • Zebra Stripe$1.99
  • +10 Stickers$1.99
Show 6 more
  • +10 Stickers 2$1.99
  • Stickers Expression$1.99
  • Stickers Lifestyle2$1.99
  • Polka Dots$2.99
  • Polka Dots Navy Blue$2.99
  • Polka Dots Pink$2.99
1 purchases

Diary! SmartDiary

One-time1
  • Remove Ads$2.99

Questions

Is Moment Diary (journal) free?
Moment Diary (journal) is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Diary! SmartDiary free?
Diary! SmartDiary is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Moment Diary (journal) or Diary! SmartDiary?
Diary! SmartDiary is rated higher. Moment Diary (journal) averages 3.5 out of 5 from 60 ratings, while Diary! SmartDiary averages 4.6 from 45 ratings.
Do Moment Diary (journal) or Diary! SmartDiary have ads?
Diary! SmartDiary shows ads; Moment Diary (journal) does not.
Which is updated more often, Moment Diary (journal) or Diary! SmartDiary?
Moment Diary (journal) ships an update every 3 weeks, and Diary! SmartDiary every 3 months. Most recently, Moment Diary (journal) was updated on November 1, 2026 and Diary! SmartDiary on November 2, 2026.

Other comparisons