Penzu vs Campfire
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Penzu
This app provides a secure and private space for journaling, note-taking, and storing personal thoughts. It offers robust security features like password and PIN locks, encryption, and cloud syncing across devices. Users can also add photos and tags to their entries, making it a comprehensive digital diary.
- Unlimited journaling
- Cloud sync for free
- Password and PIN locks
- Journal encryption
- Add photos to entries
- Search and tag entries
- Offline writing
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*Used by over 1 million people around the world *Best free journal in any app store *Syncs to the web and other mobile platforms for free Penzu is the most popular free diary, journal and notepad. It’s the best place to keep your most private thoughts safe and secure. Sync your journals to Penzu where your notes are accessible from almost any device in the world. So simple and fun that you’ll leave your paper diary behind! FEATURES *Unlimited journaling *Sync journals with Penzu cloud for free *Customize your journal covers *Lock journals with a password *Encrypt your journals *Add photos *Lock app with a PIN *Search journals *Add tags *Write offline and more... WHY PENZU? Penzu is a diary and personal journal that is focused on privacy. With a unique and compelling user experience, it makes writing online as easy and intuitive as writing on a pad of paper. PRIVACY Your journal and your thoughts aren’t always meant to be shared — some things are supposed to be private! Use Penzu to jot down whatever you want. Then lock your journal with a password (or even encryption) so no one can read it but you! Furthermore, you can lock the entire app with a PIN in the event that someone gets access to your mobile device. PENZU Unlike other journal apps, Penzu has a web-based counterpart. So you can access your journals and diary from any web browser and other devices. Penzu is constantly being updated and improved so that the writing experience is effortless and reliable. SUBSCRIPTION INFO This app is free to download but requires a free Penzu account in order to start writing. Upgrading to Penzu Pro is available for a small monthly or yearly subscription. Your subscription will auto-renew unless you cancel manually. Monthly subscriptions are $4.99 USD and renew every month. Yearly subscriptions are $19.99 USD and renew every year. You can see our privacy policy here: http://penzu.com/m/privacy You can read our terms of use here: http://penzu.com/m/terms
Campfire
This app streamlines the writing process for books, stories, and RPG campaigns. It offers interconnected tools for worldbuilding, character tracking, and plot organization, allowing for seamless collaboration and easy access to information. Write, edit, and organize your projects anywhere with unlimited storage.
- Custom character sheets
- Worldbuilding tools (creatures, locations, magic)
- Timeline plotting and map uploads
- Write, read, and edit on mobile
- Collaborate with editors and contributors
- Export to PDF, DOCX, HTML, RTF
- Unlimited cloud storage
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Whether you want to write a book, tabletop RPG campaign, short story, or just create for fun, Campfire’s writing software streamlines the writing process to make beginning your project more efficient and staying on track easier. Campfire’s interconnected tools make for a seamless worldbuilding experience where you can quickly reference information, link story elements together, and collaborate with other users in one place. Whether you’re an author, worldbuilder, game master, or a hobbyist creator—nobody wants to spend half an hour sifting through old notebooks trying to find out what color a character’s eyes are. Get started with Campfire for free—We've already made writing easier for 100,000+ writers to date! MORE THAN A DOZEN MODULES Modules are what we call the writing tools that allow you to worldbuild and stay organized in Campfire. On the mobile app, each one is free to use. Here’s a sample of what they can do: • Keep track of what makes your characters unique with custom character sheets for your novels, short stories, and TTRPGs. • Build worlds with exciting creatures, locations, magic systems, and more. • Plot your story with timeline events and upload maps of your story’s world. Enjoy unlimited use for each module when using the mobile app! WRITE, READ, EDIT, AND ORGANIZE Campfire is more than just a writing app or a simple word processor. Whether at home or on the go, Campfire allows you to: • Write a whole book on your phone (if you really want to). • Read over your notes or review your manuscript chapters. • Edit your notes and stories wherever inspiration strikes. • Organize your notes in the way that works best for you. COLLABORATE WITH ANYONE Campfire allows you to work seamlessly on your projects with editors and contributors. • Invite other Campfire users to join you on mobile or desktop! • Send read-only links to anyone who you want to read your work. • Export files to PDF, DOCX, HTML, or RTF. 100% FREE + UNLIMITED STORAGE That’s right—free. Create as many projects as you like, work without any blocked features, and rest assured knowing that your work is saved on Google’s secure cloud servers: • Campfire’s mobile app is free to download and use. • Write without limits. • No ads (they’re just too distracting). • Unlimited secure storage. • Free updates and bug fixes. Whether your genre is fantasy, sci-fi, horror, or even realistic fiction, Campfire has the tools you need to write better stories faster. It’s perfect for seasoned authors, fledgling writers, and making sure DnD night with your friends runs smoothly. Download Campfire and start writing wherever you go for free. Use the same account on our Desktop App or on campfirewriting.com and you can pick up where you left off from home! Join the Campfire Discord community to stay in touch and chat with other writers like you: https://campsite.bio/campfirewriting
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Campfire at none against Penzu's 3. Penzu's advantage is ratings volume (2.5K vs 182). On price, rating, review sentiment and update cadence 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
Both are free to download. Penzu sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Campfire asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.2 for Penzu against 4.3 for Campfire. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Penzu has 2.5K ratings behind it against 182, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 52% of Penzu's written reviews are positive against 44% of Campfire's.
Penzu ships an update weekly, Campfire fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 21, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Penzu | Campfire |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.2 (2.5K ratings) | 4.3 (182 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 52.0% of reviews — better | 44.4% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 2.5K — better | 182 |
| Update frequency | Weekly — better | Fortnightly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 62 MB | 76 MB |
| Age rating | 9+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Penzu Inc. | Campfire Technology LLC |
Customer experience
Penzu
Campfire
User reviews
Penzu
From 2.5K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Easy to use
- 🔒 Secure and private
- 📝 Convenient journaling on the go
- 🗓️ Helpful reminders and date tracking
- 💻 Syncs across devices
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🔑 Password issues and lockout problems
- 📁 Syncing and data loss issues
- 📱 Limited functionality on mobile app
- 💰 Expensive premium subscription
Campfire
From 182 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Organized writing and planning
- 👍 Versatile and customizable
- 💡 Helpful for writers and world-builders
- 🚀 Syncs across devices
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and freezes
- 🐛 Glitchy behavior and bugs
- 🐛 Keyboard issues and text disappearing
- 🐛 Laggy performance
Bugs and requests
Penzu
Reported bugs
3 issues- Keyboard disappearing during use
- Entries not saving or syncing properly
- Inability to access account after updates
Requested features
4 requests- More customization options for fonts, themes, and layouts
- Ability to export/backup journal entries
- Improved mobile app stability and features
- Better customer support and communication
Campfire
Reported bugs
4 issues- Login issues and getting logged out
- Inability to delete unwanted elements
- Attributes and chapters disappearing
- Inconsistencies between mobile and desktop versions
Requested features
6 requests- Offline mode for travel
- Proper iPad/tablet support
- Word count feature
- Undo/redo functionality
- Ability to rearrange elements and panels
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- More customization options
In-app purchases
Penzu
- Penzu Pro Subscription$4.991 Month
- Penzu Pro Subscription$19.991 Year
- Penzu Pro Upgrade$18.99
Campfire
No in-app purchases









