# JournalCircle vs Lysto

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Lysto at none against JournalCircle's 3. JournalCircle's advantage is device support (3 vs 1). On price, update cadence, ads and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. JournalCircle sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Lysto asks for nothing beyond the download.

JournalCircle ships an update every 5 days, Lysto every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on November 12, 2026 and November 11, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | JournalCircle | Lysto |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.9 (27 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/journalcircle-diary-and-journal/id6448851631/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **27** | — |
| Positive reviews | 83.8% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 5 days | **Every 3 days** |
| Monetization | Freemium | — |
| Size | 38 MB | 125 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | 16.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Mac** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Genau Factory](https://appshunter.io/developer/1512838460) | [David Jarosch](https://appshunter.io/developer/1890486539) |

## What reviewers say

### JournalCircle

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/journalcircle-diary-and-journal/id6448851631)

This app helps you record your daily life with AI-powered journaling, voice notes, and mood tracking. It offers entry analysis and flexible views to understand your thoughts and emotions over time. Its clean design encourages consistent use.

**Highlights:** AI-powered journaling, Voice journaling with speech-to-text, Mood, routine, and goal tracking, Automatic entry analysis, Flexible weekly, monthly, yearly views, Clean and calm interface

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support, iPhone Duo support

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly | $3.99 | per month |
| Yearly | $24.99 | per year |
| Lifetime | $59.99 | one-time |


### Lysto

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/lysto/id6761619405)

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is JournalCircle free?

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

### Is Lysto free?

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

### Do JournalCircle or Lysto have ads?

Neither JournalCircle nor Lysto shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, JournalCircle or Lysto?

JournalCircle ships an update every 5 days, and Lysto every 3 days. Most recently, JournalCircle was updated on November 12, 2026 and Lysto on November 11, 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.*