# Notebook vs TalkJournal

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Notebook at 72% against TalkJournal's 33%. Notebook also leads on ratings volume (14K vs 15) and rating (4.7 vs 4.5). TalkJournal's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (15.1 vs 17.0). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Notebook sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and TalkJournal sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Notebook holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Notebook has 14K ratings behind it against 15, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 72% of Notebook's written reviews are positive against 33% of TalkJournal's.

Notebook ships an update weekly, TalkJournal fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on November 8, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Notebook | TalkJournal |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.7 (14K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notebook-diary-and-journal-app/id654645301/reviews)** | [4.5 (15 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/talkjournal-voice-diary/id6758567103/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **14K** | 15 |
| Positive reviews | **72.5% of reviews** | 33.3% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Fortnightly |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Size | 25 MB | 45 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **15.1** |
| Devices | iPhone | **iPhone, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Koji Ito](https://appshunter.io/developer/334329056) | [Rays Health Technologies LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1829292925) |

## What reviewers say

### Notebook

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notebook-diary-and-journal-app/id654645301)

This app lets you keep daily notes and diary entries organized on a single page, allowing you to revisit past moments. It offers search, passcode protection, and iCloud sync for seamless access across devices. Core features are free, with an option to remove ads via a one-time purchase.

**Highlights:** Daily notes on one page, Searchable past entries, Passcode and Face ID/Touch ID lock, iCloud sync across devices, Adjustable text size and Dark Mode, Recover deleted notes

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

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Remove Ads | $6.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Simple and easy to use
- 🔒 Password protection
- 💡 Convenient for journaling and note-taking
- 🚀 Smooth and responsive
- 👍 Organized by date

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional crashes or glitches
- 🚫 Unable to insert photos or attachments
- 🚫 Limited formatting options
- 🚫 No cloud sync or backup
- 🚫 Not compatible with iPad

**Reported bugs**

- Deleting entries causes the app to crash
- Long entries can cause the app to become unresponsive
- Password feature doesn't always work as expected

**Requested features**

- Add ability to insert photos and attachments
- Implement cloud sync and backup
- Allow more formatting options (font, size, color, bold, italic, etc.)
- Develop an iPad version with optimized layout
- Add a search function to easily find past entries


### TalkJournal

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/talkjournal-voice-diary/id6758567103)

Effortlessly capture your thoughts with a voice-first diary. Speak naturally and get instant, searchable text transcriptions. Enjoy private, offline journaling with a clean interface.

**Highlights:** Voice-to-text transcription, Offline voice recognition, Full-text search, Calendar view, Export journal entries, Dark mode support, Face ID/Touch ID lock

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| TalkJournal | $1.99 | per month |
| TalkJournal | $11.99 | per year |
| TalkJournal | $14.99 | one-time |
| TalkJournal Pro Lifetime 19.99 | $19.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Notebook free?

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

### Is TalkJournal free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Notebook or TalkJournal?

Notebook is rated higher. Notebook averages 4.7 out of 5 from 14K ratings, while TalkJournal averages 4.5 from 15 ratings.

### Do Notebook or TalkJournal have ads?

Notebook shows ads; TalkJournal does not.

### Which is updated more often, Notebook or TalkJournal?

Notebook ships an update weekly, and TalkJournal fortnightly. Most recently, Notebook was updated on November 8, 2026 and TalkJournal on November 5, 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.*