Comparison

Notebook vs Simple Q&A Diary

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

Head to head
About

Notebook

This app offers a natural journaling experience by organizing daily notes on a single page, allowing you to flip through your entries like a physical book. It prioritizes simplicity, security with passcode locks, and seamless iCloud synchronization for easy access across devices.

Highlights
  • Realistic page-turning effect
  • One page per day organization
  • iCloud sync and backup
  • Passcode lock with Face ID/Touch ID
  • Dark mode and font adjustment
  • Ad-free Premium option
Features
Read full description

Keep daily notes and diary entries together on one page. Turn pages like a book and revisit your past entries. Search, iCloud sync, and a passcode lock help you organize and access your notes. Core features are free; ad removal is a one-time purchase. ■ Your day on one page See the notes and diary entries you write each day together on one page. Swipe or tap to turn pages and look back on everyday moments and memories. ■ Find past entries Use the contents list or search to find a note you want to revisit. Change a note's date to record plans or past events. ■ Make reading and writing comfortable Adjust the text size or use Dark Mode. Copy, print, or share your notes. ■ Protect access with a passcode Lock access to your diary with a passcode. Face ID / Touch ID is available on supported devices. ■ Sync between devices with iCloud With iCloud sync enabled, notes synchronize automatically between devices using the same Apple Account. iCloud sync is enabled by default for new installations. iCloud Drive and Notebook's iCloud access must be enabled, with available storage and a network connection. Synchronization may take time. iCloud sync and device backups are separate features. Check your sync status and backups before changing devices. ■ Recover deleted notes Recover notes within 30 days of deletion from Recently Deleted in Settings. ■ Remove ads with a one-time purchase Core features are free. Premium removes ads with a one-time purchase, not a subscription. After changing devices, use Restore Purchases with the Apple Account used for your purchase. Over 2 million downloads worldwide. Rated 4.7 out of 5 from over 21,000 ratings across all countries and regions (October 2026). Capture your everyday moments, one page at a time.

About

Simple Q&A Diary

This journaling app simplifies tracking your life by having you answer a set of questions instead of writing long entries. Customize your questions to focus on habits, productivity, mood, or fitness, making journaling faster and more consistent.

Highlights
  • Answer questions instead of writing essays
  • Fully customizable questions
  • Entries viewable by day or grouped by question
  • Export data as plain text
  • Track habits, productivity, mood, and fitness
  • Numeric answers visualized as graphs
Features
Read full description

In this journaling app you answer a set of questions regularly. This makes journaling faster, more focused, and easier to stick with. You decide what to track - and you can change your questions at any time. Want to lose weight? Add questions like “What did I eat today?” or “How many miles did I run?” Want to improve your habits, productivity, or mood? Just ask the right questions. Answering the same questions daily (or weekly) helps you stay aware, consistent, and goal-oriented. Key ideas - You journal by answering questions, not writing essays - Questions are fully customizable - Entries can be viewed by day or grouped by question - All data can be exported as plain text, so you always own it Free features - One question list with up to 2 questions - Edit your questions at any time (existing entries stay intact) - Text, numeric, and yes/no question types - Skip questions and answer them later — entries remember unanswered questions - Edit or delete any entry - Create entries gradually throughout the day (perfect for gym workouts, habit tracking, or quick notes) - Group entries by question - Search your entire diary - View numeric answers as graphs - Export your diary as plain text and copy it anywhere - Import, export, back up, and restore entries via email - iCloud backup - Custom URL scheme (to open the app from a launcher): simpleqadiary:// Paid features - One template (or list of questions) with unlimited number of questions - Unlimited templates (multiple question lists for different goals) Simple Q&A Diary is ideal for habit tracking, self-reflection, fitness logs, productivity monitoring, and anyone who wants a structured, low-friction journaling system. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Notebook4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Simple Q&A Diary at none against Notebook's shown. Simple Q&A Diary also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 72%) and rating (5.0 vs 4.7). Notebook's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 2 months) and ratings volume (14K vs 5). On price, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Notebook sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Simple Q&A Diary sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Simple Q&A Diary holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Notebook has 14K ratings behind it against 5, 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 100% of Simple Q&A Diary's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Notebook ships an update weekly, Simple Q&A Diary every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Notebook versus Simple Q&A Diary: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNotebookSimple Q&A Diary
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (14K ratings)5.0 (5 ratings) — better
Positive reviews72.5% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings14K — better5
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 2 months
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.015.6 — better
Further details — not scored
Size25 MB12 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperKoji ItoKaren Grigorian

Customer experience

Notebook

All ratings14,317 ratings
Positive94.0%
Neutral3.2%
Negative2.8%
Written reviews276 reviews
Positive72.5%
Neutral12.3%
Negative15.2%

Simple Q&A Diary

All ratings5 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Notebook

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • 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

5 requests
  • 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

Simple Q&A Diary

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Notebook

One-time1
  • Remove Ads$6.99
4 purchases

Simple Q&A Diary

Subscriptions3
  • One Template$1.991 Month
  • Unlimited Templates (monthly)$3.991 Month
  • Unlimited Templates (yearly)$34.991 Year
One-time1
  • Unlimited templates$69.99

Questions

Is Notebook free?
Notebook is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Simple Q&A Diary free?
Simple Q&A Diary is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Notebook or Simple Q&A Diary?
Simple Q&A Diary is rated higher. Notebook averages 4.7 out of 5 from 14K ratings, while Simple Q&A Diary averages 5.0 from 5 ratings.
Do Notebook or Simple Q&A Diary have ads?
Notebook shows ads; Simple Q&A Diary does not.
Which is updated more often, Notebook or Simple Q&A Diary?
Notebook ships an update weekly, and Simple Q&A Diary every 2 months. Most recently, Notebook was updated on October 27, 2026 and Simple Q&A Diary on October 22, 2026.

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