Paper Diary 2 vs HW Journal
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Paper Diary 2
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Paper Diary 2は,紙の手帳のように気軽なiOS筆記手帳アプリです. 以前リリースしていた無料版Paper Diaryの有料版になります.以下の特徴があります. ・シンプルなホリゾンタル手帳. ・ログイン無くすぐに筆記可能(Apple Pencilは当然快適として,サードパーティ製のペンでも十分快適です).キーボード入力は一切搭載せず,筆記に特化. ・Apple純正PencilKit使用で快適に筆記可能. ・パームリジェクション対応(指での誤入力を防ぐためデフォルトではペンのみによる筆記が可). ・iCloud自動保存機能(描画は自ら削除するまで消えません.アプリを削除しても描画はiCloud上に残ります). ・iCloudで異なるiPadやiPhoneと描画を共有(iPhoneでは描画の書き込みはできず閲覧のみ可能). ・罫線の長さを任意に変更可能. ・カレンダー連携(Apple純正カレンダーアプリの予定を表示できます). ・テーマカラー変更可能機能. ・ロック機能 ・ダークモード対応. 1度の購入でiPad,iPhone両方でダウンロードして使えるユニバーサルアプリです. おいしい数学X(Twitter)アカウント@oicmath にて随時開発の情報発信や質問対応等行っております. ご意見ご要望はお気軽にお問合せ,X(Twitter)アカウントからお願いします. ※当ページ下部の,デベロッパWebサイトのリンクからもアプリの詳細が確認できます.
HW Journal
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Work plans, personal errands, and the thoughts that pop up in between. Your whole day, in a notebook that is yours alone. HW Journal is a notebook app for people who love to write by hand. Write and expand ideas on iPad; check tomorrow and wrap up the day on iPhone. Two devices, one notebook. ■ What you didn't finish comes back to you Circle something, or underline it, with the Carry-over Pen, and it moves to the top of tomorrow's page at its original size. It stays every day until you erase it, so even if you forget you wrote it down, it finds you. Each morning, Today's Summary gathers carried-over items, events, and to-dos in one place. ■ A big A3 page to write freely (new in 2.0) The memo area is one full A3 sheet. In portrait you see the A4 half; slide right to reach the rest. Whatever the device or orientation, what you wrote looks the same. ■ Photos and stickers Place photos, rotate them, resize them. Lift the subject out of a photo and stick it on the page as a sticker. ■ Sticky notes Small handwritten notes you can put anywhere on the screen. ■ Daily records beside the date Show medication, blood pressure, weight, steps, and trash-day reminders next to the date. Turn off whatever you don't use, one by one. Health records are stored only on your device, never in iCloud. Connecting to Health is optional and off by default. ■ A small touch for other pens If you use a pen other than Apple Pencil, double-tap the page with a finger to switch between pen and eraser (turn it on in Settings). You can also trigger the switch from the Shortcuts app. ■ And more - Day view, week view, and month calendar, linked with Apple Calendar and Reminders - Five-year diary and Day Diary, protected by Face ID or passcode - Extra pages with blank, ruled, or grid backgrounds, plus PDF markup - Holiday colors, and Japanese rokuyo, holiday names, and weather - Touch mode lets you use the app with just your finger - Most display items can be switched on or off in Settings - You can go back to the previous layout (1.x): Settings > Display & Layout > Screen Layout ■ Pricing The app itself is free. The Supporters Pack (one-time purchase) unlocks more pages, backgrounds, search, passcode lock, and more. Tips are also available. ■ Note If you use both iPad and iPhone, update both to 2.0 before using.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: HW Journal at Free against Paper Diary 2's $2.99. HW Journal also leads on update cadence (every 4 days vs monthly). Paper Diary 2's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.4). On ads 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
HW Journal is free to download; Paper Diary 2 costs $2.99 up front. HW Journal sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Paper Diary 2 asks for nothing beyond the download.
Paper Diary 2 ships an update monthly, HW Journal every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Paper Diary 2 | HW Journal |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $2.99 | Free — better |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Every 4 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 — better | 26.4 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 3 MB | 19 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Akira Hiraoka | KAZUTO IIDA |
In-app purchases
Paper Diary 2
No in-app purchases
HW Journal
- Tip Small$1.99
- Tip (Large)$3.99
- HW Journal PRO$6.99









