Comparison

PetBuddy vs Pet Journal

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

Head to head
About

PetBuddy

Features
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PetBuddy helps you keep the everyday details of pet care in one place, with optional backup and restore for Pro members. Start with one pet on the free plan, then add more pets with PetBuddy Pro. Record health information, plan routines, set reminders, save documents, and keep a journal of the moments you want to remember. Stay on top of feeding, walks, grooming, medication, appointments, and other care tasks with simple logs and reminders. Add vaccinations, medications, weight, growth entries, visits, notes, and supporting documents so useful information is easier to find when you need it. Free limits apply to some features, including one pet, one active reminder, selected record and document limits, and a limited number of journal entries. See the app for the current limits. Before an appointment, review the Vet Visit Pack preview built from your pet’s saved identity, notes, health information, medications, vaccinations, concerns, visits, and documents. The pack turns those details into a clear document you can review. Preview is available to everyone; sharing and printing require PetBuddy Pro. The pack organises information you provide and does not diagnose conditions or replace veterinary advice. Make a story from your pet’s week. Choose a local calendar week, select from six styles—scrapbook, photo journal, numbers, polaroid, minimal, and grid—review the result, and share it as an image. This feature uses local pet, journal, care, and photo data and does not require an account or network service. BACK UP AND RESTORE Back up your pet data to iCloud and restore it when needed with PetBuddy Pro. Cloud backup is optional. PetBuddy Pro also adds multiple pets, expanded limits, an ad-free experience, and premium tools such as PDF sharing and printing, calendar export, wellness trends, advanced badges, and the Health Assistant. Subscriptions are available monthly or yearly and renew automatically unless cancelled in your Apple Account settings at least 24 hours before the current period ends. A lifetime one-time purchase may also be offered where shown in the app. Prices, taxes, plans, trial eligibility, and availability are displayed in the purchase screen before payment. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://www.petbuddyapp.com/privacy.html

About

Pet Journal

Read full description

Make everyday care easier with TailNotes. Keep a diary for your pets, save notes and documents, track weight, and organize care reminders. See today’s tasks across your pets while keeping each pet’s history together. Save a feeding plan using the daily amount from the food package or your veterinarian. Divide it into meals, choose feeding times and mark who has fed your pet. TailNotes does not prescribe the daily amount. Invite a loved one to care together. Both caregivers can update the shared diary and feeding plan. Feeding marks help you check whether a meal has already been recorded. Create pet cards and missing-pet posters to share the information you choose. TailNotes Plus includes multiple pets of your own, inviting a caregiver and exporting pet cards. Your first pet’s diary, weight, reminders, feeding plan and natural-food calculator remain free. Accepting an invitation is free. Saved pets and existing shared access remain available after your subscription ends. Plus offers weekly, monthly and yearly auto-renewable subscriptions. Prices are shown in the app for your region. Manage or cancel subscriptions in your App Store account settings. Privacy Policy: https://sites.google.com/view/tailnotesprivacy Terms of Use: https://sites.google.com/view/tailnotesterms

Screenshots

PetBuddy4 screens
Pet Journal4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Pet Journal at none against PetBuddy's shown. On price, update cadence, in-app purchases 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. PetBuddy sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Pet Journal sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PetBuddy ships an update every 2 months, Pet Journal monthly. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

Scorecard1 real difference · 7 level
PetBuddy versus Pet Journal: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPetBuddyPet Journal
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsMonthly — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS16.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size91 MB70 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperAtyuha PalElena Anghel

In-app purchases

3 purchases

PetBuddy

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly Premium7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Yearly Premium7 Days trial$29.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime Premium$59.99
3 purchases

Pet Journal

Subscriptions3
  • TailNotes Plus Weekly$2.997 Days
  • TailNotes Plus Monthly$6.991 Month
  • TailNotes Plus Yearly$19.991 Year

Questions

Is PetBuddy free?
PetBuddy is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Pet Journal free?
Pet Journal is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do PetBuddy or Pet Journal have ads?
PetBuddy shows ads; Pet Journal does not.
Which is updated more often, PetBuddy or Pet Journal?
PetBuddy ships an update every 2 months, and Pet Journal monthly. Most recently, PetBuddy was updated on October 24, 2026 and Pet Journal on October 24, 2026.

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