Comparison

Dot Journal vs Visual reminders + widget

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

Head to head
About

Dot Journal

Features
Read full description

Dot Journal is a planner for people who run their days on lists. Tasks, events, habits, moods and notes live in one calm, text-first journal. It is quick to add to, easy to rearrange, and kept on your iPhone. PLAN THE WHOLE YEAR, ONE DRAG AT A TIME • Day, Week, Month and Year views. Swipe between them; the next page is already there. • Drag a task to another day, another week or the Inbox. Drag across the edge of the screen to turn the page. • Plan months ahead on the Year view's planning board. • Each week and month has its own Inbox for things without a day yet. ADD ANYTHING IN ONE LINE • Type "Ship deck fri 3pm !!! #urgent @Work". The date, time, priority, tag and list fill themselves in. • One quick entry sheet for tasks, events, notes and moods, from any view. • Close it by accident and what you typed is still there. SEE ONLY WHAT MATTERS • Lists and tags for every project and context. • Set a lens such as "@Work #urgent" and every view shows only those entries. • Save the lenses you use most. They sit in the side menu, one tap away. • Search understands #tags and @lists. TIME YOUR WORK • Start a timer right on the task row. Pause, resume, and see it running from any view. • The time you spend is recorded on the task. KNOW HOW YOUR WEEK WENT • Insights shows how many tasks you finished, a completion trend and a heatmap of your busiest days. • See how much time you spent, for everything or for one lens. HABITS AND MOODS • Track habits with streaks and a recent-days strip. • Log how you feel in two taps and see it next to what you got done. ON YOUR WRIST AND HOME SCREEN • Apple Watch app with complications: check off tasks and add new ones. • Home Screen widgets for today's list. • Share extension: send text or links from any app into your journal. PRIVATE BY DESIGN • Your journal lives on your iPhone. No account, no ads, no tracking. • Optional iCloud sync goes through your own iCloud account, built on Apple's sync engine. • Dot Journal collects no data. FREE AND PREMIUM Dot Journal is free to use, with up to 5 new tasks a day, 3 lists, 5 tags and 1 saved lens. Premium removes every limit and adds iCloud sync: • Monthly or yearly, each with a 1-week free trial • Or a one-time purchase, yours for life Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the period. Manage or cancel them in your App Store account settings. Terms: https://dot.raycar.net/terms.html Privacy: https://dot.raycar.net/privacy.html

About

Visual reminders + widget

Features
Read full description

Visual reminders + widget helps you remember what matters by turning plain reminders into visual cards. Add a logo, a photo / image / picture, or a face next to each reminder so it stands out instantly. Instead of another text-heavy list, you get reminders that are easier to notice on your phone and on your large Home Screen widget. Use Visual reminders + widget to: • create reminders with an image, note, and link • pin them in a clean large widget built for quick scanning • reorder reminders with drag and drop • import images from Photos or from Google Images inside the app • schedule reminder notifications with the image attached when available • mark reminders as done, then review completed history and simple stats Built for people who ignore boring reminder lists and want something more visual, more direct, and easier to notice. Lifetime Pro unlocks unlimited active reminders and multiple notifications per reminder with a one-time purchase. Reminders widget with picture / photo / image & notifications.

Screenshots

Dot Journal4 screens
Visual reminders + widget4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Visual reminders + widget at every 3 days against Dot Journal's every 6 days. Dot Journal's advantage is device support (3 vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price Ā· Rating Ā· Positive reviews Ā· Number of ratings Ā· Update frequency Ā· Ads Ā· In-app purchases Ā· Monetization Ā· Best chart rank Ā· Devices Ā· Requires iOS

CostPrice Ā· In-app purchases Ā· Ads Ā· Monetization

Both are free to download. Dot Journal sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month and Visual reminders + widget sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Dot Journal ships an update every 6 days, Visual reminders + widget every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 28, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences Ā· 4 level
Dot Journal versus Visual reminders + widget: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDot JournalVisual reminders + widget
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 6 daysEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — betteriPhone
Requires iOS17.0 — better18.4
Further details — not scored
Size50 MB2 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperHong Chi LawAbdullah Aguiouaz

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Dot Journal

Subscriptions2
  • Dot Journal Pro Monthly$0.991 Month
  • Dot Journal Pro Yearly$4.991 Year
One-time1
  • Dot Journal Pro Lifetime$9.99
1 purchases

Visual reminders + widget

One-time1
  • Lifetime Pro$4.99

Questions

Is Dot Journal free?
Dot Journal is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Visual reminders + widget free?
Visual reminders + widget is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Dot Journal or Visual reminders + widget have ads?
Neither Dot Journal nor Visual reminders + widget shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Dot Journal or Visual reminders + widget?
Dot Journal ships an update every 6 days, and Visual reminders + widget every 3 days. Most recently, Dot Journal was updated on October 28, 2026 and Visual reminders + widget on October 25, 2026.

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