Comparison

Daily Ink vs Five Year Diary

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

Head to head
About

Daily Ink

Capture your daily moments with simple drawings in a visual journal. This app transforms your scribbles into a year-long mosaic of memories, requiring no artistic skill. It's a private, offline way to build a creative habit and cherish your experiences.

Highlights
  • Daily drawing canvas
  • Yearly grid view
  • Daily carousel view
  • Dark mode
  • Home screen widget
  • Export as GIF or PNG
  • Offline functionality
  • Private by design
Features
Read full description

What if you drew one tiny doodle every day? Not a masterpiece — just a moment. Daily Ink turns your daily scribbles into a beautiful visual journal, one drawing at a time. No artistic talent required. Seriously. YOUR YEAR, ONE DOODLE AT A TIME Each day, you get a blank canvas. Draw whatever comes to mind — your morning coffee, a funny thing your cat did, the weather, your mood. It takes less than a minute. Over time, these tiny drawings become something unexpectedly beautiful: a visual diary of your entire year. NO TALENT? PERFECT. Daily Ink isn't for artists. It's for humans. Stick figures welcome. Wobbly circles encouraged. The whole point is capturing a moment, not creating a masterpiece. If you can hold your phone, you can use Daily Ink. SEE YOUR YEAR COME ALIVE Watch your yearly grid fill up day by day. Each cell holds one of your drawings, creating a colorful mosaic of your life. Scroll through and remember moments you would've forgotten. It's like a scrapbook you actually keep up with. FEATURES YOU'LL LOVE • Daily Drawing Canvas — Simple tools, zero learning curve. Just draw. • Yearly Grid View — See your entire year at a glance • Daily Carousel — Flip through your drawings one by one • Dark Mode — Beautiful dark theme for late-night doodling • Home Screen Widget — Your latest drawing, right on your home screen • Export as GIF or PNG — Share animated replays or still images • Completely Offline — No account needed. Your drawings stay on your device. • Private by Design — No tracking, no cloud uploads, no social features BUILD A HABIT THAT ACTUALLY STICKS Unlike journaling with words, drawing takes almost no effort. One minute. One doodle. That's it. Before you know it, you've built a creative habit and a year of visual memories you'll treasure. Daily Ink. Draw your day. Keep your year. Try Daily Ink for free. After your trial, subscriptions auto-renew unless canceled at least 24 hours before the trial ends. Privacy Policy: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1963b1PYa5NwVKUpZ80Ph1OEbHDkxQCOE-eP2xas2-os/preview?tab=t.0 Terms of Service: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Five Year Diary

Features
Read full description

Write today, and the same day last year - and the year before that - line up right below it. 5 Year Diary lets you see five years of one date on a single page. [Meet yourself, a year ago] - Five years of the same date, stacked on one page - While you write today, you can go and meet who you were last year - A few lines is enough, which is what makes it easy to keep [Quiet by design, never scolding] - No streak counts, no "you have reached 30 days" - Days you did not write are simply left as they are (no "missing" marks) - Only the total number you have written is shown, quietly - No character limit. A short day and a day you want to write are equally fine [Built to protect your diary] - Records are kept inside this device only (nothing is sent anywhere) - A backup is taken automatically every day, so you can restore if something happens - App lock (Face ID or your device passcode) keeps it away from other eyes [Made to be safe to use] - No ads - Nothing is sent to any AI. Your diary never leaves your phone - Dark mode supported [About in-app purchase] - Exporting your diary as a PDF is a one-time 200 yen purchase (no subscription). Writing, reading, the daily automatic backup and everything else stay free either way A year from now, when you open this day, today will be here waiting. That is 5 Year Diary.

Screenshots

Daily Ink4 screens
Five Year Diary4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Five Year Diary at none against Daily Ink's 3. Five Year Diary also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 3 weeks). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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. Daily Ink sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Five Year Diary asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Daily Ink ships an update every 3 weeks, Five Year Diary weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
Daily Ink versus Five Year Diary: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDaily InkFive Year Diary
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (2 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.415.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size67 MB33 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperHugoDuarteAKIHIRO MATSUYAMA

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Daily Ink

Subscriptions2
  • Pro Monthly$1.991 Month
  • Pro Yearly$9.991 Year
One-time1
  • Pro Lifetime$14.99
None

Five Year Diary

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Daily Ink free?
Daily Ink is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Five Year Diary free?
Five Year Diary is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Daily Ink or Five Year Diary have ads?
Neither Daily Ink nor Five Year Diary shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Daily Ink or Five Year Diary?
Daily Ink ships an update every 3 weeks, and Five Year Diary weekly. Most recently, Daily Ink was updated on October 22, 2026 and Five Year Diary on October 20, 2026.

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