Comparison

passNote vs HelloMe US

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

Head to head
About

passNote

Features
Read full description

Exchange diaries are a traditional form of communication in Japan, where people share their daily experiences and thoughts through a notebook. Even today, they remain popular among young people, offering a slower and more meaningful alternative to social media and instant messaging. With this app, you can easily experience the charm of exchange diaries on your smartphone. Share your daily life, hobbies, and thoughts while getting to know someone little by little. Unlike short messages, exchange diaries help build deeper connections. By taking time to write and respond, you can learn about each other's values and perspectives and develop lasting relationships. You can also connect with people from around the world. Discover real daily life, culture, school, work, and traditions that cannot be fully understood through travel or social media alone. Exchange diaries are also a great way to learn languages. Built-in translation helps you communicate with confidence while naturally learning real expressions used by native speakers. Why not start a special exchange diary with someone, somewhere in the world?

About

HelloMe US

This app provides a privacy-first way to see when close friends are available without direct communication. Users set a color status indicating their reachability, allowing for ambient awareness of loved ones. Group friends into circles for tailored availability updates.

Highlights
  • Color-coded availability status
  • Circles for friend grouping
  • Privacy-first design
  • Optional contact syncing
  • Gentle availability notifications
  • Direct calling/texting integration
Features
Read full description

Know when your closest friends are actually free — without sending a single message. HelloMe is a privacy-first presence app for the handful of people who matter most. Instead of "you up?" texts and unanswered calls, everyone just sets a simple color that says how reachable they are right now: GREEN — Free: open for a call, reach out anytime PURPLE — Text me: can't talk, happy to text RED — Busy: heads-down, please hold off One glance tells you who's around. No feeds, no likes, no endless chat threads — just ambient awareness of the people you love. CIRCLES Group your friends into circles — Close Friends, Family, the gym crew — and set a different status for each. You can be "Free" for family and "Busy" for everyone else, all at once. Each circle gets its own look, so you always know which one you're in. HOW IT WORKS • Sign in with your phone number (a quick one-time code — no passwords) • Add friends by number, or optionally find the ones already on HelloMe from your contacts • Set your status per circle; your friends see it update instantly • Get a gentle notification when a friend becomes free — you choose exactly what pings you, with quiet hours • Tap a friend to call or text through your own apps — HelloMe never messages for you BUILT TO RESPECT YOU • No ads. No tracking. No analytics SDKs. Nothing sold. • Finding friends from contacts is optional — phone numbers are matched on our server and immediately discarded, never stored, sold, or shared • Block and report anyone, anytime • Delete your account and all your data from inside the app, instantly HelloMe is for real friendship, not another social network. Set your color. Be reachable to the people who matter — and invisible to everyone else.

Screenshots

passNote3 screens
HelloMe US4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: HelloMe US at none against passNote's 1. HelloMe US also leads on iOS requirement (15.1 vs 18.0). On price, update cadence, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. passNote sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $2.99 per month. HelloMe US asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

passNote ships an update every 5 days, HelloMe US every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 5, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
passNote versus HelloMe US: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterpassNoteHelloMe US
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—2 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 daysEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
Monetization—Free
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS18.015.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size80 MB38 MB
Age rating17+12+
DeveloperRyota IzumiHELLOME.US, INC.

In-app purchases

1 purchases

passNote

Subscriptions1
  • Premium Membership$2.991 Month
None

HelloMe US

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is passNote free?
passNote is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is HelloMe US free?
HelloMe US is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do passNote or HelloMe US have ads?
Neither passNote nor HelloMe US shows ads.
Which is updated more often, passNote or HelloMe US?
passNote ships an update every 5 days, and HelloMe US every 3 days. Most recently, passNote was updated on October 5, 2026 and HelloMe US on October 14, 2026.

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