Comparison

Journal 18 vs DECADE

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

Head to head
About

Journal 18

Transform your handwritten golf scorecards into detailed performance insights. This app uses AI to read your game data from photos or manual entry, revealing trends and areas for improvement. Track your rounds, drives, and approaches to lower your score.

Highlights
  • Digitize handwritten scorecards with AI
  • Track round history and scoring trends
  • Analyze drive patterns and approach proximity
  • Identify biggest opportunities for stroke reduction
  • Manual entry option for scores and stats
  • Compare performance to handicap benchmarks
Features
Read full description

You already keep the record. Journal18 reads it. Photograph your handwritten journal and Journal18 turns it into stats, trends, and a clear read on your game. Your journal stays on paper. Your insights live here. HOW IT WORKS 1. Snap a photo of your performance log, drives, and approaches pages after your round. 2. Journal18 reads the scores and stats with AI, then shows you everything it found. You review and confirm anything uncertain before it counts. 3. Every confirmed round builds your history, your trends, and your benchmarks. Prefer to type it in? Manual entry works too, hole by hole or as a quick summary. No photo required. WHAT YOU WILL SEE Round history. Every round saved with scores, stats, and notes, ready to revisit. Scoring trends. Watch your scoring move across rounds instead of guessing from memory. Drive patterns. Fairways hit, miss directions, and a landing board that shows where your tee shots actually finish. Approach proximity. How close you hit it from each distance range, and where the strokes are hiding. Benchmarks. See how your numbers compare to handicap benchmarks, so improvement has a target instead of a feeling. Your biggest opportunity. Journal18 calls out the one area costing you the most strokes, in plain words. BUILT FOR GOLFERS WHO WRITE IT DOWN Journal18 is made for players who keep a paper journal and want more from it. The app is calm and quick. No ads. No selling your data. Just your game, organized. FREE AND PREMIUM Creating an account is free, and your first round is included with core logging so you can see how it feels. Journal18 Premium unlocks the full experience: unlimited rounds, complete insights and trends, drive and approach trackers, and editing of completed rounds. PREMIUM SUBSCRIPTIONS Journal18 Premium is available as an auto-renewable subscription: - Premium Annual: $72 USD per year - Premium Monthly: $7 USD per month Prices may vary by region and are shown in the App Store before you subscribe. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. Your subscription renews automatically unless it is cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. You can manage or cancel your subscription anytime in your App Store account settings. Terms of Use: https://www.journal18.com/pages/app-terms Privacy Policy: https://www.journal18.com/pages/app-privacy Questions or feedback? We read everything: info@journal18.com

About

DECADE

Features
Read full description

Learn sound, proven strategy to shoot lower scores faster and more consistently than you ever thought possible. Harness the DECADE strategy that is used by: -5 World #1's - Major Champions -PGA Tour Winners -Web.com Winners -NCAA Champions -USGA Champions 6 Month DECADE Breaking 90 Subscription available through App Store for $89.99 which is charged to your iTunes account upon purchase. The subscription auto-renews unless turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current 6 month period. You can manage your payment details or cancel your membership in user's Account Settings. Terms of Use: https://www.birdiefire.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://www.birdiefire.com/privacy

Screenshots

Journal 184 screens
DECADE4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Journal 18 at none against DECADE's 1. Journal 18 also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 2 months). DECADE's advantage is ads (none vs shown). On price, 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. DECADE sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $89.99 per 6 months. Journal 18 asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Journal 18 ships an update weekly, DECADE every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 8, 2026 and October 16, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Journal 18 versus DECADE: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterJournal 18DECADE
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.6 (5 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews0.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings5 — better—
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 2 months
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS15.115.1
Further details — not scored
Size59 MB63 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTravis ZappiaBirdieFire LLC

In-app purchases

None

Journal 18

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

DECADE

Subscriptions1
  • Breaking 90$89.996 Months

Questions

Is Journal 18 free?
Journal 18 is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is DECADE free?
DECADE is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Journal 18 or DECADE have ads?
Journal 18 shows ads; DECADE does not.
Which is updated more often, Journal 18 or DECADE?
Journal 18 ships an update weekly, and DECADE every 2 months. Most recently, Journal 18 was updated on October 8, 2026 and DECADE on October 16, 2026.

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