Comparison

Idea Journal vs Progress

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

Head to head
About

Idea Journal

Features
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PREMIUM โ€” PURCHASE REQUIRED: All features described below are part of Pro and require a purchase: a weekly or yearly auto-renewing subscription, or a one-time lifetime purchase. Every great idea gives you about thirty seconds before it slips away. Idea Journal is built for that moment: open, jot, done โ€” your spark is safe, filed, and waiting for the day you are ready to build it. Most notes apps make you fight folders and formatting when all you needed was to get the thought out of your head. Idea Journal keeps capture down to one tap, then does the organizing part properly: color-coded categories, tags, priorities, and reminders that bring the right idea back at the right time. WHAT YOU GET โ€ข A thought that hits you in the checkout line, saved before you reach the register โ€ข Ten color-coded categories out of the box โ€” plus your own, so Business, Trips, and Gifts never mix โ€ข A reminder that resurfaces Tuesday's spark exactly when you can finally act on it โ€ข Sub-tasks that turn a vague idea into three concrete next steps with a progress bar โ€ข Charts that reveal your most productive day and which category your mind keeps returning to โ€ข A CSV export of everything you have ever captured โ€” your ideas are yours to take anywhere PERFECT FOR โ€ข Writers collecting plots, lines, and characters before they evaporate โ€ข Founders and side-hustlers triaging what to build next by priority โ€ข Makers and hobbyists keeping every project idea out of their head and in one place โ€ข Anyone tired of losing brilliant 2 a.m. thoughts to a pile of unsorted notes WHY NOT JUST USE A NOTES APP? A general notes app is where ideas go to be buried under grocery lists. Idea Journal separates capturing from organizing: jotting takes one tap, and every entry lands with a category, a priority, and an optional reminder โ€” so nothing gets buried, and revisiting feels like browsing, not excavating. Favorites, pins, and archive keep the list honest as it grows. PRIVATE BY DEFAULT Your ideas are stored on your device. No account, no sign-up, no ideas sitting on someone else's server. PREMIUM (PURCHASE REQUIRED) Idea Journal requires a subscription or one-time purchase: Weekly, Yearly, or Lifetime. Full access unlocks unlimited ideas, custom categories, and the complete statistics dashboard โ€” summary cards, category and priority charts, your most productive day, and a tag cloud of what you think about most. Your next big idea will show up unannounced. Get Idea Journal now so it has somewhere to land. Terms of Use: https://leanstudio.asia/terms-of-use Privacy Policy: https://leanstudio.asia/privacy-policy Support: support@leanstudio.asia

About

Progress

Features
Read full description

Progress is an idea manager that takes you from planning an idea, through iteration, all the way to putting it into practice. Good ideas are rarely clear the first time. In Progress, you jot an idea down, then add a progress note every time you have a new thought, find something useful or try something out. With each iteration the idea settles and your thinking gets clearer. When it finally makes sense, mark it as started and go do it. Review regularly and see which things your attention has really gone to. Capture text, photos or voice; every step stays on a timeline, and the ideas you iterate on most rise to the top. Reminders are off by default and only appear when you ask for them. Your ideas sync through iCloud, no account needed. Privacy Policy: https://jdi-app.notion.site/Privacy-Policy-cdb1be6b87f64c06b7dbea6ffbbad83f Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Idea Journal4 screens
Progress4 screens

Verdict

The call

Idea Journal and Progress are too close to call on the numbers: across 5 compared parameters โ€” price, ads, in-app purchases and device support among them โ€” neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

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

CostPrice ยท In-app purchases ยท Ads ยท Monetization

Both are free to download. Idea Journal sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per 7 days and Progress sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
Idea Journal versus Progress: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterIdea JournalProgress
PriceFreeFree
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhone, iPod โ€” betteriPhone
Requires iOS16 โ€” better17.0
Further details โ€” not scored
Size5 MB9 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLEAN ASIA CO., LTD็ฌ› ๅงœ

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Idea Journal

Subscriptions2
  • Reminders Weekly$2.997 Days
  • Creative Spark Yearly$14.991 Year
One-time1
  • Inspiration Lifetime$29.99
2 purchases

Progress

Subscriptions1
  • Progress Pro Yearly3 Days trial$4.991 Year
One-time1
  • Progress Pro Lifetime$8.99

Questions

Is Idea Journal free?
Idea Journal is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Progress free?
Progress is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Idea Journal or Progress have ads?
Neither Idea Journal nor Progress shows ads.

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