Comparison

The Life Planner vs Penna

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

Head to head
About

The Life Planner

Features
Read full description

The Life Planner is your personal growth companion — completely offline, completely private, and built to keep you moving forward. Plan your goals across short, medium, and long-term horizons with clear deadlines, requirements, and resource tracking. Watch your progress update automatically as you check items off. Stay on top of your to-do list with tasks pulled straight from your goals plus anything you add manually. Filter by today, upcoming, or done so you always know what matters now. Reflect daily with a guided 5-question journal. Answer all five and unlock a motivational quote to keep the streak alive. Your streak counter grows right on your dashboard. Track everything from your dashboard — overall completion, progress by goal type, upcoming deadlines, and recent achievements. When you hit a goal, the app celebrates with you. Export your journey as a PDF report, back up your data to your own files, and restore anytime. Set goal deadline reminders so nothing slips through the cracks. Go Premium with a single $9.99 lifetime purchase — no subscription, no recurring fees. Unlock unlimited journal entries, unlimited goals of every type, and unlimited to-do items. Your data stays on your device forever.

About

Penna

This offline planner uses on-device AI to break down large tasks into smaller steps and organize your thoughts visually. It prioritizes privacy with no accounts, cloud storage, or data collection, offering encrypted backups and export options.

Highlights
  • On-device AI task breakdown
  • Visual snap-grid board
  • Offline functionality
  • Brain Dump for thoughts
  • Smart text input
  • Encrypted backups
  • Pomodoro focus timer
Features
Read full description

Penna is the ADHD planner that shows you time: your day as a visual board, a countdown for the task you're on, and AI that runs on your iPhone. 100% offline, no account, no one watching. SEE TIME (new in 1.4) • Estimated duration on every tile — 15, 30, 45, 60 min or your own • A countdown ring on the task you're doing right now • Countdown widget on the Home and Lock Screen: what's now, what's next, how long is left • Morning check-in in 3 taps: your energy today → a day that fits it • Start with a free trial ON-DEVICE AI (Apple Intelligence) • Magic Breakdown — a big scary task becomes 3–7 tiny first steps, each under 15 minutes • Organize — your Brain Dump sorts itself into tiles with dates and tags, you approve every change • Smart input understands "call mom tomorrow evening" — in English and Russian AI runs entirely on your iPhone. No cloud, no account — Data Not Collected stays true. Requires iPhone 15 Pro or newer with Apple Intelligence; everything else works on any iPhone with iOS 18. Most planners want your email and your data. Penna wants neither. Everything lives on your device. Your backups are encrypted and yours to keep. PRIVATE BY DESIGN • 100% offline — no account, no servers, no ads, no trackers • Data Not Collected — nothing leaves your device • Face ID lock on individual notes • AES-256 encrypted backups • Export to Markdown, JSON, PDF or calendar (.ics) PLAN VISUALLY • Snap-grid board — arrange note tiles in any cell, like icons on a home screen • Drag tiles between days on a collapsible week/month calendar • Timeline view for hour-by-hour day blocking CAPTURE THE WAY YOU THINK • Brain Dump — drop a thought in one tap, schedule it later • Smart text input — type “call mom tomorrow 6pm” and Penna sets the day and reminder • Checklists, photos, file attachments, tags, 10 colors STAY ON TRACK • Reminders with repeat (daily/weekly/monthly) and snooze • Habits grid with daily streak · Pomodoro focus timer • Home-screen & Lock Screen widget · Share extension PENNA PRO • Unlimited notes, Brain Dump and attachments • Repeating reminders and calendar events on your board • iCloud Sync — your data stays in YOUR private iCloud; we never see it Penna Pro: a yearly subscription, a weekly subscription with a 3-day free trial, or a one-time lifetime unlock. Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period; manage or cancel them in Settings. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://telegra.ph/Penna--Privacy-Policy-06-07

Screenshots

The Life Planner4 screens
Penna4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is iOS requirement: The Life Planner at 15.1 against Penna's 18.0. On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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. The Life Planner sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Penna sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

The Life Planner ships an update every 6 days, Penna every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
The Life Planner versus Penna: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterThe Life PlannerPenna
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—1 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 daysEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
Monetization—Free with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.1 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size52 MB16 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperAbhirup LahiriNTSAUTOSIGA LLC

In-app purchases

1 purchases

The Life Planner

One-time1
  • The Life Planner Lifetime$9.99
3 purchases

Penna

Subscriptions2
  • Weekly3 Days trial$4.997 Days
  • Yearly$29.991 Year
One-time1
  • Penna Pro$39.99

Questions

Is The Life Planner free?
The Life Planner is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Penna free?
Penna is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do The Life Planner or Penna have ads?
Neither The Life Planner nor Penna shows ads.
Which is updated more often, The Life Planner or Penna?
The Life Planner ships an update every 6 days, and Penna every 4 days. Most recently, The Life Planner was updated on October 24, 2026 and Penna on October 25, 2026.

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