Essence Journal vs MicroHabit
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Essence Journal
A private and ad-free digital journal for capturing your feelings and daily essence. Log moods with rich detail, track self-care, and revisit your entries through an elegant calendar archive.
- Free writing with prompts
- Nuanced mood logging
- Daily essence visualization
- Self-care and appointment tracking
- Elegant calendar archive
- Private by design
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Essence Journal is a calm, grown-up place to capture how you actually feel — without the clutter, ads, or teen-app noise. Open it on a lunch break or in five quiet minutes: write freely, log a feeling in a word instead of an emoji, and watch the day's "essence" take shape on a living ink field. WHAT YOU CAN DO • Write freely, or with a gentle daily prompt, a gratitude page, or a guided deep-reflection page. • Log nuanced moods from a rich palette — or add your own words — with triggers and notes. • See your day's essence: a computed score and tone drawn from every feeling you log. • Tend the small things — water, self-care rituals, hobbies, and upcoming appointments. • Revisit everything in an elegant calendar archive that tints each day by mood, with week-over-week trends and plain-English patterns. PRIVATE BY DESIGN Your journal is yours. The core writing experience, your privacy, and your data are never paywalled. LIFETIME OWNERSHIP Essence Journal is a one-time purchase — no subscription, no renewals. Pay once and it is yours to keep, forever. Privacy Policy: https://preview.apppublishing.ai/legal/essence-journal/privacy Terms of Use (EULA): https://preview.apppublishing.ai/legal/essence-journal/terms
MicroHabit
Focus on up to three daily goals with a simple, color-coded interface. Mark habits complete with a single tap and visualize your progress with streaks and a calendar. Optional reminders and flexible scheduling help build consistency.
- Track up to three color-coded daily goals
- Mark goals complete with one tap
- View streaks and completion calendar
- Flexible scheduling options
- Gentle, optional daily reminders
- Habit Strength indicator
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MicroHabit Tracker is the antidote to overwhelming habit apps. Instead of endless lists and data overload, you focus on up to three bold, color-coded daily goals — and celebrate each one with a single calm tap. WHY MICROHABIT Most habit apps bury you in options and charts. MicroHabit keeps it simple: pick a few small habits that matter, mark them done, and watch your consistency grow. WHAT YOU CAN DO • Track up to three color-coded daily goals — free, forever • Mark a goal done with one satisfying tap • See your streaks and a visual completion calendar • Flexible schedules: daily, specific weekdays, or times per week • Add an if-then anchor to help habits stick • Gentle daily reminders, right on your device and always optional • Habit Strength shows how automatic each habit is becoming MICROHABIT PRO (optional subscription) Go further when you're ready: • Unlimited goals beyond the core three • Long-range Habit Strength trends and pattern insights • Power-day and time-of-day analysis • Days-to-strong forecasts for every goal Pricing: $4.99/month or $39.99/year, with a 7-day free trial. Payment is charged to your Apple ID at confirmation. Your subscription auto-renews unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period; manage or cancel anytime in your App Store account settings. Start small. Stay consistent. Build habits that actually stick. Privacy Policy: https://preview.apppublishing.ai/legal/microhabit/privacy Terms of Use (EULA): https://preview.apppublishing.ai/legal/microhabit/terms
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is monetization model: MicroHabit at freemium against Essence Journal's paid. On price, rating, ratings volume and ads 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
Both are free to download. Essence Journal sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and MicroHabit sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Essence Journal against 5.0 for MicroHabit. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 4 respectively.
| Parameter | Essence Journal | MicroHabit |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (3 ratings) | 5.0 (4 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | — | 100.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 3 | 4 — better |
| Update frequency | — | Every 6 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid | Freemium — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 | 15.1 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 43 MB | 40 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | heather sherry | GHOSTWRITERS & ETC. LLC |
In-app purchases
Essence Journal
- Lifetime Ownership$9.99
MicroHabit
- MicroHabit Pro Monthly7 Days trial$4.991 Month
- MicroHabit Pro Annual7 Days trial$39.991 Year
Questions
Is Essence Journal free?
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