Apple Journal vs Zinnia

Apple Journal

• iPhone, iPad and Mac owners who want a journal at no cost
• People who like prompts drawn from their photos, workouts and outings
• Logging state of mind to the Health app alongside written entries

Zinnia

• Bullet journal fans who want paper-style pages on an iPad
• Decorating planners with stickers, washi tape and lettering
• Apple users who plan across iPad, iPhone and Mac

Apple Journal

• Listed only for iPhone, iPad and Mac; no Android, Windows or web version is offered.
• Apple says audio transcription is available in English only, excluding the Singapore and India locales.
• End-to-end encryption of entries stored in iCloud requires two-factor authentication and a device passcode.
• On Mac, journal entries are not included in iCloud backups; Apple points to Time Machine for a backup copy.

Zinnia

• Apple only: the vendor lists iPad, iPhone and Mac, with no Android, Windows or web version.
• The free version has limited content; full access is a subscription, and no one-time purchase is listed.
• Vendor prices disagree: the in-app purchase list shows $9.99 a month and $39.99 a year, while the App Store description says $8.99 and $34.99.
• The vendor's own site shows only per-week figures ($3.99, $2.23 and $0.76 a week) instead of the amounts billed.

Apple Journal

Journaling suggestions

Suggested moments group outings, photos, workouts and media into starting points for an entry, alongside writing and reflection prompts. Suggestions are created with on-device processing.

Text, media and voice entries

Entries hold formatted text, photos, videos, drawings and map locations. Voice recordings made in the app are transcribed automatically.

Multiple journals and Places

Separate journals can each have a custom name and icon. The Places view shows entries on a map by location, and entries can be searched, filtered and bookmarked.

Insights and reminders

Insights shows the current writing streak, the days journaled and other statistics. Scheduled and streak notifications remind you when it is time to write.

State of mind logging

A state of mind can be logged from within Journal and saved to the Health app, and writing time is saved to Health as Mindful Minutes.

Lock, sync and export

The journal can be locked with a passcode, Touch ID or Face ID. Entries sync through iCloud and can be printed or exported to PDF, singly or by date range.

Zinnia

Handwriting and drawing tools

Write, sketch, highlight, paint and color with tools that have adjustable size, opacity and color. The iPad app supports Apple Pencil and Scribble.

Zinnia Studio content

A catalog of ready-made journals, planners, trackers, stickers, washi tape, frames and templates, with new content each month. The free version includes a limited selection.

Planner and calendar layouts

Calendar layouts and auto-dated templates turn a journal into a planner, and events can sync to digital calendars such as Google Calendar.

PDF import and links

Import PDFs to mark up, including linked and tabbed planners bought on Etsy, and add links to web pages or to other journal pages.

Sync across Apple devices

Journals sync between iPad, iPhone and Mac through iCloud, and the vendor lists offline access to journals on iPad.

Export and sharing

Save a spread as a PDF or share it directly to Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook and other social networks.

Apple Journal

• Free$0

  Every feature of the app on iPhone, iPad and Mac, including multiple journals, journaling suggestions, Insights and iCloud sync.

Zinnia

• Free$0

  The journal and drawing tools with a limited selection of Studio content.

• Zinnia Premium Weekly$3.99

  per week

  Full content access billed weekly. The vendor's site, the App Store description and the in-app purchase list all give $3.99.

• Zinnia Premium Monthly$9.99

  per month

  Full content access billed monthly. Listed at $9.99 as an in-app purchase; the listing's description says $8.99 and the vendor's site shows $2.23 a week.

• Zinnia Premium Yearly$39.99

  per year

  Full content access billed yearly. The in-app list shows $39.99 and also $34.99; the description says $34.99 and the vendor's site shows $0.76 a week.

Apple Journal

No public discounts listed.

Zinnia

• Annual discount

  Yearly billing costs far less than weekly or monthly

  At the in-app prices of $3.99 a week, $9.99 a month and $39.99 a year, a year costs $207.48 paid weekly or $119.88 paid monthly, so the yearly plan is about two thirds cheaper than monthly.