Day One vs Momento (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, we pick Day One: it is first in our ranking of journaling apps, and it grades higher too, 3.2 against 2.0.
Checked Oct 5, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Day One grades higher on features, ease of use and platforms. They get the same grade on value for money and the free plan.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Day One
Encrypted journal for text, photos, audio and video across devices
Momento
Private iPhone journal that can pull in social feeds
Which one is for you
Pick Day One if
- Fits if you want one journal across Apple, Android, Windows and the web
- Works for entries that are as much photos, video and voice as writing
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you're staying free, as Basic is 1 device and 1 photo per entry
- Skip it if you'd rather pay monthly, as paid plans are yearly only
- Pricey if it's the AI you're after, since that's Gold at $74.99 a year with daily usage limits
- Watch out: video, audio, drawings and collections all need Silver at $49.99 a year
- Not for you if you want to share a plan, as Silver and Gold can't go through Apple Family Sharing
Pick Momento if
- Fits if you use an iPhone and want your photos and check-ins gathered into a diary
- Works for people who journal by moments and events rather than long entries
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you use Android, a Mac or the web, as it is iPhone only
- Tight if you stay free: the passcode lock, export and multiple photos are Premium
- Watch out: free feed history stops at 365 days
- Watch out: the $14.99 and $37.99 purchases show no billing period on the US listing
- Watch out: Premium Gold adds priority support and not more features
How we grade them
| 3.2GPADay OneVery good | 2.0GPAMomentoFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CSilver is $49.99 a year, which is $4.17 a month, exactly the middle for a journaling app here. There's no monthly plan at all, so it's a year up front, and the AI tools sit on Gold at $74.99, which is $6.25 a month, past the dear end of this category. | CPremium is $3.49 a month on the US App Store, just above the $3.33 where the cheaper quarter of journaling apps starts. The $14.99 and $37.99 plans show no billing period. |
| Free plan and trial | CBasic gives you unlimited text entries and journals, prompts, templates and end-to-end encryption for nothing. But it's 1 device and 1 photo an entry, so no sync, and that's the cap you'll hit on day one. | CThe free app covers written moments, people, places, tags and search, but feed history stops at 365 days, there is one photo per moment, and lock and export are paid. |
| Features | AMarkdown text with photos, video, audio and transcription, drawings and scanned PDFs, browsed by calendar, map or On This Day, with prompts, templates, streaks and a Daily Chat on Gold. What its rivals here don't match: end-to-end encryption on every plan, free one included. | CMoments, events, calendar, summaries and feeds from linked accounts cover journaling, but the passcode lock, export and extra photos are Premium only. |
| Ease of use | A4.83 from about 118,400 App Store ratings. A daily prompt, a prompt gallery and templates come on every plan, so there's always somewhere to start, and reminders and streaks bring you back. | C4.1 from about 880 App Store ratings, and you link accounts to get the feeds working. |
| Platforms and integrations | AiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, Android, Mac, Windows, the web and a browser extension, which is the full set. Silver adds Strava, Zapier and IFTTT. Just remember that journaling from more than one device is itself a paid feature. | CiPhone only. There is no Android, Mac or web version, though it links to Facebook, Instagram, Swarm, Flickr, YouTube and Spotify. |
| Best for | one journal on every device you own | an iPhone journal that fills itself from your accounts |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Day One and Momento. How we grade
Price against what you get
Day One starts at $4.17 a month when paid by the year and scores 4.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Momento starts at $3.49 a month and scores 2.0.
Day One scores higher, and starts $0.68 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other journaling apps on the chart, none scores higher than Day One for less, and 15 score higher than Momento for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Day One is end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
- Day One also covers transcription, Markdown and templates.
- Momento also covers notes and calendar.
At a glance
| Day One | Momento | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $49.99 per year | $3.49 (Momento Premium, monthly, US App Store in-app purchase) |
| Free plan | Basic plan: unlimited text entries and journals, 1 photo per entry, end-to-end encryption, prompts, templates and web access, used from 1 device. | Free app with written moments, people, places and tags, events, search, calendar, reminders, summaries and 365 days of feed history. Passcode lock, export, multiple photos and unlimited feed history need Premium. |
| Free trial | Free 1-month trial of a paid plan, started inside the app. Eligibility is controlled by the app stores. | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Automattic Inc. | d3i Ltd |
| Price read from | dayoneapp.com | apps.apple.com |
| Checked | Oct 5, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Day One
- The free Basic plan is limited to 1 device and 1 photo per entry; video, audio, drawings and collections need Silver.
- Paid plans are sold as annual subscriptions only; Day One's help guides say monthly plans are not offered.
- AI features are limited to Gold at $74.99 per year and have daily usage limits.
- Silver and Gold subscriptions cannot be shared through Apple Family Sharing.
Momento
- Only an iPhone app is listed; there is no Android, Mac or web version.
- The free version keeps 365 days of feed history and one photo per moment; unlimited history and extra photos need Premium.
- Passcode lock and export are Premium-only, so a free journal is not protected by an in-app lock.
- The US App Store listing does not state the billing period of the $14.99 and $37.99 purchases.
Key features
Day One
- Multimedia entries
- Entries combine Markdown-formatted text with photos, video, audio recordings, drawings and scanned PDFs. Basic allows 1 photo per entry; Silver and Gold allow 30 media items.
- End-to-end encryption and app lock
- Every plan, including the free one, lists end-to-end encryption, passcode protection, biometric lock and secure cloud backup.
- Prompts, templates and streaks
- A daily prompt, a prompt gallery, journal templates, reminders and journal streaks are included on all three plans.
- On This Day, calendar and map views
- On This Day resurfaces entries from the same date in past years, and entries can also be browsed by calendar, map or media.
- Sync across devices
- Silver and Gold sync a journal across an unlimited number of devices. Basic backs up from one active device, with web access included.
- AI reflection tools
- Gold adds Daily Chat for guided reflection, Go Deeper prompts, entry summaries, title suggestions and image generation, each with daily usage limits.
Momento
- Moments with context
- Each entry can carry a note, photos, videos, people, places and tags, and moments can be grouped under an event such as a trip or a birthday.
- Feeds
- Posts and activity from linked services such as Instagram, Swarm, Flickr, Spotify, Goodreads and RSS are imported into the timeline. The free version keeps 365 days of feed history.
- Summaries and timelines
- Day, month and year summaries, an on-this-day view and a timeline for each person, place, event or tag.
- Search and calendar
- Search covers moments, feeds, people, places and tags, and a pop-up calendar jumps to any date.
- Reminders
- Preset and custom reminders prompt you to add a moment.
- Backup, lock and export
- Backup and restore run locally or through iCloud. Passcode and biometric lock, plus export to plain text with a media folder, need Premium.
Plans
Day One
Basic$0
Unlimited text entries and journals, 1 photo per entry, end-to-end encryption, prompts and templates, on 1 device.
Silver$49.99
per year (no monthly plan is offered)
30 photos or videos per entry, unlimited devices, audio recording and transcription, drawings, PDF scanning, and Strava, Zapier and IFTTT integrations.
Gold$74.99
per year (no monthly plan is offered)
Everything in Silver, plus Daily Chat, Go Deeper prompts, entry summaries, title suggestions and image generation.
Momento
Free$0
Written moments with people, places and tags, events, search, summaries and reminders, plus 365 days of feed history.
Momento Premium (Monthly)$3.49
per month
Unlimited feed history, hourly feed updates, export as plain text, passcode and Face ID lock, multiple photos per moment, formatting and themes.
Momento Premium$14.99
billing period not shown on the US App Store listing
The same Premium features as the monthly plan, listed as a separate in-app purchase with no period shown.
Momento Premium Gold$37.99
billing period not shown on the US App Store listing
Premium, plus priority support; the listing describes it as a way to contribute more to development.
Ways to pay less
Day One
- Education
25% off for students for the first 4 years
Day One's FAQ offers students 25% off paid subscriptions for the first 4 years, after verifying student status with support by student ID or university email.
Momento
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Day One or Momento?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Momento is cheaper to start with: $3.49 a month, against $4.17 a month when paid by the year for Day One. Day One starts at $49.99 per year, and Momento starts at $3.49 (Momento Premium, monthly, US App Store in-app purchase).
Which has a free plan, Day One or Momento?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Day One and Momento have a free plan.
Which platforms do Day One and Momento run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Day One lists a web app, macOS, Windows and Android apps and a browser extension. Both list an iOS app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.