Daybook vs My Diary

Daybook

• People who want a free journal that syncs between phone and browser
• Dictating entries by voice or through a voice assistant
• Guided gratitude, mood and reflection journaling

My Diary

• People who want a decorated diary with themes, stickers and fonts
• Keeping a locked diary with photos, videos and recordings
• Tracking mood alongside entries in a calendar

Daybook

• Vendor prices disagree: the website shows Pro at $3.49 a month or $39.99 a year, while the US App Store lists Premium at $4.49 a month, $29.99 a year or $94.99 once.
• Mood analytics, AI features, custom templates, themes, higher-resolution photos and the full set of guided journals need the paid tier.
• Entries are stored in Daybook's cloud and encrypted in transit; the site does not claim end-to-end encryption.
• No Mac or Windows app is listed, so desktop use is through the web app. The App Store shows the iOS app's last update as November 2024.

My Diary

• Both app stores label the app as containing advertising, and some themes and backgrounds require Premium.
• Phone and tablet only: no web or desktop version is listed.
• The vendor's site shows no prices, and the App Store lists several yearly and permanent purchases at different prices without explaining them.
• Google Drive and Dropbox sync and TXT or PDF export are described for the app in general; the App Store listing for iPhone and iPad does not mention them.

Daybook

Cloud sync across devices

Entries and photos back up automatically to Daybook's cloud and sync between phone, tablet and the web app. Unlimited entries and sync are part of the free plan.

Guided journals

Structured journals cover nightly reflection, mental health check-ins and gratitude. Access to every guided journal is one of the paid unlocks.

Mood and activity tracker

Log daily moods and activities alongside entries. Mood analytics and word analysis of what you wrote are listed under Pro.

Voice-to-text and voice assistants

Entries can be dictated with speech-to-text, and the store listings describe voice features through Alexa and Google Assistant. A Daybook GPT is listed in the ChatGPT store.

AI features

AI summarizes entries, offers insights and suggests improvements, and the iOS listing describes a Journal GPT that answers questions about your entries. AI features are part of Pro.

Calendar, tags and PDF export

A calendar view and tags help you find past entries, and entries export to PDF with customizable layouts for printing. A passcode lock keeps the journal private.

My Diary

Diary lock

A passcode locks the app, with fingerprint unlock on supported devices. The vendor recommends setting a security question in case the password is forgotten.

Photo, video and audio entries

Entries can hold pictures, videos, recordings and drawings as well as rich text, and a media view shows all the photos in the journal.

Themes, backgrounds and stickers

Illustrated themes, a dark theme, entry backgrounds, stickers, emoji and font effects decorate the diary. Some themes and backgrounds are Premium only.

Mood tracker

Pick a mood symbol when writing an entry, then review moods in a mood calendar and see trends in statistics.

Tags

Tags sort entries into categories such as travel, work or daily notes, so you can view all the entries of one type together.

Sync and export

The vendor's product page describes syncing the diary to Google Drive or Dropbox for use on other devices, and exporting entries to TXT or PDF or printing them.

Daybook

• Free$0

  Daybook's basic features: unlimited entries, sync across multiple devices and automatic cloud backup.

• Pro (monthly)$3.49

  per month

  Mood analytics and word analysis, AI features, guided journals, themes, custom templates, higher-resolution photos and the advanced printer.

• Pro (yearly)$39.99

  per year

  The same Pro features billed once a year, as shown under the Yearly toggle on the vendor's website.

My Diary

• Free$0

  Diary entries with photos, a passcode lock, mood tracking and tags. Shows advertising, and some themes and backgrounds are locked.

• Diary VIP (Month)$2.99

  per month

  Premium membership billed monthly, which unlocks the additional themes, backgrounds and other Premium extras.

• Premium Yearly$16.99 to $23.99

  per year

  The US App Store lists three yearly entries: Diary Subscription Yearly $16.99, My Diary Premium Yearly $19.99 and My Diary Yearly VIP $23.99.

• Permanent VIP$29.99 to $49.99

  one-time purchase

  Three permanent entries are listed at $29.99, $39.99 and $49.99. The listing does not explain how they differ.

Daybook

• Annual discount

  Yearly billing costs slightly less than monthly

  The website lists Pro at $3.49 a month or $39.99 a year. Twelve monthly payments come to $41.88, so the yearly plan saves $1.89, about 4.5%.

• Lifetime license

  One-time purchase of Daybook Premium

  The US App Store lists a Daybook Premium OneTime in-app purchase at $94.99 as an alternative to a subscription. The listing's description text gives the figure as $94.49.

My Diary

• Lifetime license

  Permanent VIP as a one-time purchase

  The US App Store lists Permanent VIP in-app purchases at $29.99, $39.99 and $49.99 as alternatives to the monthly and yearly memberships.

• Annual discount

  Yearly membership costs less than twelve months

  The US App Store lists the monthly membership at $2.99 and yearly entries at $16.99 to $23.99, against $35.88 for twelve monthly payments.