Journey vs Zinnia

Journey

• People who want one journal on phone, desktop (including Linux) and web
• Travel journals, with entries tagged by place and shown on a map
• Guided journaling through coach programs and templates
• Buyers who would rather pay once than subscribe

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

Journey

• The free version has no desktop app access and caps Journey Cloud Sync at 70MB and 60 entries.
• A Premium license covers a single platform; the help center says the Journey Desktop and web apps do not support it.
• Turning on end-to-end encryption disables search, and the vendor says it cannot be reversed.
• Membership stops at 10GB and 5,000 entries; more needs the separate Signature subscription, whose price is not shown publicly.

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.

Journey

Multimedia entries

Entries hold photos, videos and audio, with formatting such as tables, checklists and text color. The free version limits photo uploads and has no audio, video or text formatting.

Atlas, calendar and Throwback

Atlas maps entries and media by tagged location, the calendar shows entries by date, and Throwback resurfaces entries from a week, a month or years ago.

Sync and end-to-end encryption

Journals sync through Google Drive or Journey Cloud Sync. Journey Cloud Sync has optional end-to-end encryption with a passphrase the company does not store, and a Docker image for a self-hosted sync drive is offered.

Coach programs and templates

More than 60 guided journaling programs and a set of prompt templates. Free and Premium get limited access; Membership unlocks all programs and custom templates.

Odyssey AI

A chat assistant answers questions about your own past entries. Free and Premium accounts can ask 10 questions a day, and Membership raises that to 50.

Shared journals and web links

Journals can be shared with other people, and selected entries published as web links that open in a browser. Free accounts get 2 web links, Membership 50.

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.

Journey

• Free$0

  Mobile and limited web access, Google Drive sync, 70MB and 60 entries on Journey Cloud Sync, shared journals and limited photo uploads.

• Premium$17.99

  one-time purchase per platform (US App Store price)

  Unlocks rich text, audio, themes, Throwback and export on the platform it was bought for, Android or iOS. Not supported on the desktop or web apps.

• Membership$6.99

  per month, or $49.99 per year

  Every platform including desktop and web, 10GB and 5,000 entries on Journey Cloud Sync, all coach programs, custom templates, email entries and Zapier.

• Lifetime Membership$199.00

  one-time purchase

  The Membership features on every platform for a single payment instead of a subscription.

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.

Journey

• Annual discount

  About 40% less with the annual Membership

  The US App Store listing prices Membership at $6.99 monthly or $49.99 a year, which works out to about 40% less than twelve monthly payments.

• Lifetime license

  Lifetime Membership for a single payment

  Journey's membership page offers a lifetime purchase as an alternative to the subscription. The US App Store lists Lifetime Membership at $199.00.

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.