The Penzu Insider’s Guide

Everything we know about Penzu in one document: what it costs, its grades, getting a refund, getting help and what else to look at. Read it here, or keep a copy.

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ToolGPAOctober 2026

Penzu

The Insider’s Guide

Private online journal for the browser, with iOS and Android apps

Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among journaling apps, read from Penzu’s own pages.

Made by Penzu Inc. · checked Oct 5, 2026 · toolgpa.com

2.8GPA

01WelcomeWhat it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
02What it costsEvery plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
03What it doesIts main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
04Where it standsIts grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
05The alternativesThe tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
06Quick answersThe questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
07About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it

ToolGPA put this guide together from Penzu’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on Penzu’s page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Oct 5, 2026.

Part 01 · Overview

Welcome

What it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first

2.8

GPA, above 19 of the 35 other journaling apps we grade

Penzu is an online journal that runs in a web browser, with companion apps for iOS and Android. The free Basic plan allows unlimited entries, saves as you type and lets each journal carry its own cover and fonts. Journals and entries can be locked, and reminders and emails about past entries prompt you to keep writing. Paid Pro and Pro+ plans add encryption locking, tagging, PDF export, writing prompts, posting by email and version history.

To get you started, here are 9 things to know about Penzu, taken from its own pages and our grades.

The free plan has unlimited entries and asks for no card.

From our report card of Penzu

1
Best for writing a private journal in your browser
Penzu is an online journal you write in a browser or on iPhone and Android.
2
Paid plans start at $1.67 a month when paid by the year
As its pricing page puts it: $19.99 per year, or $4.99 per month.
3
There is a free plan
Basic plan: unlimited entries, the mobile apps, basic journal covers and fonts, and simple writing reminders. No credit card is required.
4
It runs on 3 platforms
Web, iOS and Android.
5
Unlimited entries with autosave
Every plan, including the free one, allows unlimited entries, and Penzu saves as you type on a computer or in the mobile apps.
6
Custom journals
Each journal and entry can have its own cover, background and fonts. Basic includes a basic set; Pro adds custom covers, fonts and colors.
7
Locks and encryption
Journals and entries can be locked with a password, and the mobile app with a PIN. Encryption locking is a Pro feature, and Pro+ lists military grade encryption locking.
8
A 2.8 GPA, above 19 of 35
That is against the other journaling apps we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
9
Your call
A journal at its plainest is dated entries of text and photos.

Penzu at a glance

Pricing: Free plan, from $19.99 per year, or $4.99 per month
Free plan: Yes
Free trial: None stated
Runs on: Web, iOS, Android
Made by: Penzu Inc.
Category: Journaling Apps
Our grade: 2.8 GPA, good
Store rating: 4.2 on the App Store, 2,532 ratings

The report card

Best for writing a private journal in your browser

Penzu is an online journal you write in a browser or on iPhone and Android. The free plan has unlimited entries and asks for no card. Tags, PDF export, prompts and the encryption lock need Pro at $19.99 a year, and versions with entry recovery need Pro+ at $49.99. There's no desktop app, the iOS app is rated 4.2 and English is the only language listed, so if your phone is where you write, look elsewhere.

ToolGPA report cardPenzuGraded Oct 10, 2026

Subject	Grade	Comment
Value for money	A	Penzu Pro is $19.99 a year, which is $1.67 a month where the cheapest quarter of journaling apps here starts at $2.99. That buys encryption locking, tagging, PDF export, prompts and writing by email. Pro+ is $49.99 a year, and Lifetime $199.99 is a lot up front.
Free plan and trial	B	The free plan has unlimited entries on the web and in both apps, basic covers and fonts, reminders, and asks for no card. The caps are the useful extras: tagging, PDF export, prompts and encryption locking are all Pro.
Features	C	The basics of plain writing: unlimited entries that save as you type, journals with their own covers and locks, reminders, search and emails that send you back to old entries. The gaps its own pages show: tagging, PDF export and prompts need Pro, versions and recovery are Pro+, and no photos or media are listed at all.
Ease of use	C	4.23 from about 2,500 App Store ratings, the weakest score in this batch and the lowest mark on this card. The writing side sounds simple, open a browser and type while it saves itself, but that rating is people's verdict on the iPhone app.
Platforms and integrations	B	Any browser plus both phones, though there's no desktop app, so a computer means the web. No integrations or API are listed, Penzu Post on Pro lets you write in by email, and the App Store shows English as the only language.

Grade point averageGood, out of 4.02.8

An A is worth 4 points, a B 3, a C 2, a D 1 and an F nothing. The GPA is the average of the five.

Who Penzu is for

Fits if you mostly write at a computer, in a browser
Works for keeping several journals, each with its own cover and lock

Who it is not for

Skip it if your phone is where you journal, as the iOS app is rated 4.2
Not for you if you want a desktop app, as on a computer it only runs in a browser
Tight if you're staying free and want tags, PDF export, prompts or the encryption lock, which are all Pro at $19.99 a year
Watch out: versions, entry recovery and zen mode are Pro+ only, at $49.99 a year, and no photos or media are listed on any plan
Not for you if you want it in a language other than English, the only one the App Store lists

Good to know

Good for

People who mostly write at a computer in a web browser
Writers who want unlimited entries on a free plan
Keeping several journals, each with its own cover and lock

Worth knowing

There is no desktop app: on a computer Penzu runs in a web browser, with apps for iOS and Android only.
Encryption locking, entry tagging, PDF export and writing prompts require Penzu Pro.
Versions with entry recovery and the fullscreen zen-mode are limited to Pro+.
The App Store listing shows English as the only supported language.

Part 02 · Pricing

What it costs

Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved

$1.67

A month to start, paid by the year. There is a free plan too

Penzu has a free plan. Paid plans start at $19.99 per year, or $4.99 per month.

That buys encryption locking, tagging, PDF export, prompts and writing by email.

From our grade for value for money

Basic
$0
Unlimited entries, mobile apps, basic journal covers and fonts, and simple writing reminders.
Penzu Pro
$19.99
per year, or $4.99 per month
Adds encryption locking, custom covers, fonts and colors, entry tagging, PDF export, writing prompts and writing by email (Penzu Post).
Penzu Pro+
$49.99
per year, or $9.99 per month
Everything in Pro, plus premium handwritten fonts, fullscreen zen-mode, versions and entry recovery, and premium support.
Penzu Pro+ Lifetime
$199.99
one-time payment
Everything in Pro+ for a single payment with no renewal, plus 24-hour support.

The free plan

Basic plan: unlimited entries, the mobile apps, basic journal covers and fonts, and simple writing reminders. No credit card is required.

Read from penzu.com on Oct 5, 2026.

Ways to pay less

Annual discount
Up to 66% off with yearly billing
Penzu's Pro page labels yearly billing as 66% cheaper: Pro is $19.99 a year against $4.99 a month, and Pro+ is $49.99 a year against $9.99 a month.
Stated on penzu.com
Lifetime license
Penzu Pro+ Lifetime for $199.99
A one-time payment of $199.99 buys the Pro+ feature set with no renewal, as listed on Penzu's Pro page.
Stated on penzu.com

How its prices have moved

Jul 9, 2026Penzu Pro+ Lifetime: new, $199.99 one-time paymentThe archived copy of 9 July 2026 is the first to list a Penzu Pro+ Lifetime plan at $199.99; the copy before it, of 13 April 2026, offers only the yearly Pro and Pro+ plans.

Part 03 · Features

What it does

Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it

Places it runs: Web, iOS and Android

Private online journal for the browser, with iOS and Android apps. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: works offline, one-time purchase, daily notes, long-form writing.

Any browser plus both phones, though there's no desktop app, so a computer means the web.

From our grade for platforms and integrations

Unlimited entries with autosave: Every plan, including the free one, allows unlimited entries, and Penzu saves as you type on a computer or in the mobile apps.
Custom journals: Each journal and entry can have its own cover, background and fonts. Basic includes a basic set; Pro adds custom covers, fonts and colors.
Locks and encryption: Journals and entries can be locked with a password, and the mobile app with a PIN. Encryption locking is a Pro feature, and Pro+ lists military grade encryption locking.
Reminders and look-backs: Daily, weekly or custom reminders prompt you to write, and Penzu emails links to past entries so you can reread them later.
Tags, search and prompts: Journals can be searched to find past entries. Entry tagging and writing prompts are part of Penzu Pro.
Penzu Post, PDF export and versions: Pro adds writing to a journal by email (Penzu Post) and PDF export. Pro+ adds versions and entry recovery plus a fullscreen zen-mode.

Where it runs

Web
iOS
Android

What it works with

Its own pages name no integrations.

Penzu is made by Penzu Inc.

Part 04 · Standing

Where it stands

Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own

19/35

Other journaling apps it is graded above

Penzu's GPA of 2.8 is higher than 19 of the 35 other journaling apps we grade, and level with 9.

It stands best on value for money (A, above 25 of 35) and worst on features (C, above 0).

Its paid plans start at $1.67 a month when paid by the year, against a middle price of $3.66 for the category: 1 of the 21 others that charge start lower.

On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.3 out of 4. 3 tools score higher and cost less.

Each grade against the category

Every bar is all 36 journaling apps we grade, cut by the letter each got. Penzu’s own letter is outlined.

AValue for money
Above 25 of 35
BFree plan and trial
Above 21 of 35
CFeatures
Above 0 of 35
CEase of use
Above 1 of 35
BPlatforms and integrations
Above 22 of 35

Price against what you get

Each dot is one of 29 journaling apps. Further left costs less; higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. Penzu is the marked dot.

What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →

Keep it, or make your own?

Whether this is something you could build for yourself with an AI app builder, and what you would give up.

Your call

A journal at its plainest is dated entries of text and photos.

You could make the core of Penzu for yourself: daily notes and long-form writing. What you would give up is listed below. Whether that is worth the price is your call. At $19.99 a year it costs less than the weekend it would take to replace, which is the argument for keeping it.

What you could make

Daily notes and long-form writing: an app builder makes these well.

What you could not

A real app for iOS and Android. Something home-made would be a web page.

What this rests on. Penzu’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.

Part 05 · Alternatives

The alternatives

The tools it is most often weighed against, side by side

Journey, Day One, Diaro, 750 Words and Journalistic

The 5 tools Penzu is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.

2.8GPA
Journey
Free plan · from $17.99 one-time
Cross-platform diary with maps, mood tracking and guided programs.
- Only Journey lists macOS, Windows and Linux apps.
- Penzu can be bought with a one-time purchase.
- Journey is end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
Penzu and Journey compared in full
3.2GPA
Day One
Free plan · from $49.99/yr
Encrypted journal for text, photos, audio and video across devices.
- Only Day One lists macOS and Windows apps.
- Only Day One lists a browser extension.
- Penzu can be bought with a one-time purchase.
Penzu and Day One compared in full
3.0GPA
Diaro
Free plan · from $8.99/yr
Diary and notes app that syncs through your own Dropbox.
- Penzu can be bought with a one-time purchase.
- Penzu also covers long-form writing.
- Diaro also covers mood tracking.
Penzu and Diaro compared in full
2.0GPA
750 Words
Paid
Private daily writing site built around a 750-word goal.
- Penzu has a free plan. 750 Words does not.
- Only Penzu lists iOS and Android apps.
- Penzu can be bought with a one-time purchase.
Penzu and 750 Words compared in full
3.0GPA
Journalistic
Free
Micro journaling web app built around short bulleted entries.
- Only Penzu lists iOS and Android apps.
- Penzu can be bought with a one-time purchase.
- Penzu also covers long-form writing.
Penzu and Journalistic compared in full

Part 06 · Questions

Quick answers

The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two

Questions, each answered in a line or two

The short version of everything above, for when you only need the answer. Each one is told in full in its part of the guide.

Is Penzu free?

Penzu has a free plan. Basic plan: unlimited entries, the mobile apps, basic journal covers and fonts, and simple writing reminders.

How much does Penzu cost?

Penzu lists 4 plans. Basic: $0.

What platforms does Penzu work on?

Penzu is available on Web, iOS and Android.

Does Penzu offer any discounts?

Penzu publicly lists the following: Up to 66% off with yearly billing; Penzu Pro+ Lifetime for $199.99.

How is Penzu rated?

Penzu's iPhone and iPad app averages 4.2 out of 5 from 2,532 ratings on the App Store in the United States, as read on Oct 5, 2026.

Does Penzu have a Windows app?

No Windows app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 5, 2026. Penzu is listed for Web, iOS and Android.

Does Penzu have a macOS app?

No macOS app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 5, 2026. Penzu is listed for Web, iOS and Android.

Is Penzu open source?

Penzu is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Oct 5, 2026.

Does Penzu work offline?

Yes, according to its own site. What works without a connection differs by plan and platform, so check the vendor's page for the detail.

Who makes Penzu?

Penzu is made by Penzu Inc.

What are the alternatives to Penzu?

The closest alternatives to Penzu in our directory are Journey, Day One, Diaro, 750 Words and Journalistic.

How does Penzu compare with other journaling apps?

Penzu's GPA of 2.8 is higher than 19 of the 35 other journaling apps we grade, and level with 9.

Is Penzu good value for money?

ToolGPA grades Penzu A for value for money. Its paid plans start at $1.67 a month when paid by the year, against a middle price of $3.66 for the category: 1 of the 21 others that charge start lower.

Could I make my own version of Penzu?

A journal at its plainest is dated entries of text and photos. You could make the core of Penzu for yourself: daily notes and long-form writing.

Where this guide comes from

The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from Penzu’s own pages on Oct 5, 2026, and the grades were given on Oct 10, 2026. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Penzu's own pages on 5 October 2026, and its App Store rating. Also tested with a demo account on 2026-02-20.

Every tool we list gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. How each is decided is at toolgpa.com/grades. This guide is ToolGPA’s own work; it is not made, paid for or approved by Penzu Inc. Prices change, so check penzu.com before you buy.

Part 07 · About

About ToolGPA

Who made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it

3,189

Tools graded, in 94 categories

ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.

Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.

3,189
tools graded
94
categories
426
price changes on record
579
apps priced in 12 countries

What else is on toolgpa.com

Scan for the live page

Prices and grades as they are today

Quoting this guide?

Please name ToolGPA and link to the live page, so readers can check the figures for themselves:

ToolGPA, "Penzu: The Insider's Guide", checked Oct 5, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/penzu

Know someone choosing between journaling apps?

Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/penzu/guide

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See our other guides

The best-graded journaling apps after Penzu, each with an Insider's Guide of its own.

ToolGPA

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Compare tools at toolgpa.com ›

Everything in this guide is ToolGPA’s own summary of what Penzu’s pages, its app-store listings and public reviews said on the dates shown. Grades are our judgement under the rules at toolgpa.com/grades. Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Penzu is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by Penzu Inc. Prices and plans change: check penzu.com before you buy.