# Alternatives to Day One

The polished journaling standard.

Day One ranks #2 of 6 in Journaling apps, with an Alt Score of 80. It is proprietary, freemium from $49.99/year and available on iOS, macOS, Android, Windows and Web. 8 of 9 checklist rows are verified against a public source.

Source: https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/day-one/
Category: Journaling apps

## Where Day One stands out

- **Markdown support** — 2 of 5 apps with a verified answer have this
- **E2E encryption** — 3 of 6 apps with a verified answer have this

## Overview

- **Who it's for**: People who want to keep a private, long-term personal journal — for daily reflection, memory-keeping, or documenting life events — across iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, Mac, Android, Windows, or the web.
- **What you get**: A journaling app for rich, multimedia entries that combine text with photos, video, audio, and drawings. Entries can be tagged with location and weather, and the 'On This Day' feature resurfaces past entries from previous years. Reminders prompt regular journaling, and entries are protected with passcode/biometric lock and end-to-end encryption. A free tier is available, with a paid Day One Premium/Gold plan unlocking unlimited photos, multiple journals, and other extras.
- **How it works**: You write entries in the app on any supported device, attaching media, location, and weather data as you go; entries sync automatically across devices via an encrypted cloud library and can be browsed by calendar, timeline, or search.

## Profile

- **License**: Proprietary (verified 2026-07-08)
- **Pricing model**: Freemium (verified 2026-07-08)
- **Starts at**: $49.99/year (verified 2026-07-08)
- **Platforms**: iOS, macOS, Android, Windows, Web
- **Status**: active (verified 2026-07-08)

## Ranked alternatives

| # | App | Alt Score | Licence | Platforms |
|---|-----|-----------|---------|-----------|
| 1 | [Journey](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/journey.md) | 95 | ? | iOS, macOS, Android, Windows |
| 2 | [Diarium](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/diarium.md) | 80 | Proprietary | Windows, macOS, iOS, Android |
| 3 | [Daylio](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/daylio.md) | 70 | Proprietary | iOS, Android |
| 4 | [Stoic](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/stoic.md) | 70 | Proprietary | ? |
| 5 | [Apple Journal](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/apple-journal.md) | 60 | Proprietary | iOS, macOS |

Alt Score = Verified coverage (90%) + Visibility (10%). See https://altcatalog.com/how-alt-score-works/

## Feature comparison

Legend: Yes / No / Partial / ? (not verified).

| Journaling apps checklist | Day One | Journey | Diarium | Daylio | Stoic | Apple Journal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Freemium | Freemium | Freemium | Freemium | Freemium | Free |
| Starts at | $49.99/year | $6.99/month | Free | Free | ? | Free |
| License | Proprietary | ? | Proprietary | Proprietary | Proprietary | Proprietary |
| Platforms | iOS, macOS, Android, Windows, Web | iOS, macOS, Android, Windows, Linux, Web | Windows, macOS, iOS, Android | iOS, Android | ? | iOS, macOS |
| E2E encryption | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes |
| Templates & prompts | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Partial |
| Photos & media | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mood tracking | ? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Export formats | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Partial |
| Sync across devices | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Partial | Yes |
| On-this-day memories | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Partial | ? |
| One-time purchase option | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Markdown support | Yes | Partial | ? | No | Yes | No |

## Sources

Sources for Day One. Each alternative is sourced on its own page.

- **License**: Proprietary — <https://dayoneapp.com/features/sync/> (verified 2026-07-08)
  - Quote: “© Automattic”
- **Pricing model**: Freemium — <https://dayoneapp.com/pricing/> (verified 2026-07-08)
  - Quote: “Unlimited journal entries, Unlimited journals, 1 photo per entry, end-to-end encryption, daily prompts, templates, search & filters, memories, streaks”
- **Starts at**: $49.99/year — <https://dayoneapp.com/pricing/> (verified 2026-07-08)
  - Quote: “$49.99 per year”
- **Platforms**: iOS, macOS, Android, Windows, Web — <https://dayoneapp.com/features/sync/> (verified 2026-07-08)
  - Quote: “Day One Sync is our service for syncing and backing up your Day One journal on all of your Mac, iOS, Android, and Windows devices.”
- **Status**: active — <https://dayoneapp.com/pricing/> (verified 2026-07-08)
  - Quote: “Day One Silver (Premium): $8.99/month or $49.99/year”
- **E2E encryption**: Yes — <https://dayoneapp.com/guides/day-one-sync/end-to-end-encryption-faq/> (verified 2026-07-08)
  - Quote: “End-to-end encryption (E2EE) utilizes a private key to encrypt all entries before they reach Day One servers.”
- **Templates & prompts**: Yes — <https://dayoneapp.com/features/> (verified 2026-07-08)
  - Quote: “Journal templates are a great way to add structure and consistency to your entries.”
- **Photos & media**: Yes — <https://dayoneapp.com/features/> (verified 2026-07-08)
  - Quote: “Preserve even more powerful memories with unlimited photos and videos”
- **Export formats**: Yes — <https://dayoneapp.com/features/export/> (verified 2026-07-08)
  - Note: PDF, JSON, plain-text/Markdown, CSV.
  - Quote: “PDF exports include formatted text and photos inline in each entry.”
- **Sync across devices**: Yes — <https://dayoneapp.com/features/sync/> (verified 2026-07-08)
  - Quote: “Day One Sync is our service for syncing and backing up your Day One journal on all of your Mac, iOS, Android, and Windows devices.”
- **On-this-day memories**: Yes — <https://dayoneapp.com/features/> (verified 2026-07-08)
  - Quote: “Relive past memories with On This Day.”
- **One-time purchase option**: No — <https://dayoneapp.com/pricing/> (verified 2026-07-08)
  - Note: Subscription-only; legacy perpetual licenses (pre-2017) no longer sold.
  - Quote: “Day One Silver (Premium): $8.99/month or $49.99/year”
- **Markdown support**: Yes — <https://dayoneapp.com/features/> (verified 2026-07-08)
  - Quote: “Powerful rich text formatting with markdown.”

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Ranked by verified data, never by who paid. https://altcatalog.com/trust/