About Diarly
Diarly is a private diary and journaling app for iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch. It combines a Markdown editor, reusable templates that auto-fill weather, photos, calendar, and Apple Health data, mood tracking, and On This Day memories. The free tier covers one journal on one device with no ads or account, while Premium adds iCloud sync, end-to-end encryption for entry text, unlimited journals, voice notes, and an AI assistant.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Generous free tier: unlimited entries and media, templates, mood tracking, and app lock with no ads or account
- Templates auto-fill weather, photos, calendar events, and Apple Health data, so entries start half-written
- Strong privacy model: data stays on device or in your own iCloud, with password-based encryption of entry text on Premium
- Imports from Day One, Apple Journal, Journey, Stoic, and Evernote, and exports to open formats like Markdown and HTML
- Low-cost Premium compared with Day One, with one subscription covering iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch
- Native apps for every Apple platform, rated 4.7 from 23,000+ App Store ratings worldwide
Cons
- Apple-only: no Android, Windows, or web app
- Cross-device sync requires a Premium subscription
- Encryption covers entry text only; images and attachments are not encrypted by Diarly
- Transcription and OCR features sit behind a separate AI+ subscription on top of Premium
- Small independent developer, so support and roadmap depend on a tiny team
Key Features
Journal templates
Build templates with your own prompts plus auto-filled details such as weather, location, today's photos, calendar events, sleep, steps, workouts, and mood.
Mood tracking and insights
Rate your day with a slider, tag feelings, and review mood calendars and insights over time; moods sync to State of Mind in Apple Health.
Markdown editor with slash commands
Format with Markdown, insert time, weather, or location with /, link entries with [[, and add photos, checklists, quotes, and drawings.
On This Day and timeline views
Revisit what you wrote in previous years, and browse entries by calendar, timeline, photo gallery, or map.
Undated notes
Keep lists, drafts, and ideas as undated notes alongside dated diary entries.
Privacy and encryption
Password, Face ID, and Touch ID lock are free; Premium adds encryption of entry text with your own password and syncs only through your personal iCloud account.
Import and export
Import from Apple Journal, Day One, Journey, Stoic, Evernote, Markdown, and CSV; export to Markdown, PDF, Rich Text, HTML, and EPUB.
Voice notes and transcription
Record audio entries and transcribe them with Apple's built-in speech recognition (Premium).
Reminders and streaks
Writing reminders, goals, and journal streaks help build a daily journaling habit.
AI assistant
Premium includes an AI assistant with affirmations and advice; a separate AI+ add-on adds audio transcription and OCR text extraction from photos.
Pricing
- Unlimited entries, photos, and videos in one diary
- Password, Face ID and Touch ID lock
- Three templates, mood tracking, and insights
- Reminders, streaks, and On This Day
- Calendar, gallery, and map views
- Import from other apps, export to Markdown
- No ads, no account, works offline
- Sync across iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch via iCloud
- End-to-end encryption for entry text
- Unlimited journals and templates
- Voice notes and transcription
- Every theme and custom backgrounds
- EPUB, PDF, and printing
- AI assistant, affirmations, and advice
- 7-day free trial for eligible new subscribers
- Everything in Premium Monthly
- One subscription covers all Apple devices
- Prices vary by country; a $29.99/year option is also listed
- Audio journal transcription
- OCR text extraction from photos
Best For
Daily reflection and gratitude journaling
Use templates with fixed prompts and auto-filled weather and photos to write a short entry every evening.
Mood and mental wellbeing tracking
Log moods with a slider, tag feelings, and review mood calendars to spot patterns, with data synced to Apple Health.
Fitness and sleep journaling
Pull workouts, steps, activity rings, and sleep from Apple Health into a training log or sleep journal.
Travel and photo journal
Attach photos and locations to entries and browse trips on the map and gallery views.
Migrating from Day One or Apple Journal
Import years of existing entries and photos and keep them in a private, locally stored diary.
Similar Tools
Obsidian
Sharpen your thinking
Proton Mail
Secure, privacy-first email built in Switzerland
Tuta
Secure email with quantum-resistant encryption
Mailfence
Secure and private email with integrated productivity
StartMail
Private email from the makers of Startpage
Fastmail
Fast, private email that puts you in control