Daykeep vs Day One
An honest comparison from the person who made Daykeep — including where Day One is the better choice.
The short version
Day One is a mature, full-featured journal with a wide range of attachments, more platforms and a polished feature set, and it is sold as a subscription for its full features. Daykeep is a smaller, simpler journal for iPhone, iPad and Mac that does one thing: text and photos, with captions. It is free to use, with an optional one-off purchase and no subscription.
If you want audio, video, PDFs or an Android or web app, choose Day One. If you mainly write and add photos, and you would rather pay once than every year, Daykeep is built for you.
Side by side
| Daykeep | Day One | |
|---|---|---|
| Price model | Free to use. Optional one-off “Daykeep Plus” purchase. No subscription. | Free tier with limits; full features through a subscription. Check Day One’s site for current pricing. |
| Content | Text and photos, with captions | Text, photos, video, audio, drawings, PDFs and more |
| Platforms | iPhone, iPad, Mac | Apple devices, plus other platforms (see Day One) |
| Sync | Through your own iCloud — no account to create | Day One’s own sync service and account |
| Privacy | No account, no analytics, no tracking. “Data Not Collected” on the App Store. | See Day One’s own privacy policy |
| Printing | Make a book or PDF yourself (watermark-free with Plus), or send a journal to Mosaic Collage Maker for a designed photobook | See Day One’s site for its print options |
| Switching | Imports a Day One export; exports back to Day One format, free | — |
Comparisons are general and apps change; check each app’s own page for current details.
Choose Daykeep if…
- Your journal is mostly words and photos.
- You would rather pay once than keep paying every year for a habit you plan to keep for decades.
- You want your entries in your own iCloud, with no extra account.
- You want to be able to leave: export back to Day One format is free.
Choose Day One if…
- You record audio or video, or attach PDFs, to your entries.
- You need an Android or web version, or other platform support.
- You want its wider feature set and are happy with a subscription.
Daykeep leaves audio, video and PDF attachments out on purpose, to stay small and simple.
How switching works
Bring your journal across in a few taps
In Day One, export a journal as JSON. In Daykeep, choose Import from Day One and pick the zip. Entries, photos, tags, dates, places and weather come across into a new journal, and your original is untouched. See the step-by-step guide.
Common questions
Is there a journaling app like Day One without a subscription?
Daykeep is free to use with an optional one-off purchase and no subscription. It covers text and photos only.
What does Daykeep Plus unlock?
More than two journals, books and PDFs without the watermark, and splitting or combining journals. One purchase covers iPhone, iPad and Mac. Journaling, unlimited photos, iCloud sync, backup, restore and Day One import and export stay free.
Will I lose anything moving from Day One?
Text, photos, captions, tags, dates, places and weather come across. Audio, video and PDF attachments are not supported in Daykeep, so keep your Day One journal if those matter.