Apple Journal vs Clearful

Apple Journal is a free journaling app for recording everyday moments and special events. Entries can combine text, photos, videos, audio, places, drawings, and a logged state of mind. On-device intelligence groups outings, workouts, photos, and media into suggestions, while reflection prompts and scheduled notifications support regular writing. You can create multiple journals, search and sort entries, browse a calendar, and view entries by location. Writing tools include formatting, inline attachments, drawings, and audio recording with transcription; Apple says transcription in English excludes Singapore and India locales. State-of-mind entries can be saved to Health, and writing time can become Mindful Minutes. Suggestions are processed on device, with sharing controlled by the user. Device passcodes encrypt entries; iCloud entries receive end-to-end encryption with default two-factor authentication and a passcode. iCloud sync covers iPhone, iPad, and Mac, but Journal entries are not included in iCloud backups.

Clearful is a digital journaling app for personal growth, mindfulness, and mental health. It offers more than 400 guided journals, prompts, and templates, plus a Flow Editor with over 14 formatting options, including headings, lists, checklists, quotes, dividers, and links. Users can make custom templates and organize guided journals into collections. Rediscover brings older entries back into view, and AI-enhanced reviews summarize journal activity and insights. Clearful runs on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Android, and the web, with entries syncing across devices. On iOS, Apple's on-device Journaling Suggestions API can add suggested moments to entries. The maker says entries are encrypted on the device, in transit using TLS, and at rest by its cloud computing platform. Privacy tools include biometric authentication, entry locks, and device access management; the maker also says it does not show ads or sell data. The free plan is available indefinitely with unlimited entries. Clearful Pro costs $9.99 a month, and a 7-day trial is listed.