Support
Private AI Journal
Getting Started
How do I write my first entry?
Open the app and tap the + button on the Today screen, or tap "Use today’s prompt" to start with an AI-generated question. Write or speak your entry, then tap Save. Mood and themes are detected automatically on save — you can edit or override either before or after.
What’s a daily prompt?
Each morning, the App generates a journaling question on-device based on the themes from your recent entries (or from a curated cold-start library if you’re new). Free users get 1 daily prompt; Premium unlocks unlimited custom prompts on demand. Prompts are never repeated.
What’s the weekly reflection?
Every Sunday, the App generates an AI-written "look back on your week" from your last 7 entries — surfacing themes, mood patterns, and moments of gratitude. The reflection is generated entirely on-device and stored alongside your entries.
Voice Entries
How do voice entries work?
Tap and hold the microphone button on the entry screen and start speaking. Transcription appears live as you talk. When you let go, the transcript becomes editable text you can refine before saving. Voice entries are a Premium feature.
Is the voice recording sent to the cloud?
No. Transcription uses Apple’s on-device Speech framework. Both the audio and the transcript stay on your iPhone (and, if you opt in, in your personal iCloud private zone). You can verify by enabling Airplane Mode — transcription still works.
Why does the transcript have errors?
On-device transcription is fast and private, but slightly less accurate than cloud transcription for accented or technical speech. Tap any word in the transcript to fix it; corrections do not retrain the model.
Privacy & AI
Where do my entries go?
They stay on your iPhone. Optionally, they sync through your personal iCloud private CloudKit zone, which Apple cannot read and we have no access to. We do not operate a server that sees your journal. See the Privacy Policy for full details.
Does AI work offline?
Yes. Daily prompts, weekly reflections, mood detection, voice transcription, and title suggestions all run on-device using Apple Intelligence and the Speech framework. Toggle Airplane Mode to verify — every feature continues to work.
I don’t see AI features. Why?
On-device AI features require a device that supports Apple Intelligence (iPhone 15 Pro or newer, current iPads with M-series chips, and recent Macs). On older devices, the App still works for text and voice journaling, but AI-generated prompts and reflections are unavailable.
What permissions does the app need?
Microphone (only when you tap Record), Speech Recognition (on-device, only while dictating), Photos read-only (only for images you attach), Location (optional, off by default), Face ID (only when biometric lock is enabled), and Notifications (optional, for daily reminders and Sunday reflections).
iCloud Sync
How does iCloud sync work?
Sync uses your personal CloudKit private database. Entries propagate to your other devices signed into the same Apple ID. We run no CloudKit container that sees user data — sync is device-to-device through Apple’s infrastructure.
Can I disable iCloud sync?
Yes — open Settings inside the App and toggle iCloud sync off. Entries already in your iCloud account remain until you remove them via iOS Settings → Apple ID → iCloud → Manage Storage.
Free vs Premium
What’s free vs Premium?
Free: Unlimited text entries, 1 daily AI prompt, manual mood tracking, 7-day mood chart, iCloud sync for text, with banner ads. Premium: Unlimited custom AI prompts, voice entries with on-device transcription, weekly and monthly AI reflections, 30/90/365-day mood and theme analytics, Face ID lock, widgets, Year in Review PDF export, and zero ads.
Is there a free trial?
Yes — the Premium Annual plan ($49.99/year) includes a 7-day free trial. You’ll only be charged at the end of the trial. Cancel anytime in your Apple ID subscription settings before the trial ends.
How do I restore my purchase?
Open Settings inside the App and tap "Restore Purchases". This re-applies your active subscription if you’ve previously purchased one on this Apple ID.
How do I cancel my subscription?
Open the iOS Settings app, tap your name at the top, then tap Subscriptions. Find Private AI Journal and tap Cancel Subscription. Cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period.
Export & Backup
Can I export my journal?
Yes. From Settings, choose Export → Markdown (one file per entry, zipped) or PDF (a single bound document). Individual entries can also be shared via the iOS share sheet as text, PDF, or a styled image.
What’s the Year in Review?
Every December, Premium users can generate a Year in Review PDF: a designed booklet of your mood patterns, top themes, gratitude moments, and selected highlights from the year — all generated on-device from your entries.
Contact Us
Email Support
For questions, bug reports, or feature requests:
We typically respond within 48 hours. Because we never see your entries, please don’t paste journal content into support emails — describe the issue and include your iOS version, device model, and the App version (Settings → About).