Tomefold › Day One alternative
A Day One alternative with no subscription
Updated October 17, 2026
Day One is a mature, well-loved journaling app. Tomefold is a younger and smaller one, built for people who want to pay once, keep their entries out of a service run by someone else, and leave whenever they like. Here is an honest look at both, so you can decide without a sales pitch.
The short answer
Stay with Day One if you record audio, if you need devices that are not made by Apple, or if you are happy with its plans. Try Tomefold if you have years of entries you want to keep, you prefer a one-time purchase to a yearly subscription, and you use an iPhone, an iPad or a Mac. Because importing and exporting are free, you can try it without giving anything up.
Side by side
| Day One | Tomefold | |
|---|---|---|
| Price model | A free plan plus paid plans billed yearly (see its pricing guide) | Free to write, import and export; Pro is one purchase, no subscription |
| Photos per entry | Limited on the free plan (see its pricing guide) | The app sets no limit |
| Audio entries | Yes | Not yet |
| Export | JSON, PDF and plain text, with media in a ZIP | JSON (Day One compatible) and one Markdown file per entry, free |
| Account and servers | See Day One's site | No account and no servers of ours; sync uses your iCloud |
| Works on | See Day One's site | iPhone, iPad and Mac only |
Where Day One is the better choice
- Audio entries. Day One keeps audio recordings with your entries; Tomefold does not record audio yet.
- A longer track record. Day One has been around far longer; Tomefold is new and small, with one developer.
- Devices. Tomefold runs only on iPhone, iPad and Mac (iOS 18, iPadOS 18 or macOS 15 and later). If you also write on devices that are not made by Apple, it cannot help you.
Where Tomefold is the better choice
- You pay once. Writing, photos, video, calendar, places, statistics, import and export are free. Pro (iCloud sync, unlimited journals, journal sharing, Claude cleanup) is a single purchase, never a subscription.
- No account and no servers of ours. Entries live on your device and, if you turn on sync, in your own iCloud. Tomefold has no cloud of its own.
- It reads your Day One export. Choose the ZIP from Day One as it is: entries, photos, videos, places, tags and original dates come across, and importing the same file twice does not duplicate anything. See how to import your Day One journal.
- You can always leave. The free export gives you a JSON file that Day One can read and one Markdown file per entry, with your photos as normal files.
- Optional help for dictated text. With your own Anthropic API key, a tap on the sparkle button proposes a cleaned-up version of an entry that you review before applying it.
What switching looks like
- In Day One, export all your journals as JSON with media.
- In Tomefold, open Import & Export, choose Day One and pick the ZIP.
- Check the preview (entries, photos, years, space), then import.
- Keep your Day One journals until you have looked through the imported ones. Nothing in Tomefold deletes anything from Day One.
Sources (checked October 17, 2026)
Frequently asked questions
Is Tomefold a good Day One alternative for iPhone and Mac?
If you only use Apple devices, yes: it covers writing with photos and video, a calendar, places on a map, tags, search, favorites, statistics, import from Day One and other apps, free export and a PDF book. It does not record audio yet and has no version for non-Apple devices.
Can I import my whole Day One journal into Tomefold?
Yes. In Day One export all journals as JSON with media, then choose the ZIP in Tomefold's Import & Export. Entries, photos, videos, places, tags and original dates come across, and you see a preview first. Importing is free.
Will I lose anything if I import more than once?
No. Entries are recognised, so importing the same export again does not create duplicates, and an entry you edited in Tomefold is only overwritten by a file that is newer.
Do I need a Tomefold account?
No. There is no Tomefold account and no Tomefold server. Sync, if you buy Pro and turn it on, uses your own iCloud.
What does Tomefold cost?
Tomefold is free to download and to write in. Tomefold Pro is a one-time purchase, shown in your own currency on the App Store. It is never a subscription.
Can I take my entries out of Tomefold later?
Yes, for free and at any time: a JSON file compatible with Day One and one Markdown file per entry, with your photos as normal files.
Keep your journal on your terms
Tomefold is free to write in, to import into and to export from. Pro is a single purchase: no subscription.
Coming soon to the App Store Discover Tomefold