How to keep a private journal on iPhone

Decide this first, because it changes the answer.

• A curious person who picks up your phone while it is locked: your iPhone passcode already does most of the work. Check what the Lock Screen shows (see below).
• Someone who knows your iPhone passcode, such as a partner, a parent or a flatmate: you need a lock that is separate from the passcode, such as a custom Notes password or a vault with its own passcode.
• Someone you lend your phone to, already unlocked: you need an app that asks for its own lock every time it opens, or a vault that locks itself again.

No journal is safe from someone you let watch you type the code, or who sees the entries over your shoulder. The lock only protects an entry while it is closed.

Yes. iOS 17.2 and later include a Journal app. It has a Lock Journal setting that asks for Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode before entries open. On recent versions it is under Settings → Apps → Journal; on iOS 17 it is under Settings → Journal. If you cannot find it, use the Search box at the top of Settings.

1. 1Open Settings and find Journal.
2. 2Tap Lock Journal and turn it on.
3. 3Decide whether to allow Journaling Suggestions. They can offer prompts from your photos, places and activity if you allow them; leave them off if you want the app to know nothing beyond what you type.

The Journal app is the easiest option, and it unlocks with the same passcode as the phone. Anyone who knows your iPhone passcode can therefore also open the Journal.

Notes lets you lock a single note behind your iPhone passcode or a separate Notes password. A separate password is the better fit for a diary, because it is not the code you type in front of other people all day.

Know the limits before you rely on it. The first line of a locked note stays visible in the list, so give it a neutral title such as “Personal”. Search only finds locked notes by title. Some notes cannot be locked at all, such as shared ones. How to lock notes on iPhone with a password or Face ID has the steps and what to do if you forget the password.

Lockboxy is an iPhone app that keeps notes, photos, files and passwords in one encrypted vault. Everything is encrypted on the device with AES-256, behind a passcode of its own, with Face ID as an option. There is no account and no server of ours in between.

• Private Notes are plain text: a title and a body, saved as you type, with no Save button to forget.
• The Notes list groups entries by month and year, so a year of journalling is easy to browse. Search in the Notes list looks at titles, so give each entry a date or a short name. Lockboxy Premium adds vault search that also looks inside note text.
• The vault locks itself again after 1 minute without a touch, so a phone left open on the table does not stay open.
• Photos you want to keep with a day's entry can go in the vault's Media area instead of staying in Photos. How to hide photos on iPhone shows how.
• Deleting a note sends it to the Recycle Bin first, so a slip of the finger does not lose a page.
• Notes are unlimited on the free plan. The free plan's limits (30 photos or videos, 10 files) apply to Media and Files, not to journal entries.

• You want the simplest daily habit, and the main worry is a stranger: the Journal app with Lock Journal on.
• You write a little and want it in the Notes you already use: a locked note with a custom password.
• Someone you live with knows your iPhone passcode, you write often, or you add photos and files: a vault with its own passcode. See Lockboxy vs locked notes on iPhone for a longer comparison.

You can also combine them: write in one place and keep the photos and documents in the vault.

• Notifications. A reminder that says “Write your entry about…” can show on the Lock Screen. Set Settings → Notifications → Show Previews to When Unlocked, or keep reminder text neutral. What can someone do with your locked iPhone? lists the other Lock Screen items.
• The App Switcher. A journal app's last screen can appear in its preview. How to hide private content in the iPhone App Switcher explains what helps.
• Backups. Journal and Notes entries can sync to iCloud with your Apple account, which anyone with access to that account can also reach. Lockboxy does not upload your vault to us; Premium lets you export an encrypted backup to a place you choose.
• A phone that is already unlocked. If you lend it, see how to lend your iPhone without exposing your photos.
• Losing the key. If you forget a custom Notes password or the vault passcode, nobody can recover the entries for you. Lockboxy Premium has an optional Recovery Key you generate in advance.

• The Journal app, locked notes and every setting above are free and built into iOS.
• Lockboxy's free plan holds up to 30 photos or videos and 10 files, with unlimited notes. Premium removes those limits and the ads. Prices are on the Premium page and the app shows the exact price before you buy.
• Menu names change between iOS versions. If a step does not match your screen, use Search in Settings.