TRY OUR FREE APP

Write your book in Reedsy Studio. Try the beloved writing app for free today.

Craft your masterpiece in Reedsy Studio

Plan, write, edit, and format your book in our free app made for authors.

DIRECTORY

Best Journal Writing Apps in 2025

Showing 49 writing apps that match your search.

The human brain is non-linear: we jump from idea to idea, all the time. Your second brain should work the same. In Obsidian, making and following connections is frictionless. Tend to your notes like a gardener; at the end of the day, sit back and marvel at your own knowledge graph.

Platforms: Windows, Mac, iPhone, iPad, Android, PC

Best for: Note-taking, Outlining, Journal, Book, Story, Essay, Poetry, Blog, and Free

Website: https://obsidian.md/

Base price:

Free

Premium price:

$25.00 one-time payment

Link pages

Graph view

Customizable with backlinked notes

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Performance

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Features

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Accessibility

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Value

Also rated 4.5 β˜… on TechRadar

Diarly is built for the best journaling experience. With every feature you will need and a beautiful interface, starting a journal has never been so simple.

Platforms: Mac, iPhone, iPad

Best for: Note-taking and Journal

Website: https://diarly.app/

Base price:

$2.00 monthly

Premium price:

–

Built-in gallery and maps

Timeline

Notes

Custom fonts and templates

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Performance

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Features

β˜…β˜…β˜… Accessibility

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Value

Also rated 4.8 β˜… on the App Store

Capture your thoughts, discoveries, and ideas and simplify overwhelming planning moments in your life with your very own digital notepad. With OneNote, you can plan that big event, seize that moment of inspiration to create something new, and track that list of errands that are too important to forget.

Platforms: Mac, iPhone, iPad, Windows, Android, Chrome, PC

Best for: Note-taking, Journal, Blog, Essay, and Free

Website: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/onenote/dig...

Base price:

Free

Premium price:

–

Sync across devices

Share and collaborate

Secure notes with password

Pin important pages and notes

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Performance

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Features

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Accessibility

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Value

Also rated 4.5 β˜… on TechRadar

Craft your masterpiece in Reedsy Studio

Plan, write, edit, and format your book in our free app made for authors.

Learn more about Reedsy Studio

Traditional word processors include dozens of options for formatting text, distracting you from what really matters: writing. Calmly Writer is an editor designed to focus on what you want to tell, with a simple, unobtrusive and ease-to-use user interface.

Platforms: Windows, Mac, Online, Chrome, PC

Best for: Drafting, Book, Essay, Journal, Poetry, Story, Blog, and Free

Website: https://www.calmlywriter.com/

Base price:

Free

Premium price:

$10.99 one-time payment

Focus mode

Auto save

Light and dark mode

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Performance

β˜…β˜…β˜… Features

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Accessibility

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Value

Also rated 4.5 β˜… on TechRadar

Build your best ideas together, in Google Docs. Create, edit, and collaborate with others on documents from your Android phone or tablet with the Google Docs app.

Platforms: Online, Chrome, iPhone, iPad, Android

Best for: Drafting, Book, Essay, Journal, Poetry, Story, Blog, and Free

Website: https://www.google.com/docs/about/

Base price:

Free

Premium price:

–

Create and share new documents

Work online and offline

Export in multiple formats

Collaborate in real time

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Performance

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Features

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Accessibility

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Value

Also rated 4.0 β˜… on TechRadar

You have a story to tell, article to publish, or class notes to take. Scrivo Pro can help you organize your writing, research, generate ideas, and remove distractions so you can focus on the most important thing: writing.

Platforms: Mac, iPhone, iPad

Best for: Outlining, Drafting, Journal, Book, Story, Essay, Poetry, and Blog

Website: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/scrivo-pro-for-scriveners-a...

Base price:

$9.99 one-time payment

Premium price:

–

Organize projects in tree-like structure

Live counters

Works offline

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Performance

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Features

β˜…β˜…β˜… Accessibility

β˜…β˜…β˜… Value

Also rated 4.4 β˜… on the App Store

Capture what’s on your mind. Add notes, lists, photos, and audio to Keep.

Platforms: Online, iPhone, iPad, Android

Best for: Note-taking, Story, Book, Blog, Journal, Poetry, and Free

Website: https://www.google.com/keep/

Base price:

Free

Premium price:

–

Set reminders

Share easily

Quick search and filter

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Performance

β˜…β˜…β˜… Features

β˜…β˜…β˜… Accessibility

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Value

Also rated 4.5 β˜… on TechRadar

Traditional notes apps are great for writing, but getting things done requires something more. Clover’s Daily Notes introduce a new way of documenting thoughts, keeping track of tasks, and planning work within the context of your daily agenda.

Platforms: PC, Mac, iPhone, iPad

Best for: Note-taking, Journal, and Free

Website: https://cloverapp.com/

Base price:

Free

Premium price:

$8.00 monthly

Rich text with rich media

Networked notes

Whiteboarding

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Performance

β˜…β˜…β˜… Features

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Accessibility

β˜…β˜…β˜… Value

Also rated 4.6 β˜… on the App Store

Black Note is the black theme's notepad. It's the simple notes app.

Platforms: Android

Best for: Note-taking, Story, Book, Blog, Journal, Poetry, and Free

Website: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=notepad.not...

Base price:

Free

Premium price:

–

Dark mode only

Sticky notes

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Performance

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Features

β˜…β˜…β˜… Accessibility

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Value

Also rated 4.8 β˜… on Google Play

The #1 text to speech solution for personal, commercial, and educational use.

Platforms: Online, iPhone, iPad, Android

Best for: Editing, Story, Book, Blog, Journal, and Free

Website: https://www.naturalreaders.com/

Base price:

Free

Premium price:

–

Convert text to spoken audio

Cross platform compatibility

Multiple chat styles

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Performance

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Features

β˜…β˜…β˜… Accessibility

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Value

Also rated 4.5 β˜… on TechRadar

Writemonkey is a Windows zenware writing application with an extremely stripped down user interface, leaving you alone with your thoughts and your words. It is light, fast and free.

Platforms: Windows, PC, Mac

Best for: Drafting, Book, Essay, Journal, Poetry, Story, Blog, and Free

Website: https://writemonkey.com/

Base price:

Free

Premium price:

–

Customizable with a clean text format

Visual progress bar

Timed writing

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Performance

β˜…β˜…β˜… Features

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Accessibility

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Value

Also rated 4.5 β˜… on TechRadar

FocusWriter is a simple, distraction-free writing environment. It utilizes a hide-away interface that you access by moving your mouse to the edges of the screen, allowing the program to have a familiar look and feel to it while still getting out of the way so that you can immerse yourself in your work.

Platforms: Windows, PC

Best for: Drafting, Book, Essay, Journal, Poetry, Story, Blog, and Free

Website: https://gottcode.org/focuswriter/

Base price:

Free

Premium price:

–

Full screen hide-away interface

Timers & daily goals

Customizable themes

Live statistics

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Performance

β˜…β˜…β˜… Features

β˜…β˜…β˜… Accessibility

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… Value

Also rated 4.0 β˜… on TechRadar

πŸ–₯️

Which writing app is best for you?

Take our 1 minute quiz to find out.