Choosing a private journal app? Check where your entries go

When looking for a personal journaling app, the first things people notice are often the user interface or whether the app offers a passcode lock.

Those features are nice to have, but how private an app truly is comes down to what happens behind the scenes: Where is your writing stored after you save it? Who else could potentially access those words? And if you ever switch phones or if the app stops being updated, can you take your entries with you intact?

You don’t need to perform a full technical audit to evaluate an app. Keeping a few practical questions in mind is usually enough to give you peace of mind.

1. Is your writing stored locally on your device or in the cloud?

This is the most fundamental point. If an app offers cloud sync, you can check whether it is enabled by default or optional, and where your content will be stored.

Local storage and cloud storage each have their own purpose: cloud storage makes viewing entries across multiple devices convenient, while local storage does not rely on server-side network storage. The key is understanding how your app handles your data and keeping an independent copy yourself rather than relying on a single storage location.

If what you write is deeply personal, it’s worth checking whether the app saves your text locally on your device by default.

2. Understand the difference between an “app lock” and “data encryption”

Many apps let you set a passcode, Face ID, or fingerprint lock, usually referred to as an app lock.

An app lock prevents friends or family who pick up your unlocked phone from casually opening the app. However, it mainly protects the app’s interface entrance and is not the same as encrypting the underlying files themselves.

Knowing this distinction helps ensure you don’t treat an app lock as a foolproof shield, and reminds you to keep a strong passcode on your phone itself.

3. Know what data leaves your device and when

Even if your writing stays local, the app might still make network requests for necessary functions like account logins, membership subscriptions, or crash reports.

The key isn’t whether an app uses the internet, but what it actually sends:

• Accounts and subscriptions: Logging in and verifying purchase status are standard, basic functions;
• Photo permissions: Can the app access only the photos you select, or your whole library? Access and uploading are separate questions, so also check whether photos are uploaded and where they go;
• Analytics: Does the app offer a toggle to turn off usage analytics, letting you decide whether to send usage statistics?

Read permission prompts, settings, and the privacy notice together. A toggle alone does not tell you what the app collects.

4. Check if you can export your content completely when you want to leave

No matter how comfortable an app feels right now, there may come a day when you want to switch tools, change platforms, or when the app is no longer maintained.

Before you invest time writing, check where the export option is and what formats it supports:

• Universal formats (like PDF, images, or plain text): Convenient for sharing with others and usually much easier to open directly with other tools;
• Dedicated archive files: Whether it can package text, attachments, doodles, and layouts into a single file that can be re-imported later on a new device to show the entry as it originally was.

If an app makes it easy to write entries but hard to export them, or strips away photos and formatting during export, it’s worth considering whether to store long-term memories there. For more tips on offline storage, see How to back up your digital journal and keep it readable.

How does Inks handle these things?

When building Inks, I followed these same practical principles.

In Inks, you can write your first letter without signing in, though continuing to create afterward requires an account. Your finished letters are saved locally on your phone by default and are not automatically synced or uploaded to cloud servers.

Of course, Inks involves standard network requests for account logins, subscription status refreshes, and usage analytics (if you opt in). When you attach photos, Inks uses the system photo picker, accessing only the specific images you choose rather than your entire library. I’ve outlined these details thoroughly in the Privacy Policy.

As for exporting, Inks allows you to save finished letters as images, Live Photos, PDFs, videos, or MBX files. An MBX file is a self-contained archive storing the text, writing timeline, photos, doodles, and stationery or fonts used. You can store your exported MBX files on your own cloud drive or computer, and re-import them into Inks anytime to view the finished letter or replay how it was written.

Choosing a private journal app doesn’t have to be complicated. Once you know where your writing lives and that you can keep your exported files yourself, you can write with peace of mind.