Apps to keep your own memories, compared (2026)
· 8 min read · The Memory Palace Team
Your palace, on your phone too.
Short answer: the best app to keep your own memories depends on how you keep them. For a daily diary, choose Day One, Journey or Apple Journal. For a backup of every photo, choose Google Photos. For the chapters of your life, with photos, voice and story together in rooms you walk through, private by default, choose The Memory Palace. Many people combine a backup with one of the others.
This guide is for you, keeping your own photos, voice recordings and stories, privately, not for a family archive. It compares five apps on the same points: what each is best for, photos, voice and video, privacy, export, platforms and price. Every fact about another app was checked on its own website, App Store page or help pages on 7 October 2026; the sources are listed at the end. Prices of paid plans differ per country, so for those we point you to their site.
At a glance
| App | Best for | Photos, voice, video | Privacy | Full export | Platforms | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day One | A daily journal with photos | All three on paid plans (free Basic: 1 photo per entry, no audio or video) | End-to-end encryption on every plan | PDF, JSON with media, plain text | iPhone, iPad, Mac, Android, Apple Watch, web | Basic free; Silver and Gold paid, see their site |
| Apple Journal | Quick journaling on Apple devices | Photos, video, audio with transcription | End-to-end encrypted in iCloud; lock with Face ID, Touch ID or passcode | One ZIP file with photos and media; PDF | iPhone, iPad, Mac | Free; uses your iCloud storage (5 GB free) |
| Google Photos | Backing up every photo and video | Photos and video, in albums | Private until you share; a link-shared album is open to anyone with the link | Google Takeout | Android, iPhone, iPad, web | 15 GB free, shared with Gmail and Drive; more with Google One, see their site |
| Journey | A journal on Android, Windows and the web | All three on paid plans (free: limited photos, no audio or video) | End-to-end encryption on every plan | ePUB, DOCX, PDF | Android, iOS, Mac, Windows, web, ChromeOS | Free version (60 entries, 70 MB); Premium or Membership paid, see their site |
| The Memory Palace | The chapters of your life, with photos, voice and story per room | Photos, voice recordings, video and written stories | Private by default; you invite people into one room | Full ZIP export on every plan | iPhone, iPad, Android, browser | Free plan with 1 GB; Keeper EUR 49 a year; Guardian EUR 79 a year |
Languages: The Memory Palace is available in five languages (English, Dutch, German, French and Spanish). Journey lists 17 languages on its site, including German, French and Spanish. For Day One, Apple Journal and Google Photos, check the store page in your country.
The apps one by one
Day One
Best for: writing often, with photos next to your words, ordered by day. Day One describes itself as a journal where you add photos, videos, drawings and audio recordings to an entry, with end-to-end encryption on every plan. The free Basic plan has unlimited entries, 1 photo per entry and 1 device; the paid plans add more photos and videos per entry, audio recordings with transcription and journaling across all your devices. Export as PDF with photos inline, as JSON with your media in folders, or as plain text.
Better than us at: daily writing. If you keep a diary, Day One is built for that and we are not.
Apple Journal
Best for: journaling on an iPhone, iPad or Mac without installing anything else. Journal is free, and you can add photos, videos and audio recordings with a transcription. Apple lists Journal data as end-to-end encrypted in iCloud, and you can lock the app with Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode. You can export your entries as one ZIP file that includes the photos and other media, or save them as PDF.
Keep in mind: it only runs on Apple devices, and it uses your iCloud storage, of which 5 GB is free.
Google Photos
Best for: an automatic backup of every photo and video on your phone. Google says backed-up photos and videos are private and viewable only by you unless you share them. Each Google Account includes up to 15 GB, shared across Gmail, Google Drive and Google Photos. An album shared by link can be viewed by anyone with the link. Google Takeout exports your data.
Better than us at: everyday photo backup. Keep it running. It stores everything, but it does not hold the story or your voice next to a photo.
Journey
Best for: a journal across many devices, including Android, Windows, ChromeOS and the web. Journey offers end-to-end encryption on its free and paid plans and lets you add photos, video and audio. The free version is limited to 60 entries and 70 MB, with limited photos and no audio or video. The Membership raises that to 10 GB and 5,000 entries, with up to 20 media files per entry. Export to ePUB, DOCX and PDF.
Better than us at: daily writing on a Windows computer or a Chromebook.
Where The Memory Palace fits
The Memory Palace is your own 3D memory palace: your photos, voice recordings and stories each get a room you can walk through. It is private by default, and you invite family and friends into a room when you choose. First it is for yourself. It is not a social platform: there is no public profile, and nobody sees anything you did not share. It is not a memory trainer either.
- A room per chapter. Your student years, a move abroad, a long friendship, a trip: each gets its own room, with the photos on the walls and the story next to them.
- Your voice next to the photo. Add a voice recording to a room, so the story is told in your own voice.
- Share one room, not everything. Invite the people who were there into that room. The rest stays private.
- No lock-in. A full export as a ZIP file on every plan, including the free one.
- Practical. A free plan with 1 GB; Keeper costs EUR 49 a year, Guardian EUR 79 a year. On iPhone, iPad, Android and in the browser, in five languages. Data is stored in the EU. Made by a small team in Leuven, Belgium.
What it lacks: it is not a daily diary, and it does not back up your phone automatically. You choose what goes in, so your camera roll still needs its own backup. Have a look at the app.
How to choose
- Do you write every day? Take a journal app: Day One, or Apple Journal if all your devices are from Apple, or Journey if you also use Windows or a Chromebook.
- Do you mainly want every photo safe? Turn on Google Photos or iCloud Photos as your backup. That is a safety net, not yet a memory.
- Do you think of your life in chapters? A friendship, a city, a time in your life: take a place where photos, voice and story stay together per chapter, such as The Memory Palace.
- Is your voice part of the memory? Check that voice recordings are on the plan you will use. In Day One and Journey they come with the paid plans.
- Can you leave with everything? Look for a full export with your media, not only the text.
- Do you decide who sees what? Private by default, and sharing per part with the people you name.
A combination that works for many people: a photo backup for everything, and one private place for the chapters that matter. To turn the pile on your phone into memories first, read how to turn thousands of phone photos into memories. Our free photo timeline shows which years your photos already cover.
Read on: where to keep your own memories, photo journal, diary or photo album and a private alternative to social media for your memories.
Sources
- Day One, product page (photos, video, audio, end-to-end encryption, export): dayoneapp.com
- Day One, plans and pricing (Basic: 1 photo per entry, 1 device, no audio): dayoneapp.com/pricing
- Day One, exporting entries (PDF, JSON with media, plain text): dayoneapp.com/guides/tips-and-tutorials/exporting-entries
- App Store, Journal by Apple (free; iPhone with iOS 17.2 or later, iPad, Mac; photos, videos, audio recordings): apps.apple.com/us/app/journal/id6447391597
- Apple iPhone User Guide, add formatting, photos and more in Journal (photos, videos, audio with transcription): support.apple.com/guide/iphone/add-formatting-photos-and-more-iph492ee70a8/ios
- Apple iPhone User Guide, protect your journal entries (lock with Face ID, Touch ID or passcode): support.apple.com/guide/iphone/protect-your-journal-entries-iph9c59b1557/ios
- Apple Support, back up, export and print Journal entries on iPhone (one ZIP file with photos and media; PDF with iOS 18 or later): support.apple.com/en-us/121822
- Apple Support, iCloud data security overview (Journal data end-to-end encrypted with standard data protection): support.apple.com/en-us/102651
- Apple Support, iCloud storage (5 GB free): support.apple.com/en-us/HT201238
- Google Photos Help, back up photos and videos (private and viewable only by you unless shared; Android, iPhone, iPad, web): support.google.com/photos/answer/6193313
- Google One Help, how your Google storage works (15 GB shared across Gmail, Google Drive and Google Photos): support.google.com/googleone/answer/9312312
- Google Photos Help, share albums (anyone with the link can view and add): support.google.com/photos/answer/6131416
- Google Account Help, how to download your Google data (Google Takeout): support.google.com/accounts/answer/3024190
- Journey, product page (photos, video, audio; end-to-end encryption; Android, iOS, Mac, Windows, web, ChromeOS; export to ePUB, DOCX, PDF): journey.cloud
- Journey support, comparison of free and paid plans (free: limited photos, no audio or video, 70 MB and 60 entries): support.journey.cloud/en/categories/purchase-payment/articles/journey-license-comparison
- Journey, membership (10 GB, 5,000 entries, up to 20 media files per entry): journey.cloud/membership
- Journey, languages (17 listed, including German, French and Spanish): journey.cloud/languages
Questions people ask
What is the best app to keep my own memories privately?
It depends on how you think about your memories. If you write every day, a journal app such as Day One, Journey or Apple Journal fits best; all three offer end-to-end encryption. If you want every photo safe, Google Photos is the best backup. If you think in chapters of your life and want photos, voice and story together, The Memory Palace gives each chapter a private room you walk through, and you invite people into one room when you choose.
Is there an app that is a private digital memory palace?
Yes. The Memory Palace is your own 3D memory palace: your photos, voice recordings and stories each get a room you can walk through. It is private by default, and you invite family and friends into a room when you choose. It runs on iPhone, iPad, Android and in the browser, with a free plan of 1 GB.
Is Apple Journal only for iPhone?
No longer. According to its App Store page, Journal is free and runs on iPhone with iOS 17.2 or later, on iPad and on Mac. It is not available on Android or on the web, so it suits you best if all your devices are from Apple.
Can I keep voice recordings next to my photos?
In several of these apps. Apple Journal lets you record audio in an entry, with a transcription. Day One adds audio recordings on its paid plans, and Journey allows audio on its paid plans. In The Memory Palace you add a voice recording to a room, next to the photos and the written story.
Which of these apps lets me take everything with me?
Check the export before you start. Day One exports as PDF, as JSON with your photos, videos and audio, or as plain text. Apple Journal exports your entries as one ZIP file with the photos and other media. Google Takeout exports your Google Photos data. Journey exports to ePUB, DOCX and PDF. The Memory Palace offers a full ZIP export on every plan, including the free one.
Is Google Photos enough to keep my memories?
As a backup, yes: Google says backed-up photos and videos are private and viewable only by you unless you share them. But a backup keeps everything and tells you little about what mattered. Most people keep the backup and put the photos they chose, with their story, somewhere else.
Is The Memory Palace a social platform?
No. There is no public profile and nobody sees anything you did not share; you invite people into a room by name. It is a private place for your own photos, voice recordings and stories.
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