Leigh
September 2, 2017

If you like the idea of keeping a journal on the computer or your phone, you have plenty of options. In fact, you are bound to find a perfect match no matter what your preferences. I was amazed at all the electronic alternatives to a paper journal.

(Wondering why or how to keep a journal? Check out my post 8 Ways to Use a Journal For Self-Care and Beyond)

Electronic Alternatives: 7 Types/100+ Options

I’ve separated the options into seven main categories: on the computer, a private blog, an online journaling site, web apps, note applications, distraction free writing apps, and phone apps. Honestly, many of the options I found span more than one of these categories, but I’m splitting them up to make choosing a bit easier.

Your options on the computer

These are kind of obvious, but I never thought of it. If you want to keep it super simple and just get your thoughts down, the Notepad or Microsoft Word apps work great. You can even password protect the document to keep it super private. The process for setting a password is different for each program, but it is easy enough to look up.

Any office suite works well, and if you are already using one for work, you should stick to it so your stuff is all in one place. If you are looking to install one, there are many choices other than Microsoft Office. That isn’t my specialty, so here is the link to 9 of the Best Free and Low Cost Alternatives to Microsoft Office. I’ll let them cover your options.

I thought of you Apple fans also — The 6 Best Office Suites for Your Documents, Spreadsheets, and Presentations

Female presenting person sitting on couch with laptop on lab. Hands have painted nails and look to be typing. * electronic alternatives *

You might like a private blog

If you really want to put your journal online, a private blog might be just the thing for you. This option is appealing if you would like the opportunity to selectively share your journal, or enjoy having many choices for personalizing it. Choose from one of these popular blogging sites, and make sure you set the privacy settings to private:

You can also use Twitter (set to private) if you think posting in 140 characters or fewer works well for you. 5 Ways To Use Twitter As An Online Diary has some neat ideas.

Designated online journals

These sites are designed to be a personal journal. A couple of options are Penzu, 750 words, and 280daily. The site that wrote those articles also wrote this one naming some more options . You will find 5 personal journals mentioned in the article 7 Best Free Online Private Diary Sites. The other two ideas listed are blogging sites I’ve already mentioned. I found more ideas at Top10Reviews, which has more specific suggestions. If you want an electronic alternative for a travel journal, food journal, therapy journal, etc., check out their article.

light skinned hands with polished nails look ready to type on a laptop sat on a desk in the daylight. photos are arranged in a grid on the screen. *electronic alternatives*

Web apps

If you would like to have access to your journal anywhere you go, online apps might work better. These are different from the journaling sites in that they are online office suites and used for many purposes.

Google Docs is a good example of this. You can use it on any computer and also on your phone. While Google Docs is well known, there are quite a few other options. PC Mag has a great round up of The Best Office Suites of 2017 which covers both PC and Mac options. If you already use an office suite for work, you might want to also use it for journaling to keep things simple.

Note applications

Another option would be one of many note applications. Evernote is a popular one. I recently started using it, though not for journaling, and I love how many choices it has for input.

A screenshot of my Evernote App showing input options. * electronic alternatives *

Actual screenshot of my Evernote App

Other suggestions would be Onenote and Pocket. I also found this source that has a spreadsheet with about 75 suggestions for replacing Springpad which was a favorite for years. Check out this article from Zapier also– Evernote, OneNote, and Beyond: The 14 Best Note-Taking Apps.

Distraction free writing apps

Something else I found were “distraction free writing apps”. These have nothing else on the page, so you are forced to focus on your writing. Write In Peace With These Distraction-Free Editors covers many options to check out. 9 Minimal Word Processor Apps for Distraction-Free Writing has a nice mixture of paid vs. free and Mac vs. Windows options.

a laptop with a black screen is open on a desk with a blank notepad to the left and a cell phone to the right. a pen sits on the notepad. * electronic alternatives *

Phone apps

A phone app makes sure you can make an entry to your journal anytime and anywhere. There are a bunch of options available for both Android and Apple phones/tablets, but not all of them are worth the download. Mark Krynsky, who wrote the article Top 5 Smart Journal Apps, has great criteria for judging a good smart journal. Check out his article for some solid apps to choose from.

a phone screen with assorted app icons on it * electronic alternatives *

If after all that you still aren’t sure what the right choice is for you, try clicking on one or two from each category until something catches your eye. Give it a try for a week or two and see what you think. It doesn’t hurt anything to keep trying new ones until you find the right match.

And, if you aren’t someone who wants to keep an electronic alternative, stay tuned. I’m working on a post about some great pen and paper options for those who like to keep it old school. Be sure to subscribe so you see when my next post is here!

The author's name, Leigh, in red script, to the left with a coffee cup to the right.

 

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