Importing from Apple Journal

Day One supports importing your journal entries directly from Apple Journal on iOS and macOS. This lets you bring your existing Apple Journal entries, including photos, videos, and other media, into Day One.

What You’ll Need

An iPhone running iOS 17.2 or later or a Mac running macOS 26 with the Apple Journal app
Day One installed on your iPhone or Mac

Step 1: Export Your Data from Apple Journal

Apple Journal lets you export your journal as a ZIP file or folder. The export includes your entries and any attached media.

Open the Journal app on your iPhone.
Tap the three-dot menu (•••) in the top-right corner.
Tap Export Journal.
Choose where to save the file. iCloud Drive is recommended so you can access it from your Mac as well.
Tap Export. Apple Journal creates a folder containing all of your entries and media.

Note: The export may take a few minutes if you have a large journal or if media files need to download from iCloud.

Step 2: Import into Day One

On iPhone

Open Day One and go to Settings.
Tap Import/Export.
Tap Import from Apple Journal.
When prompted, enter a name for the new journal where your entries will be placed. Day One defaults to “Apple Journal” — you can change this to anything you like.
Tap OK.
In the file picker that appears, navigate to your exported folder and tap it.
Day One will import your entries. A progress indicator shows the status.
When the import is complete, you’ll see a summary showing how many entries were imported.

On Mac

Open Day One on your Mac.
From the menu bar, choose File > Import > Import from Apple Journal.
When prompted, enter a name for the new journal where your entries will be placed. Day One defaults to “Apple Journal” but you can change this to anything you like.
Click OK.
In the file picker that appears, navigate to your exported folder and click Open.
Day One will import your entries. A progress bar shows the status.
When the import is complete, click Open Journal to view your imported entries.

What Gets Imported

Day One imports the following content from Apple Journal:

Journal entries — text, titles, and dates
Photos and videos — images and clips attached to entries
Audio — voice memos and recordings
Maps and locations — location embeds included in entries
Music and podcasts — song and podcast references
Workouts — fitness activity data
State of Mind — mood and emotional state logs
Contacts — people referenced in entries

Each entry is placed in a new Day One journal with the name you decided on during setup.