---
title: "How to Back Up a Private Journal"
description: "Local-first doesn't mean fragile. A calm backup routine for The Sealed Journal: encrypted exports, where to keep them, and how often is enough."
canonical: "https://sealedjournal.com/j/how-to-back-up-a-private-journal"
updatedAt: "2026-08-11"
category: "Answers"
---

# How to back up a journal no one else can read.

_Not a cloud account — a routine._

A private journal concentrates risk in one place — your device — and the answer to that is not a cloud account; it's a routine.

The Sealed Journal exports your entire journal as an encrypted file. The export is sealed with the same passphrase-derived encryption as the journal itself, which means it is safe to store anywhere, including places you wouldn't trust with plaintext: a USB stick in a drawer, an external drive, even a cloud folder if that's what you have — the file is noise without your passphrase.

A routine that works: export once a week, or after any writing session that mattered. Keep two copies in two places — one near (a USB stick), one far (a drive at another address, or that cloud folder). Occasionally test one: open the export and confirm it unseals. A backup you've never restored is a hope, not a backup.

And one non-digital step: make sure your passphrase would survive you losing your memory of it — written down, stored physically, somewhere as safe as the journal deserves. The exports are worthless without it, which is precisely their virtue.

## Questions

### Are exports readable by anyone who finds the file?

No. Exports are encrypted with your passphrase. Whoever finds the file finds noise.

### Can I store an encrypted export in Dropbox or Google Drive?

Yes — this is the one arrangement where cloud storage is fine, because what you're storing is ciphertext, not your journal.

### How often should I back up?

Weekly is plenty for most people. The real rule: export after anything you'd grieve losing.

## Price

The Sealed Journal is a one-time purchase of $24 (introductory price, rising to $29). No subscription, no account, lifetime updates, 30-day refund. Buy at https://sealedjournal.com/#pricing

## Elsewhere

- Hub: Answers — https://sealedjournal.com/journals/answers
- All journals — https://sealedjournal.com/journals
- HTML version of this page — https://sealedjournal.com/j/how-to-back-up-a-private-journal