The Counted Pages
The Sealed Journal vs 750 Words.
One counts your words. The other lets them go uncounted.
750 Words did something real: it took Julia Cameron's morning pages and made them a typed daily habit for thousands of people, with a word counter, streaks, badges, and statistics about your mood, your tense, your speed. If the counting is what keeps you writing, it is good at the counting.
But everything you write there is written on their servers, and the analysis that makes the site charming is software reading your most unguarded prose. The streak that motivates you is also a leash.
The Sealed Journal is for the person the counting has finished helping. There is no word count, no streak, no server, and nothing reads your entries — not us, not an algorithm charting your feelings. You write until you've said the thing under the thing, and then you stop.
The Facts, Side by Side
| 750 Words | The Sealed Journal | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Subscription after a 30-day trial | One-time purchase |
| Current price | Membership: $5 / month | One purchase: $24 (rising to $29) once |
| Free tier | — | No — a live demo, then one price |
| Platforms | Web only | Any modern browser, any operating system |
| Account required | Yes — Account required | No — no account, ever |
| Cloud sync | Required — Entries stored and analysed server-side — stats and mood analysis are core features | No sync, no server — a single offline HTML file |
| Encryption | Not a client-side passphrase model | AES-256-GCM client-side, PBKDF2 at 600,000 iterations |
750 Words prices checked 11 August 2026. Source: 750words.com. If you find a figure out of date, tell us and we'll correct it.
The Typewriter Experience
The cursor stays. The text moves.
In Write mode, your cursor remains exactly at the centre of the screen. The page rises up to meet it. Past words fade into soft shadow at the edges, leaving the present sentence in clear focus. Switch to Read mode and the entry flattens into an evenly lit document — the fade is for writing; the flat light is for returning.
Radical Privacy & Encryption
AES-256-GCM, in your browser, with a key only you derive.
- ·PBKDF2 key derivation at 600,000 iterations — the OWASP 2024 recommendation. Existing journals upgrade transparently on first unlock.
- ·No accounts, no telemetry, no analytics, no cookies, no third-party scripts.
- ·IndexedDB storage with a localStorage fallback. Encrypted before it touches the disk.
- ·The file is not minified. You can read the source. We'd rather you trust it than us.
What It Does Not Do
- ✕No word counts chasing you across the screen.
- ✕No formatting toolbar wrestling your thoughts into neatness.
- ✕No cloud sync. No distant servers. Your words stay yours.
- ✕No social sharing. Your vulnerability is not content.
- ✕No AI assistant finishing your sentences.
- ✕No streak counters. No guilt. No gamification.
- ✕No subscriptions. No mood trackers. No noise.
Licensing & Gift Copy
One purchase covers up to three of your personal devices. It also includes a second untouched copy of the file — meant to be given to one person you trust. Lifetime updates. 30-day, no-questions refund. If you run a clinic, school, or workplace and want a copy for everyone, ask us about a site licence.
One Purchase. Yours Forever.
The price is $24 today. It will become $29.
One-time payment
Get The Sealed JournalQuestions
Without a counter, how do I know I've written my three pages?
You don't, and after a week you stop needing to. Most people learn to feel when they're done; the same words take the same minutes they always did.
Is my writing analyzed at all?
No. Your entries are encrypted with your passphrase before they touch the disk. There is no sentiment analysis, no word cloud, no rating of your day — nothing is in a position to read you.
What's the practical difference between the subscription and buying once?
A subscription is rent on a room; this is buying the notebook. Both are legitimate. Only one of them ends.
More in Comparisons
See all →The Sealed Journal vs Day One.
Both are journals. They're built on opposite assumptions about where your writing should live.
The Sealed Journal vs journaling in Notion.
Notion is a brilliant tool for organising work. It is a strange place to put your inner life.
The Sealed Journal vs Apple Notes.
Apple Notes is the path of least resistance. The Sealed Journal is the path that takes the journaling seriously.
The Sealed Journal vs Obsidian for journaling.
Obsidian is for building a second brain. The Sealed Journal is for emptying the first one for a moment.
The Sealed Journal vs a paper notebook.
Paper is excellent. It also can't be locked, searched, or carried in the pocket of a thousand future devices.
The Sealed Journal vs Apple Journal.
One comes free with the phone. The other comes free of the phone.
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For Writers
A morning pages app that respects the practice.
Julia Cameron prescribed three pages, longhand, every morning. The Sealed Journal is the closest a screen comes.
For Writers
A journal built for not stopping.
The cursor stays put. The text moves. Your hands keep going.
Core
A private, offline journal that asks nothing of you.
One file. One password. Yours forever. No accounts, no cloud, no algorithms reading your three-in-the-morning thoughts.
Answers
Are journaling apps actually private?
A bedroom with the door ajar.
The cursor will be there when you return.
Centered. Blinking. Patient.
Start Writing