How to keep a journal on iPad

What the iPad is good for

• Longer typed entries with a keyboard, when you have more to say
• Reading back a month or a year on a bigger screen
• A weekly review at a desk or on the sofa
• Journaling at home without picking up the phone that buzzes all day

Three ways to make an entry

Most people mix these depending on the moment. All of them end up as entries in the same journal.

• Talk: tap the sun on Today and speak. Your words appear as you go
• Type: use the on-screen keyboard or a keyboard case for longer entries
• Handwrite: with Apple Pencil, Scribble turns handwriting into typed text in any text field

Set up Dawn Light on iPad and iPhone

Dawn Light runs on iPad with iPadOS 26 or later. It syncs through your own private iCloud account, with no separate sign-in.

1. Make sure both devices are signed in to the same Apple Account with iCloud
2. Install the app on the iPad
3. On each device, tap the gear on Today, then turn on "Sync with iCloud" under Privacy
4. Close and reopen the app. The change takes effect the next time it opens
5. Check that Stored says iCloud. New entries can take a minute or two to arrive

Reading back on a bigger screen

On iPad, the Journal tab keeps the list of entries on one side and opens an entry beside it. You can read through a month without going back and forth. The calendar marks each day you made an entry with a small sun, and you can show one tag at a time.

What's different from iPhone

• iPad has no Action button, but Siri and Control Center can start a recording
• Apple Watch recordings (Plus) go to your iPhone first, then sync to the iPad
• Summaries and Ask (Plus) need an iPad that supports Apple Intelligence, such as iPad mini (A17 Pro) or an iPad with M1 or later
• Recording, transcripts, search and sync work on every supported iPad