An audio journal is a spoken diary you record on a phone or app when typing feels slow or thoughts move faster than your hands. You capture reflections out loud, then optionally transcribe, replay, or leave the entries as voice notes.
Keeping an audio journal is a convenient way to capture and articulate your thoughts. These days, you can easily press record on your mobile device to start your audio journal entry.
Below, I share what I have learned from keeping an audio journal as part of my journaling habit. Furthermore, I will review its benefits and share apps to help you start keeping an audio journal. As studies of successful people’s journals show, the medium matters less than the consistency of the habit.
I have kept an audio journal as part of my journaling habit. I have found it to be an effective way to supplement my written journal.
Key takeaway: An audio journal works when speaking is easier than typing. Press record, talk for two minutes, and treat the file like a page you can return to later.
What is audio journaling
Audio journaling is journaling out loud: you record what is on your mind with a phone or recorder, then optionally transcribe later if you want a searchable text archive.
People also call this an audio diary – same practice, spoken instead of written.
Audio journaling is another way of keeping a journal. You record what is on your mind with a recording device – a phone or a recorder. Afterward, you may choose to transcribe your audio into text. You can keep both – an audio journal and a written journal – or use each one for different purposes.
For some inspiration, here are some famous examples of audio journals:
- Iolene Catalano – spoke her life story into a microphone as she lay dying of HIV in a hospital. She left behind her audio journal, All the Way Broken (1995), which chronicled her story of going through orphanages, mental institutions, and reform schools.
- Laura Rothenberg – recorded her lifelong struggle with cystic fibrosis – an incurable disease that causes damage to vital organs. The audio journal was titled “My So-Called Lungs” and she died at the age of 22.
When to keep an audio journal
Keep an audio journal when writing is inconvenient – walking, commuting, cooking, or anytime a thought is clearer spoken than typed.
Journaling – written or audio recording – helps you articulate and free your mind. Unfortunately, a pen and paper are not always available for you to write, articulate, or capture what is on your mind, especially when you are commuting, out for a walk, or don’t prefer writing it out.
For example, I found myself unable to summarize my daily reflections at the end of my day job. The shaky and crowded commute on the train did not give me the chance to sit down and write in my journal. Therefore, I decided to record my thoughts while on the train from work to home. If you also keep a work journal, audio recordings on the commute can feed right into your written planning.
Different types of audio journals
Audio journals can be free-flow dumps, prompted reflections, work debriefs, or short daily check-ins – pick the type that matches the moment, not a perfect system.
The type of audio journal you keep depends on you, much like choosing between structured and free-flow journaling – what areas of life are you actively trying to improve? Identify those areas of life and then use the audio journal as a tool to help you make progress in improving those areas of life.
If your professional career is a priority, then you might find it interesting that journalists keep an audio journal to get good at storytelling, fiction writers use audio journaling to get over writer’s block, and the same idea applies to workout enthusiasts, dancers, and many more professions.
- Audio journal for professional reflections. Keep an audio journal to reflect regularly on your career progression. I find it useful to audio journal on the commute back from work to home. The time and space on the train allow me to record my thoughts and unwind the mind to relax in the evening.
- Audio journal for easing the mind. I also record an audio journal entry when writing alone is not enough to put my mind at ease. For example, I record an entry when a relative passes away or when I find myself constantly worrying about nothing.
- Audio journal for personal reflections. This audio journal serves as an accountability buddy with whom I talk about how I have performed against my goals. It gives me a realistic self-evaluation so I can course-correct.
I encourage you to experiment with different types of audio journals. For example, if you are a fiction writer, you should try narrating your stories. Or if you are elderly, keep an audio journal of life’s reflections. Regardless, keeping an audio journal has many benefits.
6 Benefits of keeping an Audio Journal
An audio journal is faster than handwriting for many people, captures tone you would edit away on paper, and still gives you a record you can review or transcribe later.
I have come to realize the benefits of keeping an audio journal. Here are the main benefits of keeping an audio journal – relevant for anyone from writers to students to adults.
1. Audio journaling can be easier.
If you struggle to make time to reflect regularly, an audio journal can make it easier for you to simply press record and speak your mind. Unlike a written journal – which has its own benefits – you don’t have to be seated with a pen and paper. Plus, these days most of us have our phones with us all the time, making it easier for us to use them for audio journaling.
2. An audio journal captures more emotion and mood with voice.
Audio journaling allows you to record your voice and any background noise – capturing a richer snapshot of your journal entry. When revisiting your audio journals, this can be an important data point for reflection. Did you sound excited? Sick? Happy? What was the background noise, if any? If you like to transcribe your audio journals, you still have the original recording for reference.
3. Ability to “think out loud” and brainstorm with an audio journal
Articulating with an audio journal allows your brain to think more freely and faster – which has benefits for some forms of thinking. For example, if you are practicing for a presentation, writing an article, or trying to reflect on a life event – audio journaling might just give you the boost you need to get it out.
4. Audio journaling can be faster than writing.
Some people find it faster to type or record than to write with a pen. Writing things out – even if it is slow – has its own benefits. However, audio journaling helps speed that up for the journal keeper.
5. An audio journal helps develop good habits with your phone or recorder.
Yes, in an era of mindless browsing on digital devices, this is a valuable habit. Using your phone or recorder for audio journaling helps you develop good habits with your digital devices. That is, when feeling down or wanting to articulate, you take a step to do something about it.
6. An audio journal is a good companion for your written journal.
I have found an audio journal to be helpful in broadly reflecting on a topic, such as a new job. Afterward, for more specific plans as to how I want to succeed at this job, I turn to a daily journal template for tasks and outcomes (aka planning).
Best tools or apps for keeping an audio journal
Whether you prefer handwritten or digital journaling, audio offers a third option. You can use an audio recorder device (the ones journalists use) or use your smartphone.
The free applications that work best for recording an audio journal are already on your smartphone. For iPhone, the default “Voice Memos” app allows you to record your audio from any Apple device. On Android, use the default “Audio Recorder” app. It allows you to record and also transcribe.
For more tools or apps for keeping an audio journal, please see 6 Free Recording Apps for Audio Journaling and my comparison of the best voice journal apps in 2026.
I hope these tips help you in your quest to keep an audio journal. Are there any tips and tricks that you would like to share with me? I would love to hear about them in the comments below.
If you want to see how an audio entry sits beside morning pages, gratitude logs, and work journals, see how an audio journal entry compares to other journaling formats.
How to Start an Audio Journal Tonight
If you want a finishable first entry tonight, use this five-step version. It matches the same habit logic as a short written session – pick a tool, remove the blank-page stall, time-box, then stop.
- Pick a recorder – Voice Memos, a voice journal app, or any recorder already on your phone.
- Choose one prompt – one question only, such as what felt unfinished today or what you are avoiding.
- Set a short timer – three to five minutes is enough for a real entry.
- Record without editing – talk until the timer ends. Do not rewind to polish.
- Label and park it – save with the date and a one-word label, then put the phone where you will see it tomorrow.
That is enough to start an audio journal without buying a new system. For app comparisons, keep reading below – or jump to the free recording apps guide if tools are the blocker.
If speaking about stress feels safer than writing, also see journaling for mental health for when to keep sessions gentle and when to seek help.
If you are journaling through a rough season, use journaling through hard times for a gentler four-step shape.
Voice also works for bedside capture in a dream journal, a timed brain dump, a short evening journal, or longer morning pages when you prefer speaking to writing.
26 comments On How to Start an Audio Journal: The Ultimate Guide (2026)
I am in my late 30s and I just started audio journaling. I use the Samsung voice recorder app on my phone. I copy each file to OneDrive, download to my computer, and I have a USB/flash drive that I update every two or three months.
Sometimes I open Notepad on my computer and write a few notes or “talking points” before I start recording on the phone, but I don’t save the file afterward.
How do you organize it. in a written journal, its easy to turn pages, and see and find, but in a recording, its time consuming to listen all over again for hours if you are searching for something specific ?
Hi, I am 88 years old and withing you sort of give an insight to my life for the family. I have very good Audio recording gear available. I would like to add to this with images both photos and move files, is there a program out there for this, I have both Ipad and Android. thanks
Email [Redacted]
Jawwad – when doing voice memos or audio journaling…is there any device you use to talk into for private chatter while you are commuting?
I am looking for a platform where I can create an audio journal to share with my grandchildren. Ideally, I would like to be able to insert photos as well. I worry that a company will go out of business in 20 years. I need the ability to share with my grandchildren. I appreciate any suggestions.
I really like your advice on journalling. I added auto correct spelling and punctuation. I don’t have to stop and look up words I’m unsure of.
Will you tell me a way to save a week of journaling to a flash drive for transcribing
later? Thank you.
Hi Jawwad,
Hope you are doing great. I have been doing audio journaling for over 1.5 years now and found it extremely therapeutic. I started a meetup group to discuss Audio Journaling and over 100 people signed up in the first 5 days. I currently audio journal on a voice recorder , but have not yet figured out how I can have them transcribed. I am also in the process of trying to get a study done on the positive effects of audio journaling for anxiety . I am not comfortable having it on my phone and like to have a dedicated device to journal. Can you give me some suggestions for apps that can transcribe?
Anna, happy to hear about your audio journaling journey – 1.5 years and your meetup group! To transcribe audio from your dedicated voice recorder, connect it to your computer and export the audio onto your computer’s hard drive. For instructions, refer to the manual of your audio recorder.
Afterwards, upload the audio to an app that will allow you to transcribe. There are free and paid options out there. A free option to get started would be to try descript [dot] com
Hi Anna, im just getting into audio journaling. what is the name of your meetup group, I would love to join.
This is an awesome article! Thank you so much for sharing this with us.
Hi Jawwad, thanks for your great article. Do you know if there are any diary apps that lets you dictate audio and then automatically converts it into text in the diary app. So I dont have to first do it in a voice recording app and then save it on a proper place. I would like that part to be automatic.
Best regards,
Johan
Hi, Johan, for apps that let you dictate audio and then convert into text, I recommend starting with your phone’s default recording app. This is because these apps are safer and don’t sell or process your data (as much as other apps).
For Android phones, I suggest starting with the “Voice Recorder” which comes pre-installed onto the phone. On most latest phones, it has the ability to skip silences, transcribe the audio and convert it to text for export.
For Apple phones, I suggest starting with its “Voice Memo” app. It does NOT have the ability to transcribe. If you find yourself wanting to transcribe your audio, I suggest any top free app from the app store.
Shortly, I plan to have a top-10 list of apps for audio journaling.
Hey Jawwad, did you finish writing the list of journaling apps, would be curious to know which ones are really good.
Hi! Yes, I have shared the list of those audio journaling here – https://journalinghabit.com//6-free-recording-apps-audio-journaling/
I know this comment is from five years ago, but I wanted to mention that I use the Samsung Voice Recorder app and it does have transcribing now. I don’t transcribe every time I record, but I might start doing this every few months or so – make a “back-up” document with transcriptions.
Thanks …
Beautiful article . Thank you for sharing . How can I use google assistance to help me convert audio recordings to text
Ekta, there are two ways you can take audio notes.
1. Record the audio with an app – more details about this step are in the above article
2. Dictate the audio with an app – to do this, open up your favourite note taking app. Then, from the keyboard, select the option to dictate your notes.
Let me know if you have more questions and welcome to journaling habit!
Most voice recording apps have the option to share the clip. They then have multiple options where to share. It’s your choice, Google drive …etc.
The voice recording apps are great for recording your thoughts.
Jawwad,
How do you use google assistant to keep an audio journal and convert it to text? Thanks!
What is the best type of recorder out there for this? I don’t want to take up space on my phone
Do these save to the cloud ?i don’t want to use too much space on my phone
Just what I need
this is a great site. Does anyone know if there is an app that can transcribe the Audio to txt?
Ken, there are many apps that can help transcribe your audio to text. On your computer, you can use voice dictation (mac) or cortana (windows). On your mobile device, you can use google assistant. Drop me an email if you need more help.