A payment didn't go through
An expired card doesn't lock you out on the spot. Here's what actually happens.
Cards expire. Banks decline things for no reason anyone can explain. This should not be the moment you lose access to your journal.
What happens
If a renewal fails, Settings → Billing shows a payment issue, and you keep your access for a few days’ grace while it sorts itself out.
That window exists for a real reason: sometimes the payment is fine and it’s our notification from Stripe or Apple that got lost. Cutting someone off from their own journal because of a dropped webhook would be indefensible.
Fixing it
Settings → Billing → Manage billing takes you to the right place to update your card — Apple’s subscription settings, or the Stripe portal. See managing your subscription.
Once the payment clears, access continues without a gap. Press the refresh arrow beside your plan if you want it to check straight away rather than waiting.
If access does stop
You’ll see the subscribe screen. Two things are still true:
- Nothing has been deleted. Your entries are exactly where you left them, and they come back the moment a payment clears.
- You can still download a complete backup, right from that screen. Your writing does not become hostage to a billing problem.
Still stuck
Write to us with the email address on the account. If this is a mess of our making, we’ll fix it and extend you the time you lost.