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Subscription & billing

What it costs

Candor is an annual auto-renewable subscription: 14 days free, then US$19.99 per year. There is no free tier — the app is a subscription product, which is also why it carries no ads and collects nothing about you. One subscription covers iPhone, iPad and Mac on the same Apple Account.

Cancelling

On your iPhone or iPad, open Settings → your name → Subscriptions → Candor → Cancel Subscription. On a Mac, open the App Store → your name → Account Settings → Subscriptions. Cancel at least 24 hours before the trial or the current period ends, otherwise the next period is charged. If you cancel during the trial you are never charged.

Refunds

All purchases go through Apple, so refunds are handled by Apple, not by me. Request one at reportaproblem.apple.com. I have no ability to issue or block a refund, but if something in the app caused the problem I'd like to know about it.

Restoring a purchase

If you reinstalled the app, moved to a new device or started using Candor on another iPhone, iPad or Mac, open the paywall and tap Restore, making sure you're signed in with the same Apple Account that bought the subscription. If restore still doesn't find it, check Settings → your name → Subscriptions to confirm which account holds it.

Your data

Where it lives

On your device, in the app's encrypted storage. There is no Candor server. If you turn on iCloud sync, a copy also lives in your own iCloud account, encrypted by Apple, and syncs between your iPhone, iPad and Mac — I have no access to it.

Moving to a new device

With iCloud sync on, sign in with the same Apple Account on the new device and your entries come back. With it off, the data does not leave the old device — make a backup file in Settings → Data → Export & Backup and restore it on the new device before you wipe or sell the old one.

Deleting everything

Either use Delete all data in Settings, which asks you to type a confirmation and, if iCloud sync is on, also deletes your Candor data from iCloud — or delete the app from your home screen, which removes its data from that device only. In that case, if iCloud sync was on, your iCloud copy and your other devices keep the journal; check Settings → your name → iCloud → Manage Account Storage to remove the iCloud copy.

Exporting and backups

Open Settings → Data → Export & Backup. You can export CSV files, create a PDF report for your clinician, or save a full backup that you can restore later with Restore from backup… on the same screen. A CSV file isn't encrypted and can't be restored into Candor. A backup can be protected with a password — keep it safe: without it the backup can't be opened, by anyone, including me. Any exported file is a copy of your journal sitting outside the app's protection, so store it carefully. Importing an existing log is supported too.

Lock, PIN and the Panic PIN

I forgot my PIN

There is no recovery and no backdoor — that's deliberate, and it's the same property that makes the app worth using. Your only route back in is Reset app, which erases all data. If you have iCloud sync on, the data can return afterwards; if not, it's gone.

Panic PIN

The Panic PIN is a second PIN you set alongside the normal one. Entering it erases the app's on-device data immediately, with no confirmation and no trace — including while the app is locked out after failed attempts. Set it up only if you want that behaviour, and test it before you rely on it.

Face ID isn't prompting

Check Settings → Face ID & Passcode → Other Apps and confirm Candor is allowed. If it was denied once, iOS won't ask again until you enable it there. On a Mac, Candor uses Touch ID — check that it is set up in System Settings → Touch ID & Password.

Reminders and notifications

Nothing is arriving

Work down this list:

• Notifications permission — Settings → Notifications → Candor → Allow Notifications (on a Mac, System Settings → Notifications → Candor).
• Focus and Do Not Disturb — an active Focus can silence the app entirely.
• Quiet hours in the app — reminders inside your quiet window are held back on purpose.
• Low Power Mode — it can delay scheduled local notifications.

They arrive but say nothing useful

That's the default. Previews are generic so nothing sensitive shows on a lock screen. Switch to detailed previews in the app's notification settings if you'd rather see the specifics — and think about who else can see your lock screen before you do.

Apple Watch

The Watch shows nothing or old information

The Watch gets its information from your iPhone. Open Candor on the paired iPhone to send the current state, and make sure medications or upcoming tests and vaccinations are set up there — the Watch shows what the iPhone tracks.

Quick entry isn't available on the Watch

That's on purpose. Quick entry on the Watch works only when Real names in widgets and on Apple Watch is turned on in Candor's settings on iPhone and no app PIN is set — otherwise anyone holding your Watch could add to your journal.

Reporting a bug

What helps most:

• What you did, what you expected, what happened instead.
• Whether it happens every time or only sometimes.
• Your device model and system version — iPhone, iPad, Mac or Apple Watch (Settings → General → About, or Apple menu → About This Mac).
• The app version from the bottom of Candor's Settings screen.

Please describe the problem rather than sending private entries. If a screenshot is genuinely necessary, crop or cover anything you wouldn't want a stranger to read.

Feature requests

Send them. The roadmap is shaped mostly by what people ask for, and a request that explains why you need something is worth more than a list of features. Some things are deliberately absent — social features, anything that would require an account or a server — and those aren't coming.

Health questions

I can help with the app. I can't help with medical questions, and I won't try. Candor doesn't diagnose, treat or prescribe, and neither do I. Anything about PrEP, DoxyPEP, DoxyPrEP, PEP, vaccinations, test results or treatment belongs with a qualified healthcare professional or a sexual health clinic. See the Medical Disclaimer.

If you think you may be having a medical emergency, call 911 or seek immediate care.

Guides

Plain, sourced answers about testing windows, PrEP and DoxyPEP timing, and what to do after an exposure — written for the people actually having the sex being described.

All guides

Contact

Email: support@candorjournal.com
Provider: Markus Levi
Response time: usually 1–2 business days

See also the Privacy Policy and the Terms of Use.