A notary journal app you buy once, no subscription
Pay once. Your records stay yours: read & export forever, no subscription. Log every notarization in an encrypted, tamper-evident journal on your own device, with your state's maximum-fee guide built in.
Coming soon to the App Store and Google Play.
Do notaries have to keep a journal?
Around 22 U.S. states require notaries to keep a journal of their notarial acts, as of July 2026. The rest either recommend one or leave it to the notary. What you must record, and for how long you must keep it, is set by each state's notary statutes and administrative rules, and it varies widely. Even where a journal is optional, it is widely recommended: your journal is your best evidence if a notarization is ever questioned. Always verify the current rules with your commissioning authority.
Can I keep my notary journal on my phone?
In at least 14 states, yes: state law or administrative rules explicitly accept an electronic journal for traditional notarizations, as of July 2026: Colorado, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wyoming. Arizona permits an electronic journal only for acts involving electronic records (paper is still required for acts on tangible records); Missouri and Washington require a tangible, bound paper journal for every act; Washington allows an electronic journal only in addition to, never instead of, that paper journal. So in all three the app can only serve as a supplementary record. California is unclear on electronic journals for traditional notarizations (e.g. California, Massachusetts and Missouri require recording ID numbers; California additionally requires a thumbprint for certain documents). Florida does not require a journal for traditional notarization at all, though keeping one is widely recommended, and it is unclear whether Florida law recognizes an electronic voluntary record as an official journal; Florida remote online notarization has its own separate rules.
| State | Journal required? | Electronic accepted? |
|---|---|---|
| Colorado | Yes | Yes, explicitly accepted |
| Delaware | Yes | Yes, explicitly accepted |
| District of Columbia | Yes | Yes, explicitly accepted |
| Illinois | Yes | Yes, explicitly accepted |
| Kansas | Yes | Yes, Kan. Stat. § 53-5a20(a)-(b) |
| Maryland | Yes | Yes, Md. Code, State Gov’t § 18-219(a)-(b) |
| Massachusetts | Yes | Yes, explicitly accepted |
| Mississippi | Yes | Yes, explicitly accepted |
| Montana | Yes | Yes, explicitly accepted |
| New Jersey | Yes | Yes, explicitly accepted |
| New Mexico | Yes | Yes, explicitly accepted |
| Pennsylvania | Yes | Yes, explicitly accepted |
| Wyoming | Yes | Yes, explicitly accepted |
| Texas | Yes | Yes, Tex. Gov’t Code § 406.014(e) |
| Arizona | Yes | No, paper journal required |
| Missouri | Yes | No, paper journal required |
| Washington | Yes | No, paper journal required |
| California | Yes | Unclear for traditional notarizations |
| Florida | No, widely recommended | Unclear for traditional notarizations; RON has separate rules |
Some states also restrict what you may record: Illinois, Montana, Mississippi, Pennsylvania and Texas prohibit recording ID numbers in the journal. The app knows these per-state field rules and suppresses prohibited fields automatically.
What does the app cost?
The download is free, and a single one-time purchase of US$19.99 unlocks unlimited journal entries, and there is no subscription. Free from the first open: your state's maximum-fee guide, your state's journal and RON rules, and your first 20 journal entries. Most notary journal apps charge a yearly subscription; this one you buy once and own.
And the parts that matter most are never behind the paywall at all: viewing your records, search, PDF/CSV export and encrypted backup are always free. Your journal never becomes hostage to a payment.
How does the app protect signer privacy?
Everything stays on your device: records are stored locally and encrypted (SQLCipher), with no account and no cloud, so signer data never leaves your phone. Entries are hash-chained, making any tampering evident. The app applies per-state field rules (where a state prohibits recording ID numbers, those fields are suppressed), and the optional licence-barcode scan reads the signer's details on-device, without ever storing the image.
What the app has, and what it deliberately doesn't
| Journal entries | First 20 free; unlimited after one-time unlock |
|---|---|
| Storage | On your device only, encrypted (SQLCipher) |
| Tamper evidence | Hash-chained entries |
| View, search, PDF/CSV export | Always free, never paywalled |
| Encrypted backup | Always free, never paywalled |
| State fee guide + journal/RON rules | Free |
| Per-state field rules | Yes, prohibited fields are suppressed |
| Licence-barcode scan | Optional, on-device; image never stored |
| Account or sign-up | None |
| Cloud sync | No by design; records never leave your device |
| RON e-journal compliance | Not claimed; check your state’s RON rules |
| Legal advice | No, recordkeeping tool only |
| Payment | Free download + US$19.99 one-time, no subscription |
Common questions
Do notaries have to keep a journal?
Around 22 U.S. states require notaries to keep a journal of their notarial acts, as of July 2026. The rest either recommend one or leave it to the notary, and the exact requirements (what to record, how long to keep it) are set by each state’s notary statutes and administrative rules. Even where a journal is optional, it is widely recommended as your best evidence if a notarization is ever challenged. Always verify the current rules with your commissioning authority.
Can I keep my notary journal on my phone?
In at least 14 states (Colorado, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wyoming) state law or administrative rules explicitly accept an electronic journal for traditional notarizations, as of July 2026. Arizona, Missouri and Washington require a paper journal, so an app can only be a supplementary record there. California is unclear on electronic journals for traditional notarizations. Verify with your commissioning authority before relying on an electronic journal.
What does the app cost?
The download is free and includes your state’s maximum-fee guide, your state’s journal and RON rules, and your first 20 journal entries. A single one-time purchase of US$19.99 unlocks unlimited entries, and there is no subscription. Viewing your records, search, PDF/CSV export and encrypted backup are always free and never paywalled.
How does the app protect signer privacy?
Records are stored only on your device, encrypted with SQLCipher; there is no account and no cloud, so signer data never leaves your phone. Entries are hash-chained so tampering is evident. The app applies per-state field rules: for example, some states prohibit recording ID numbers, and the app suppresses those fields in those states. The optional licence-barcode scan fills in signer details on-device, and the image is never stored.
Is this an official government app?
No. Notary Journal & Fee Guide is an independent recordkeeping tool from RiverMap Learning. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to any Secretary of State, commissioning authority or other government agency, and it is not legal advice. Always verify journal and fee rules with your commissioning authority.
What happens to my records if I stop paying?
Nothing. There is nothing to stop paying. The unlock is a one-time purchase, not a subscription, and reading, searching and exporting your records are free forever. Your records live on your device, not on our servers, so they can never be held behind a lapsed payment.
Your journal, on your phone, yours forever.
Free download with 20 free entries. One purchase for unlimited. No subscription.
While you wait, try our free web tools for notaries: the California, Florida, Texas, Pennsylvania and New York notary fee calculators: or browse all free tools.