Import a Reflection Journal into Day One with CSV on iOS

Use the format the importer actually documents

Documentation checked 11 November 2026: this guide uses the English Day One help documents linked below. Match the platform and controls to your app. Examples are fictional; the application import, sharing or recovery has not been tested here.

Day One’s CSV guide currently limits this importer to the iOS app. The required headings are date and text, in lowercase. A spreadsheet named .csv is not enough if those headings or its dates are wrong. The guide requires ISO 8601 dates and a file in local iOS storage. Optional fields exist, but they are not necessary for moving a simple text reflection.

Sources: [1], [2].

On a narrow screen, scroll inside the table. Keyboard users can focus the table region and use the arrow keys.

Start with two entries you can inspect completely

Keep your original journal unchanged. Work on a small copy with two short entries whose dates and text you know. The fictional file below contains two data records. One sentence contains a comma; the second reflection contains an intentional line break. Those are field contents, not extra entries.

date,text
2026-11-09T18:30:00+08:00,"Paused before replying, then wrote a short answer."
2026-11-10T07:15:00+08:00,"Noticed a rushed start.
Next step: prepare one item tonight."

Download the original fictional two-entry CSV. The +08:00 offset is an explicit example, not a time zone you should assign to your own notes. Replace dates only when you know their meaning. A missing event time should not be replaced with an invented time and presented as known.

Let the CSV writer preserve the fields

CSV uses commas to separate fields, so a comma inside a reflection needs correct quoting. A quoted field can also contain a line break. Counting physical text lines would count the second entry incorrectly. Use a CSV export/writer, then reopen it as CSV and inspect the two fields in each record; avoid splitting each visible line at every comma.

The first reflection has one text field even though it contains a comma. The second has one text field even though it spans two physical lines. Do not strip the quotes merely because they look untidy. Keep the literal text and record boundaries distinct.

Use the documented iOS route

1. Save the small .csv file in local storage visible in the iOS Files app. Keep a separate untouched original.
2. In Day One, open Settings → Import/Export → Import CSV (.csv), following the controls actually present in your version.
3. Locate and select that local .csv file. The official guide describes a success message with the number of imported entries.
4. Record that number, then inspect both actual entries. If you cannot find the documented option, stop and consult the current guide rather than substituting a different import type.

Sources: [1].

This is a documented route, not an import performed for this article. The example’s successful local CSV parse does not prove that the application will accept it or render the dates as you intend.

Compare fields, not only the success count

For this two-entry trial, the expected record count is two. A reported count of two still leaves useful checks: does the first entry retain “replying, then”; does the second retain both sentences and their line break; do the displayed dates represent your intended instants? Compare the actual text with the untouched source, including the end of each entry.

Download the blank comparison record. Log mismatches before proceeding. A displayed time can use a different zone from the offset in the file, so a changed clock label alone is not proof that the underlying instant changed. If the intended instant cannot be established, record that uncertainty rather than “fixing” it by guesswork.

Stop safely when dates or repeated attempts are unclear

The official documents do not establish how repeated imports will deduplicate every file. If a trial has already created entries, inspect what is present before importing the same sample again. Repeating the entire journal to solve one date problem can create a larger reconciliation task.