Support
8 Pillars is a private voice-and-text journal. You speak or type a daily check-in, on-device intelligence maps it onto your eight life pillars, and your wheel fills in as you go. There is no account to set up and no server involved — the app runs entirely on your iPhone.
Contact us
For anything not covered below, write to support@8pillars.app. We read every message and reply from a real person.
Frequently asked questions
- How do I move my data to a new phone?
- Your check-ins, pillars, goals, and habits live only in the app's local database on your current device, so the way to bring them along is a normal iPhone transfer or restore: back up your old phone (via iCloud Backup or a computer backup) and restore that backup onto the new one, or use Apple's "Quick Start" transfer when you first set up the new device. Inside the app itself, use Settings → Export to save a copy of your data as a file at any time — useful as a personal archive, or if you ever want your data outside of a full-device restore.
- Where does my data live?
- On your device, and only on your device. 8 Pillars has no account system and no app server — there is nowhere else for your journal to be. If you use Shared Plans, that specific feature syncs through your own iCloud account (Apple's infrastructure, under your Apple Account), because it is inherently a feature for sharing with someone else. Everything else never leaves your iPhone. See the Privacy Policy for the full picture.
- Should I use voice or type for check-ins?
- Whichever is easier in the moment — both go through the same mapping, scoring, and reward flow, so neither is a "lesser" path. Voice check-ins stream your speech to Apple's on-device Speech framework as you talk and are transcribed on your device; the audio itself is never written to disk. Typed check-ins skip transcription entirely and are understood the same way. If a language needs a transcription asset the first time you use voice, iOS installs it from Apple in the background.
- How do notifications work?
- Notifications are optional local reminders and check-in nudges, scheduled entirely on your device — there is no push service or server deciding when to notify you. You can turn them on, adjust their timing, or turn them off at any time in the app's Settings, or manage the permission directly in iOS Settings → Notifications → 8 Pillars.
- How do I delete my data?
- You can delete individual entries, pillars' history, or other items directly in the app at any time. To erase everything at once, use Settings → Delete All Data. Deleting the app itself also removes its on-device data. If you ever used Shared Plans, that iCloud-synced data is managed through your Apple Account / iCloud settings rather than the app's local store.