SinceWhen: Complete Guide

SinceWhen is a personal event log for things that repeat on their own rhythm. You create events, log when they happen, and the app shows time since, trends, and an estimate of what is due next.

It is private by design: no account, no social feed, and your logs stay on your devices. The app supports English, German, Japanese, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Korean, and Italian.

Getting started on Home

When Home is empty, you get a simple two-step path:

• Step 1: Create your first event
• Step 2: Log it once

Use a starter card for quick setup, or start from scratch with Add your first event.

Add an event

Tap + on Home, then fill in title, category, icon, and color.

• Ideas row: Can't think of one? Try these opens suggestion cards
• Category: Helps filter Home and powers category insights
• Preview: Shows how the event tile will look before you save
• Nudge: Optional reminder timing for that event

Tap Save and the event appears on Home.

Edit an event

Long-press an event tile and choose Edit, or open the event screen and edit from there.

The form matches New Event, with a few extra controls:

• Disable predictions: Keeps logs/charts, hides expected-next and due behavior
• Covers multiple days: For one log that starts and ends on different days
• Pause is separate: Pause temporarily stops due logic and nudges without turning predictions off forever (see Pause and resume)

Delete an event

Delete from long-press or from the event screen. Deleting removes the event and all its logs after confirmation.

Categories, pin, and hide

Categories are optional labels for grouping events. Home shows category chips once you create them. Long-press a chip to view category insights, edit the category, or delete it (events stay). Use long-press on an event to pin it to top or hide it under Show hidden events.

How to log

By default, tap the event icon to log now. The tile updates immediately and time since resets.

If you prefer one-tap tiles, turn on Log by tapping anywhere in Settings → Preferences → Behavior. You can also enable Briefly show due on Home if you want a short due-status glance before the tile returns to time since.

Undo a recent log

After a one-tap log, Undo appears on that event for a few seconds on Home, widgets, and the Lock Screen. Tap it to remove the log. When those seconds end, the checkmark shows, and a later tap does not undo.

Log… with a note or a chosen time does not offer this Undo. Show Undo after logging is on. Turn it off in Settings → Preferences → Behavior if you would rather see the checkmark right away.

Log… (note or earlier time)

Long-press and choose Log… to add notes or backdate entries. You can log Now, Yesterday, or pick a custom date/time.

1-minute cooldown

The same event cannot be logged twice within one minute, which prevents accidental double taps.

Logs that cover more than one day

Turn on Covers multiple days for events like trips, periods, or sick days. First log starts the run; next log ends it.

While open, Home and widgets show Day N. Expected text points to the end while the log is open, then switches back to next start after it ends. Due sorting and nudges follow the same rule.

Pause and resume

Pause is for intentional breaks. It keeps history but stops due behavior until you resume.

Long-press the event on Home and choose Pause or Resume. While paused, logging and nudges are blocked, and expected-next is hidden for that event.

• In History, paused time appears as a labeled Pause period row (separate from activity logs), and you can edit its start/end/note
• Overview keeps usual interval but hides expected next
• In Intervals, long pauses can be shown as a shaded pause band so paused time is visually distinct from normal logging gaps

Disable predictions and Pause are different controls and can be used separately.

Siri & Shortcuts

SinceWhen actions in Shortcuts use the same rules as the app (pause, cooldown, due logic).

The Library view in Shortcuts shows a small starter set. For the full list, use Add Action and search SinceWhen.

For Siri, include the app name in the phrase, for example:

• "Log Water plants in SinceWhen"
• "What's due today in SinceWhen"
• "When is Water plants due in SinceWhen"
• "When did I last Water plants in SinceWhen"

Insights is where SinceWhen explains your rhythm from real logs. It combines summary, expected timing, calendar, charts, and full history. Switch between Events and Categories from the top-right menu.

Overview

Open any event in Insights and start with Overview. It answers two main questions: how often this event usually happens, and when it is expected next.

• Usually every… summarizes typical interval from past logs
• Expected next uses the same method as Home, nudges, and due sorting
• Expected next is hidden when the event is paused or predictions are disabled
• Multi-day events point to expected end while open, then expected start after ending
• Calendar, intervals, and monthly charts sit below the summary

Activity calendar

The calendar shows when you logged this event. Filled days are logged days. A dashed ring marks expected next day when predictions are available.

Tap a filled day to view times and notes. If more than one log happened that day, they are grouped there. Multi-day logs fill each day they span. Use chevrons or swipe to move months.

Intervals chart

Intervals shows the gap between consecutive logs, so you can see whether your rhythm is getting shorter, longer, or staying stable.

If you pause an event for a while, that paused span may appear as a shaded pause band to help you read the chart correctly.

Monthly chart

Monthly shows total logs per month, useful for spotting consistency over time.

History

History lists activity rows and pause rows, newest first. Tap a row to edit or delete entries.

Category insights

Category insights combine all events in one category into a shared rhythm view. This helps when you want to understand a group pattern, not only one event.

Open from the Categories list, or long-press a category chip on Home and choose View insights.

The category summary still uses your chosen prediction method. For details on open logs and start/end wording, see Logs that cover more than one day.

A prediction is SinceWhen's estimate of the next time. It is calculated from the gaps between your logs, not from a manual schedule. You choose the method in Settings → Preferences → When to expect next. Default is Pattern aware.

Expected-next needs enough history:

• 1 log: time since only
• 2 logs: can show usual gap
• 3+ logs: can estimate next expected day

This same estimate powers expected-next wording, due sorting, Due Next widget, and nudges.

Disable predictions turns this off for one event. Pause hides expected-next while paused.

A nudge is a due-related reminder, not a fixed daily alarm. It uses the same expected-next logic as Home and Insights.

Nudges become meaningful after the event has enough history to predict (typically from 3 logs onward). Also allow notifications in iPhone Settings for SinceWhen.

Turn nudges on per event

You can set this up directly in New Event or later in Edit Event. Open Nudge, turn on Enable nudge, then pick:

• 2 days before
• 1 day before
• On due date
• 1 day after

If an event is paused, its nudges are paused too until you resume.

Set the notification time

In Settings → Preferences → Nudge time, choose Morning, Afternoon, Evening, Custom, Dynamic, or Don't nudge. Don't nudge turns off reminders app-wide without removing your per-event nudge setup.

Log from notifications

• Long-press: quick actions like Log Event or View Insights
• Tap: opens the nudge sheet with log and dismiss actions

Sort options

Use the sort menu on Home or Insights:

• Drag to reorder
• Due soon
• Due longest
• Recently updated
• Newest / Oldest created
• Name (A–Z / Z–A)

Due-based sorts use your chosen prediction method. Pinned events remain at top, and hidden events move to Show hidden events.

Home layout

Home can be grid or list. Use the layout button next to sort to switch. List fits more events at once and keeps the same log/open interactions.

Search

Use search on Home to filter by event name when your list grows.

Home Screen widgets

Add SinceWhen from iOS widget picker for quick logging without opening the app.

• Log Event widget: choose the events shown
• Due Next widget: shows events due today/tomorrow

Multi-day events keep the same start/end behavior in widgets. After a tap, Undo appears for a few seconds, the same as on Home.

Lock Screen widgets

Circular and rectangular lock widgets support one-tap logging from the lock screen.

Pro

Pro adds unlimited events, iCloud backup/sync features, and export. Free keeps the first 3 events fully usable.

Preferences

Key controls in Preferences:

• Behavior: log by icon only or by tapping anywhere. Show Undo after logging is on; turn it off to skip Undo after a tap
• Nudge time: when reminders arrive
• Time display: calendar-day counting, days-only wording, hide time-of-day, and precise recent time
• Home: briefly show due wording on cards
• When to expect next: Pattern aware, Recent focused, or Simple average

Language

SinceWhen supports English, German, Japanese, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Korean, and Italian. Portuguese covers Brazil and Portugal. The app follows iPhone language unless you set a preferred app language in iOS.

Data & Backup

Data & Backup includes iCloud backup, device sync status, export/import JSON, and erase-all controls.

• Sync keeps live data aligned across devices
• Backup stores separate safety snapshots

Appearance

Choose System, Light, or Dark theme.

Update

If a newer App Store version exists, Settings shows an update row that opens the store page.

Support & Help

Contains contact, rating, guide, and update links in one place.

Spread the Relief

Use the share action in Settings to send SinceWhen with a prefilled message.

• Long-press on Home for log, edit, insights, pin/hide, pause/resume, and delete
• Long-press app icon for quick entries to Create event, Logs, Insights, and Settings
• Shortcuts can automate logging, due checks, and voice flows
• Before big updates, run a backup or export for extra safety

Email [email protected], or visit the Support page.