Free baby diary app: what are your options in the Netherlands?

You want to keep track of your baby's memories without paying straight away. Understandable. There are several apps you can start with for free, although what "free" means differs quite a bit from one app to the next.

What most parents need

Most parents want to keep photos and videos of the first moments, record milestones such as the first smile or the first step, and share all of that with the grandparents and other family. Ideally in a way that can still be viewed ten years from now.

So the question is: which app delivers that for free, and where are the limits?

The most popular options

Tinybeans (free basic version)

Tinybeans is the best-known baby diary app in the world, with more than 4 million users. In the free version you add photos and share them with a closed circle of family and friends. The drawback: Tinybeans is American, the interface is entirely in English, and the free version shows ads. For Dutch parents it can quickly feel impersonal. More in our article on Tinybeans alternatives for the Netherlands.

Baby Diaries (free to start)

Baby Diaries is a Dutch app that's strong at making printed photo books. Keeping track of photos and milestones is free, but the business model is built around ordering a physical book at the end of the year. Fine if that's what you want. The app does have fewer features for sharing with co-parents or grandparents.

Google Photos (storage, not a diary)

Many parents use Google Photos by default for their photos. It just isn't a baby diary: no milestones, no stories, no shared timeline for grandparents. We wrote earlier about why Google Photos falls short for children's photos.

WhatsApp group (works in the moment, not afterwards)

The most widely used "app" for sharing baby photos in the Netherlands is simply a WhatsApp group. Quick, everyone has it, no fuss. But those photos drift out of view in the chat after a while, you lose everything if your phone breaks, and finding that one video from three years ago is a chore. More on this in our article why WhatsApp isn't enough as a digital diary.

Ouderliefde (free starter plan, Dutch)

Ouderliefde is a Dutch baby diary app with a free plan you can start with right away. The free plan includes:

• Up to 20 saved memories
• Milestone tracking
• 3 AI-generated captions a month
• Share links for the grandparents (a secure link you can revoke at any time)

The interface is in English and Dutch, there are no ads, and the data is stored on European servers.

What "free" costs you in the long run

Almost every free baby diary app has a business model. That might be:

• Ads. You pay with your attention (and with your child's data)
• Physical products. The app is free, the photo book costs money
• Limits. Free up to a certain number of photos, then you pay for more space
• Premium features. Basic features free, extra features paid

The freemium model is the least intrusive. You decide when to upgrade, and the free version simply keeps working. That's how Ouderliefde works too.

Which app suits you

• You want to order a printed book → Baby Diaries
• You want the best-known app, even though it's in English → Tinybeans
• You want an app in English or Dutch without ads that you can also share with the grandparents → Ouderliefde
• You only want to store photos, not keep a diary → Google Photos (but read this article first)

For most Dutch parents, an app in their own language without ads is the most pleasant choice, especially if the grandparents can use it without help. Start for free and see later whether you need more features.

Start for free with Ouderliefde

Ouderliefde is free to start, with no credit card. You create an account, add your child and start recording the first memories straight away. The grandparents follow along through their own secure link, which only your family gets.