Frequently asked questions

FamilyStories is a private family archive for life stories. Your family answers guided questions and keeps the answers as text, with their real voice and with photos. Everything stays in your family and is not public.

The family circle is your family's shared, protected place in FamilyStories. It holds your stories, photos, voice recordings and family trees. Up to 10 people with their own account can be part of it, and every family circle has its own plan.

Every story belongs to one person, for example your mom or yourself. It is organized into areas of life, chapters and questions. Which questions are included is decided by a short questionnaire when you create the story.

The app is made for iPhone and iPad and needs at least iOS 16. An Android version is planned. If you don't have an iPhone or iPad, you can still take part: with a personal link in the browser, on a phone or a computer.

On the iPhone, the app only works upright. On the iPad, you can also hold it sideways.

No. If you want to see and help shape all the stories of the family circle, you need the app and an account of your own. If you only want to answer, you need neither: with a personal link, you answer a story's questions right in the browser.

Yes. The text is large, every question stands on its own, and instead of typing you can simply tell your story. If someone doesn't want an app, they answer through a personal link in the browser. You can also answer the questions together in your app, for example during a visit.

We don't set a fixed minimum age. The legal age limits of your country apply. Where the law requires it, minors need their parents' consent, including for purchases and for answers through a personal link.

Children can contribute to family stories together with their parents. Parents with questions, or who want their child's data deleted, can write to support@familystories.love.

After two short welcome pages, you sign in. Then you enter your name, your date of birth if you like (“Add later”) and a picture (“Continue without a picture”). Finally, you choose “Start a family circle” or “Accept an invitation”.

If you sign in again later, you don't have to repeat this. If the key is missing on a new device, you open your family circle with the recovery code or a family code.

With “Start a family circle”, you start a new family circle of your own. After that, you create your first story on the Home screen. With “Accept an invitation”, you join an existing family circle: you enter the family code from your invitation and tap “Join your family”.

You start free of charge and without payment details, with one story, 5 questions and 1 GB of storage for photos and recordings. Photos, speaking and inviting your family are included. All questions, “Adjust questions” and the exports come with a paid plan.

Writing, speaking and reading also work without internet. Your answers are backed up as soon as you are back online. You need internet for signing in, for starting or joining a family circle, for inviting, for changes to permissions, for purchases, and once to download the speech model.

At the top of the Home screen, cards with hints rotate, for example “Write your code down”, “Tips and help” or, now and then, a thought from research. With the small X, you hide a card; after the question “Hide this card?”, it doesn't come back. After a few days, though, a thought from research is followed by a new one.

Notices about storage, such as “Cloud storage almost full”, come back as long as the problem lasts.

“Moments” is an area that is still to come: a place where you can collect special moments and photos from your everyday family life. Today, a tap on it only shows the notice “Coming soon”. Everything you tell now is under “Stories”.

Up to 10 people, you included, in every plan. People who answer only through a personal link don't need one of these seats. You can see how many seats are taken on the Home screen, in the “Your family circle” box.

Then nobody new can join, and “Invite” disappears. A seat becomes free when someone leaves the family circle or is removed. As long as all seats are taken, you can't reach the page in the app where you share a personal link either.

Yes, your account can be in up to 3 family circles, whether you started them or were invited. Every family circle has its own members, its own stories and its own plan.

Open Settings and tap “Family circles”. There you open another circle with a tap. The circle marked “Primary” opens by itself when the app starts. This choice applies to your account, so on all your devices.

No. The name is created automatically from the owner's name, for example the family circle of Anna. You can't give it a name of your own yet.

On the Home screen, in the “Your family circle” box, tap “Invite”. On the “With app” tab, you share the family code; on the “No app” tab, a personal link for one story. The message is already prepared, and you send it using your iPhone's share menu.

“With app” means the person downloads FamilyStories, creates an account of their own and enters the family code. They then belong to the family circle, take up a seat and see the stories they are allowed to see. “No app” means they get a personal link for exactly one story and answer in the browser, without an account.

The family code has 12 characters and applies to your whole family circle. It is valid for 14 days, and under the code, you can see when it renews. With “Renew code”, you get a new one right away, and the old one stops working.

The invited person taps “Accept an invitation” in the app, enters the code and taps “Join your family”. If someone already uses the app, they open Settings, tap “Family circles” and then tap “Join a family circle”.

On the Home screen, in the “Your family circle” box, tap “Invite”, and on the “With app” tab, tap “Renew code”. A new family code applies immediately, and the old one no longer works. For this, you need internet and the “Can invite” permission.

Personal links are not affected by this. You replace a link on the “No app” tab with “Create new link”.

Yes. Anyone who has the current family code becomes a member right after signing in, as long as a seat is free. There is no confirmation step. So only share the code with people you trust.

If it has reached the wrong people, tap “Invite” and then “Renew code”; the old code then stops working. As an admin, you can remove anyone who has already joined in the “Your family circle” box.

If it says the invitation has expired or the code is no longer current, ask for the current family code. A code becomes invalid when it renews or when someone leaves or is removed from the circle. If it says the code could not be redeemed, check it for typos.

If the family circle is full, a seat has to become free first. If you are already in 3 family circles, you can't join another one. If you are already a member, the code simply opens the circle on this device.

After too many attempts, you have to wait about a minute, sometimes longer. If your device is still getting ready or the connection was too slow, reopen the app and try again.

Admins can always invite. All other members can as long as “Can invite” is turned on for them, and that is the case from the start. An admin can turn it off for any member who is not an admin.

No. A paid plan applies to the whole family circle, and all members use it. Anyone who answers through a personal link needs neither an account nor a plan.

The app doesn't send invitations itself. You share the family code or the personal link through your iPhone's share menu, for example in a message or an email, or you copy it.

Yes. The family code and the link are created with internet, and starting a family circle, joining, leaving, changing permissions and removing members also need an internet connection. Without internet, the app shows a short notice for these, and nothing happens.

A code the app had already loaded is still visible without internet; but then the app can't check whether it is still valid.

Open Settings, tap “Family circles”, and then tap “Leave” next to the circle. After that, you can no longer open the circle or its stories, but your account stays. Your contributions stay in the family circle.

The app tries to send anything that hasn't been sent yet beforehand. If that doesn't work, it shows you what would be lost before you confirm.

Yes, if there is at least one other admin. Then the admin who has been in the circle the longest becomes the new owner, and the app tells you their name first. If there is no other admin, first make someone an admin or delete the family circle; if you are alone in the circle, you have to delete it in order to leave it.

On the Home screen, tap the “Your family circle” box, then tap the person in the list, then tap the button with their name under “Remove from the family circle”, and confirm with “Remove”. Only admins can do this. The person's contributions are kept, but they can no longer open the family circle.

Important: This renews the family code, and all personal links of your family circle stop working. Send them again afterward. Anything that was already saved on the person's device can't be deleted remotely.

Yes, with a current family code, as long as a seat is free and you are in fewer than 3 family circles. Your earlier contributions are still there. You come back as a regular member; an admin has to grant admin rights again.

Only the owner can delete a family circle: in Settings under “Family circles”, with “Delete”. With “Delete in 30 days”, you can undo it with “Cancel deletion” until that date. If you delete immediately, all stories, photos and recordings are gone for everyone right away.

During the 30 days, the circle stays usable, but no new members or links can be added, and permissions can't be changed. Old links stay invalid even after you cancel the deletion.

Only the owner can delete it, which is usually the person who started the circle. Admins can't do it either. If you tap “Delete”, the app tells you the owner's name.

If there is another admin, the family circle stays, and the admin who has been in the circle the longest becomes the new owner. If there is none, the circle is deleted together with the account, for everyone, with all stories, photos and recordings. So make someone an admin first.

There are two reasons for this. If the owner deletes their account and there is no other admin, the circle would be deleted too. Ask the owner to make another member an admin first; then the circle stays.

If the owner deleted the circle themselves with a 30-day wait, only they can cancel the deletion. Until the date, you can use the circle as usual. Save what matters to you beforehand, for example as a PDF.

With the personal link, a person can answer a story's questions in the browser, on a phone or a computer, with no app and no account. It is a good fit for parents and grandparents who don't want to install an app. The link always applies to exactly one story.

On the Home screen, in the “Your family circle” box, tap “Invite” and choose the “No app” tab. Choose the story and tap “Share link” or “Copy link”. The link is created automatically.

For that, you need “Can invite” and, for the story, both “Read” and “Edit”. An admin gives you “Can invite”; for a story that is linked to a member, only that person can give you “Read” and “Edit”, otherwise an admin can.

The story also has to be created, its short introductory questions have to be answered, and you need internet. If all seats are taken, the “Invite” button is missing, and if the family circle is marked for deletion, it doesn't work either.

There is exactly one link per story, which everyone you send it to uses. It doesn't expire on its own. There are no separate links for individual people.

On the “No app” tab, tap “Create new link”. The old link stops working immediately. Send the new one only to the people who should have it.

Careful: Reminders that ran through the old link stop when you do this. Set them up again afterward.

All links of your family circle become invalid when someone leaves or is removed from the circle, and when the circle is marked for deletion. A single link ends when its story is deleted. If the person who created the link loses their permission to edit, the link no longer accepts answers. Then create a new link.

No. Anyone who has the link can always read and answer. You can only end it with “Create new link”; you then simply don't pass on the new link.

Anyone who has the complete link can read and change the answers of that one story. The content is end-to-end encrypted, and the secret part of the link is never sent to FamilyStories. So send the link only directly to the person it is meant for, and not into large groups.

For every link, the preview shows only a general invitation, without names and without answers. It also doesn't reveal whether the link is still valid.

Search engines don't include the pages, and the page uses no cookies and no analytics tools.

The same way: “Invite”, “No app” tab, choose the story. The same link is there, and you can share it again.

No, there is no notification for that. The answer appears in the story as soon as an app from your family is online and picks it up.

Not in the browser, and not by itself. The recording arrives encrypted in your app. There, someone from the family taps the notice about the recordings without text in the story, reads the text through and saves it.

No. You open the link in the browser, on a phone or a computer. You need neither an app nor an account, and nobody asks for your name or email address.

You see exactly one story: its questions, the progress and all the answers that already exist, including those your family wrote in the app. You don't see other stories or the family circle.

You can write or speak, add up to three photos per answer, open the tip and skip questions with “Skip question”. With the star, you mark questions to find them again, and you can save finished answers as a card. You can change your answers at any time.

Up to three photos per answer, including photos from your iPhone. Before encrypting, the page shrinks each photo to at most 2048 pixels on the longest side and removes hidden details such as the place where it was taken.

After that, you can “Show”, “Replace” or “Remove” a photo. If a picture can't be used, the page asks you to choose another one.

Tap “Speak” on the question, the first time then “Continue to recording”, and then the circle. The browser asks for the microphone, and you have to allow it. When you are finished, tap “Done”; a recording can be up to 60 minutes long.

This works in Safari, Chrome, Edge and Firefox. If it doesn't work in your browser, use Safari or type your answer.

Usually the browser has blocked the microphone for this page. Allow it in the settings for this website: in Chrome and Firefox via the icon to the left of the address, in Safari via the page icon in the address bar or the Safari menu. Then tap “Try again”.

If the page can't find a microphone, check whether one is connected, or close another app that is using it right now. If a browser can't record at all, for example a browser inside another app, open the link in Safari or Chrome. You can also type your answer.

With “Delete answer”, you only remove the text; the recording and photos stay. With “Delete voice recording”, you delete the recording permanently; the text stays. If nothing is left, the question is unanswered again.

For you, everything is free. If your family uses the free version, only the first 5 questions are open; all the others are locked and marked “Premium”. If your family later gets a paid plan, the remaining questions open up without a new link.

Yes. At the top of the page, tap the globe with the name of the language and choose your language. The large A next to it makes the text larger, and the small A makes it smaller. The page remembers your choice on this device.

Yes. On a phone, you'll find “Turn sounds off” in the menu with the three dots. On a tablet or computer, there is a speaker button at the top next to the text size. Your browser remembers the choice, and your recordings are never affected by it.

Without the link, you won't be able to find the page again later. On the overview, tap “Save link”: depending on your device, the share window opens, for example so you can send the link to yourself, or the link is copied.

If the link is lost, ask the person who sent it to you to send it again. Only give it to people you trust, because anyone who has it can read and change the answers.

No. Your answer stays on your device, encrypted, until it has arrived. Leave the page open and tap “Try again”; with “Discard”, you delete the change permanently. If you close the page before then, the answer is sent, visibly, the next time you open it; nothing is secretly sent in the background.

If you closed the page while something was being sent, it catches up on this the next time you open it, visibly. If a recording or photo still didn't arrive completely, it says “Did not arrive” there.

Your written text is still there then. Just record the answer again or add the photo again.

The page tells you the reason, and your change stays on your device until then. If it says the answer has been changed too often or too much has been sent through the link, the page has reached a protective limit. Then discard the change and answer the question again later.

If the invitation first has to be updated in the app, ask your family to open FamilyStories, and then tap “Try again”. If the question no longer belongs to the invitation, your family has hidden it; you can discard the change or ask for a new invitation.

Your family's shared storage is full, so no new texts, recordings or photos can be saved right now. Let the person who invited you know; they can check the plan or storage. Your link stays valid.

If it says there that all free question slots are used, 5 questions have already been answered in the free version.

Your family has already answered this question; the answer is just still on its way to you. You can wait, or answer yourself with “Answer anyway”. After that, the page shows you both versions, and you decide which one counts; this also happens if your family changes an answer while you are writing.

“This link has been renewed”: Your family has created a new link. Ask the person who invited you for the current one.

“The link is incomplete”: Part of it was lost while copying. Open the link exactly as you received it, preferably straight from the message. “This link is not valid” means that this link doesn't exist, for example because a piece is missing; check it or ask your family for a new one.

On this device, the browser remembers your language, your text size, drafts you have started and the text of the answers you sent most recently. These texts are stored there unencrypted. On a computer that isn't yours or is shared, you should therefore save or discard everything before closing and then delete the browser data. Everything that has been sent is stored encrypted with your family.

If someone chose “I don't know” when the story was created, you can fill that in later: the page then shows how many details are still open, with “Answer”. You can adjust questions if your family is not using the free version: through the menu with the three dots and “Adjust questions”.

Tap the menu with the three dots at the top and choose “Report a bug”. Briefly describe what isn't working. The page doesn't automatically send your answers, photos or recordings along; what you write yourself or attach as a picture can be read by our team.

The page doesn't ask for your email address, so we don't reply on our own. After sending, you see an ID. If you would like a reply, write to us with this ID at support@familystories.love.

We look at every report within the next 48 hours. Our team can read the text and pictures of your report; the technical log contains no texts or pictures.

From the start, all members of your family circle can read and edit every story. You can restrict this for each person and each story individually. Anyone with a personal link sees the story that link belongs to. FamilyStories itself cannot read, listen to or view your stories.

A new member can read and edit all stories, including ones added later, and can invite others. You can only restrict this after they have joined. So only invite people you trust with your stories.

An admin looks after the family circle: they change roles and “Can invite”, remove members, and set the permissions for stories that are not linked to anyone. Another admin makes you an admin: they tap the “Your family circle” box on the Home screen, then tap you in the list, turn on “Admin” and tap “Save”. All admins have equal rights in managing the circle; only deleting the family circle is left to the owner.

On the Home screen, tap the “Your family circle” box, then tap yourself in the list, turn off “Admin” and tap “Save”. After the prompt “Step down as admin?”, you confirm with “Step down”. The family circle always needs at least one admin: if you are the only one, make someone else an admin first.

In managing the circle, all admins have equal rights; only deleting the family circle is left to the owner. Any admin can take the admin role away from others and remove members, including the owner; then the admin who has been in the circle the longest becomes the new owner. Nobody can make themselves an admin.

As an admin, you share responsibility for the family circle. That's why the app asks you once to create your personal recovery code. With “Create code now”, you can do it right away; with “Later”, you can do it any time in Settings under “Recovery code”.

With the code, you can get back into the circle safely on a new device. That way, the family circle stays reachable even if the owner is ever unavailable.

To begin with, the owner is the person who started the family circle; the circle is listed under the owner's name. Only the owner can delete the family circle. If the owner steps down as admin, leaves the circle or is removed, the admin who has been in the circle the longest takes over.

If the story is linked to a member, only that person decides, even when it comes to admins. They can always read and edit their own story. If the story is linked to nobody, the admins decide.

Any member may create a new story, as long as your plan still has room. Anyone who is allowed to edit that story can link it, remove the link or transfer it to another person.

After linking, the linked person decides on all permissions for the story. Only admins, the owner and the linked person may delete it.

On the Home screen, tap the “Your family circle” box, then tap the person in the list. For that story, leave “Read” turned on, turn “Edit” off and tap “Save”. If you also turn “Read” off, the person can no longer see the story.

This works if you are an admin and the story is linked to nobody, or if the story is linked to you.

The person can no longer open the story in the app. To be honest, this hides the story from view but does not lock it: everyone in a family circle shares one common key, and anything already saved on a device may stay there. So only invite people you trust.

With “This story isn’t shared with you”, you are missing the permission to read; with “You can read here, but not make changes”, the permission to edit. Ask an admin or the person the story is linked to.

An admin or the linked person has probably taken away your permission to read the story you had open. The app then shows “This story is no longer shared with you” and takes you to the Home screen.

If you were removed from the whole family circle, it tells you that as well. The data of this circle is then removed from your device.

If you tap a story's picture on the Home screen and choose “Link”, the story shows that member's picture and name. The story then belongs to that person: they alone decide who may see and edit it, even when it comes to admins. If you later choose “Custom picture”, or a person “Family tree” who is not a member, the link is removed.

Something you saved couldn't be sent to your family, for example because your permission to edit was removed in the meantime, the question was deleted, a limit of your plan was reached or a file was too large. The app shows you what is affected. To keep a text, use “Copy text”.

The app tells you what the reason is. “The list was out of date” means that someone else was faster or the person has left the circle; the app reloads the members. With “A deletion is scheduled”, neither members nor permissions can be changed until the date.

“We will send it shortly” means that your change is safely on your device and will be sent by itself. With “That didn't work”, you try again later.

Your name, your picture, your role and your permissions in the family circle. They don't see your email address. What you tell in a story, they see if they are allowed to read that story.

All members see by name who pays for the family circle's plan.

On the Home screen, tap the round plus button. The very first time, tap “Create the first story” instead. Then tap “Start”. A short questionnaire asks about the person and their life. The matching chapters and questions are created from your answers.

How many stories you can create depends on your plan. If there is no room left, the plus button disappears, and the Home screen says “All your stories are in use.”

You choose between “Mom”, “Dad”, “Grandma”, “Grandpa” and “My own story”. The wording of the questions depends on this. You can't change the choice later.

If you made a mistake, delete the story and create it again. Admins, the owner and the person the story is linked to may delete it.

Not directly today. When you create a story, there are exactly five choices: “Mom”, “Dad”, “Grandma”, “Grandpa” and “My own story”. The wording of the questions depends on this.

If someone else is to tell their own life, invite the person to your family circle. There, they create their own story with “My own story”.

With “My own story”, you tell your own life. The questions address you directly, and there is no “I don't know” there, because you know everything yourself.

The story isn't linked to you automatically. On the Home screen, tap its picture and choose “Link”; then it is your own story, and you decide who may see and edit it.

For Mom, Dad, Grandma or Grandpa, it is about 17 to 20 short steps; for “My own story”, up to about 28. It covers name, parents, siblings, love, training, career and similar topics. That way, the story only gets questions that fit the person's life: if Mom and Dad never married, for example, the questions about the marriage proposal are left out.

“Balanced” is our recommendation: the loveliest questions from every stage of life. “Everything included” has all the questions, even the small details. With a paid plan, you can change the scope later.

You can choose from “Spirituality and religion”, “Travel”, “Society and politics”, “Family recipes”, “Migration and new beginnings”, “How times have changed” and “Letter to your younger self”. “Siblings” is added if the person had siblings. With a paid plan, you can add topics later through “Adjust questions”.

For stories about Mom, Dad, Grandma or Grandpa, you can choose “I don't know” for training, career and pets. The matching questions then appear for the time being, and you can clear up the answer later, for example after a conversation.

On the story, you see how many details are still open. Tap that, choose “Yes” or “No” for each detail and tap “Save”; you need internet for this. With “No”, the matching questions are hidden, and existing answers stay saved. The person themselves can also fill this in through their personal link.

A story reaches from childhood through youth, work and family to a look back on life. It has seven areas of life with around 40 chapters and several hundred questions.

Exactly how many there are in your case depends on the details you gave when creating the story and on the scope you chose. Questions that don't fit never appear in the first place.

Which chapters and questions a story gets depends on the answers in the questionnaire and on the scope. A “No” for career, for example, hides the questions about working life. With a paid plan, you find everything that is hidden under “Adjust questions” on the “Excluded” tab and bring it back with “Show”.

In your app's language. If you change the language, the questions also appear in the new language. Your answers and questions you wrote yourself stay as they are.

A person who answers in the browser through their personal link sets the language there themselves.

No. Every story keeps the questions it was created with, so that nothing shifts under your answers. Newly created stories get new questions. Improved wording of existing questions, however, reaches all stories.

Under most questions, you'll find “Show tip”. It asks small follow-up questions about places, people and moments and helps you remember, without suggesting the answer.

A “Small interlude question” is an easy question in between, so the small sides of life get room too. A “Personal question” was added specially for this story. At the end of almost every chapter, there is also an open question for everything that doesn't fit any other question.

No. Tap “Skip question”, and the question counts as done and is shown as “Skipped”. You can still answer it later. If you only want to move on, swipe sideways or use the arrows at the top, and the question stays open.

On the story, the “Up next” card shows the next open question, and a tap on it opens it directly. A question with a voice recording already counts as told there, even if the text is still missing.

In chapters and areas of life, a question counts once it has a text or has been skipped. A recording without text doesn't count there yet: turn it into text for that.

The percentage on the Home screen also counts questions that have only a recording or only a photo.

The “Already collected” card counts what your story already contains: the total length of the recordings, how many photos there are and how many words. For a recording without text, the app estimates the words from its length.

“Book pages” is a rough estimate, about one page for 250 words. Skipped questions don't count.

When you answer or skip the last open question of a chapter, “Congratulations, a chapter is complete!” appears, with the way to the next chapter. If a whole area of life or the whole story is finished, the app celebrates with you.

There is no search across answers and questions yet. To find things again, the stars under “Your favorites”, “Up next” and the organization into areas of life and chapters help. With a paid plan, you save the text as a PDF or Word file and search it on a computer.

Yes, with a paid plan. Open the story, tap the round button with nine dots in the top right, and tap “Adjust questions” on the “Options” tab. There you hide and show areas, chapters and questions, change their text, move them and add your own.

With the check mark in the top right, you save your changes. If you go back instead, you can undo them with “Discard”.

Yes, with a paid plan under “Adjust questions”: with “Add area”, “Add chapter” and “Add question”. What you create yourself is marked “Custom”.

A new area or chapter only appears in the story once at least one question with text is in it. If you delete something of your own again, the answers, photos and recordings in it are gone for good.

Hidden questions keep their answers, photos and recordings; with “Show”, everything is back. You can only delete areas, chapters and questions you created yourself, and that is permanent, answers included.

Be careful with “Restore”: it resets everything to the state of the questionnaire and also deletes questions you created yourself, along with their answers.

Yes, with a paid plan, under “Adjust questions” via “Edit questionnaire”. You can change details, topics, scope and names. Only the choice of who the story is for stays fixed. Questions you have already answered are kept.

With a paid plan, through “Edit questionnaire”; the name can have up to 25 characters. If the story is linked to a member, it shows that member's name.

On the Home screen, tap the story's picture. With “Custom picture”, you upload a photo or design an avatar; with “Family tree”, you use the picture of a person from the family tree. Under “Custom picture”, “Change frame only” changes just the frame.

“Link” connects the story with a member of your family circle: it then shows that member's picture and name. The member can always read and edit their story and decides who else may see it.

On the Home screen, press and hold the story's card and tap “Delete permanently”. The app then asks once more, just to be sure. The story is only deleted when you tap “Yes, delete”. All answers, photos and recordings of this story are then gone for good for everyone in the family circle, and its personal link no longer works. People in the family tree are kept.

Admins, the owner and the person the story is linked to can delete it. You need internet for this.

Both work. Open a question and tap “Write” or “Speak”. When you speak, the app turns your voice into text, and your voice is kept if you like. An answer can be short or long and can be added to at any time.

The writing field has bold, italic, bullet lists, numbered lists and quotations. You will practically never reach a length limit.

If you changed something, the app asks “Keep your changes?”. With “Save”, your text stays; with “Discard”, it is gone. There is no automatic interim saving: save longer texts before you switch to another app.

The first time, the app downloads a free speech model once, which turns your voice into text. The “Pro model” with 216 MB is recommended; the “Pro Max model” with 632 MB recognizes even more accurately but needs more space. For this you need internet and a little patience, preferably on Wi-Fi. After that, converting also works without internet.

Find a quiet place, and jot down a few keywords beforehand. Tell your story as if someone from the family were sitting next to you. Afterward, read the text through calmly and correct what isn't right, such as names.

You'll also find these tips on the recording page under “Recording tips”.

Yes. Tap the big circle to pause the recording, and tap it again to carry on speaking. When you are finished, tap “Finish recording” and then check the text.

With “Record again”, you start from the beginning. The app first asks whether the recording so far should be discarded. It works the same way in the browser.

They protect your recording from being lost by accident. “Keep the recording?” asks when you close whether you want to save the recording first. “Discard the draft?” appears when you go from the text back to the recording, and “Start over?” only discards the recording so far once you confirm.

If the question already has an answer, the app asks “Replace your existing answer?” to find out whether the new recording should replace it.

No. Turning it into text happens only on your device. Only the speech model itself is downloaded from the internet for this.

If you leave “Keep your voice” turned on, the recording is backed up, encrypted, for your family. Only your family can listen to it.

In around 100 languages. The app starts with the app's language. You can change it on the recording page, or in the story through the round button with nine dots, “Options” tab, “Speaking language”.

Up to 60 minutes, in the app and in the browser. In the last 10 minutes, the recording circle counts down the time. It is best to spread very long stories across several questions.

Yes, from the start: after the recording, “Keep your voice” is turned on, so your family can hear you later too. If you turn it off, only the text is saved. One hour of recording takes about 14 MB of storage.

Yes. If the speech model has already been downloaded, you can tell your story without internet too, and the text is created on your device.

If the speech model is missing and can't be downloaded right now, tap “Record voice only” and save the recording. You create the text later with “Create text automatically”, once the speech model is downloaded.

The recording stops as soon as the app is no longer in the foreground; it doesn't record in the background. Come back, tap the circle and carry on with your story.

Often not. If the app crashes after you ended the recording but before you saved it, it rescues the recording the next time it starts and attaches it to the question. This works if “Keep your voice” was turned on.

You then create the text with “Create text automatically”. Only then does the question count as answered.

Right after recording, uncertain spots are marked in the draft. With “Edit text”, you simply correct them by hand. If the “Pro model” wrote the text, you can also choose “Rewrite with Max”.

After saving, the markings are gone. Then, on the question, tap the text under “Your memory” and change it there.

The first time you speak, your iPhone asks whether FamilyStories may use the microphone. If you declined, tap “Open Settings” and allow the microphone for FamilyStories.

With AirPods or any other Bluetooth headset, the app always records with the built-in microphone of your iPhone or iPad, even when they are connected. Their microphones often sound muffled, which produces worse text. Just keep the device close to you while you tell your story.

In the browser, the page uses the microphone your browser chooses.

Open a story, tap the round button with nine dots in the top right, and tap “Speech model” on the “Options” tab. Choose “Pro model” or “Pro Max model” and tap “Use this model”. The choice then applies to all voice recordings on this device.

The “Pro Max model” is the most accurate, but it needs 632 MB of space and a few minutes to set up the first time. For this, you need the permission to edit the story.

Check your connection, preferably on Wi-Fi, and tap the download button again. If it takes unusually long, “Try again” appears there, and on the next attempt the app downloads from a second server. If there isn't enough space, the app tells you how much the model needs: about 216 MB for the “Pro model”, about 632 MB for the “Pro Max model”.

Your recording stays saved in any case. If nothing helps, write to us at support@familystories.love.

With an iOS update, iOS clears a temporary storage area that the speech model needs. So the app sets the model up once more on your device. This takes a few minutes and needs no internet; keep the app open while it runs.

Only on a new device or after a reinstall does the app download the model again. Your texts and recordings are never affected.

Sometimes the app understands too little, for example when the voice is very quiet or there is a lot of background noise. The app then takes you back to the recording. Record again, speak clearly and find a quiet place. You can also type your answer.

If it keeps not working, write to us at support@familystories.love.

Yes. If you stop creating the text, a recording you've already saved stays available. Any existing text stays as it is. You can create the new text later.

Yes. Open the story and tap the notice about the recordings without text. Check the language, then read the texts through and accept them with “Save”. Keep the app open while this runs.

For progress, a question only counts once it has a text or has been skipped. Tap “Create text automatically” on the question, or write the text yourself. Until then, your recording is safely saved.

Yes. Delete the text with the trash can under “Your memory”; the recording stays. Then “Create text automatically” appears again. First check the “Speaking language” if the first text was in the wrong language.

As soon as a question has a text or a recording, “Photos for this memory” appears. Tap an empty field and choose a photo from your photo library. Up to three photos fit with each answer, each up to 20 MB in size.

Neither is possible in the app. You choose an existing photo from your photo library. The small tile shows a section; with “View photo”, you see the whole picture.

No. You choose each photo with your iPhone's photo picker, and FamilyStories receives only that one picture. Only when you save a photo to your photo library does the iPhone ask for permission once.

Your photo or recording is safe on your device and is being backed up for your family right now. “Waiting for internet...” means it continues as soon as you are online. “Waiting for storage space...” means that your device or your family's storage is full. Keep the app open until the notice disappears.

On the question, tap the text under “Your memory” to change it. If you want to tell it again, tap “Speak”: the new recording only replaces the old answer once you save it.

The trash can under “Your memory” deletes only the text; the recording and photos stay. The trash can under “Spoken memory” deletes only the recording; the text and photos stay. Both ask first and can't be undone afterward.

You delete photos one at a time with “Delete photo”, without asking first.

Anyone who may edit the story can change or delete text, recording and photos, including those from others. Under the answer, you only see the date of the last change, no name.

You only see a name briefly: when someone changes the answer while you have it open, or when two people make changes at the same time. Then the app tells you who it was.

That isn't possible today. Each question has one text, one recording and up to three photos. A new recording replaces the old one.

On the Home screen, tap “Set up reminder” on the story's card. Choose “Push notification” or “Email”, the person, how often, the time and until when to remind, and save.

The person the story is linked to, admins and everyone who is allowed to edit the story can do it. Each story can have one reminder.

You choose “Weekly”, “Every 2 weeks” or “Monthly” and a time. 6 p.m. and an end after two months are suggested. The reminder stops by itself on the end date.

Yes. With “Weekly” and “Every 2 weeks”, you choose one or more weekdays; with “Monthly”, for example the first Monday of the month. You also set the time of day and the end date.

Under “Time zone”, your device's time zone is preselected. If the person lives in another country, choose their time zone; the time of day and the end date then apply there.

A push notification goes to you (“For me”) or to the member the story is linked to; this requires the app and notifications to be allowed. An email goes to a family member or to another email address, for example to Grandma, who answers through the link.

With this, you decide how the person answers an email reminder. With “Answer in the FamilyStories app”, the email contains a button that opens the app. With “Answer through a private link”, the email reminds them of the personal link they received from you; the link itself is never in the email.

For an address outside your family circle, only the private link works.

For privacy reasons, the personal link is never in an email. So the person already needs it, for example from an earlier message from you. If they answer in the app, the email instead contains a button that opens the app.

The push notification is short and invites the person in a friendly way to tell a little more. The email states the frequency, time and end date, and your personal message if you like. Questions or answers from the story are never included.

Under “Add message”, you can write up to 300 characters. This message is not end-to-end encrypted, because it is sent by email. So don't write anything very personal in it.

The personal message has to be plain text: at most 300 characters in at most 3 paragraphs, with no links, web addresses or email addresses. Even a missing space after a period can look like a web address.

That way, nobody can use a reminder to send outside links.

If an address doesn't belong to anyone in your family circle, the person gets one email asking whether they want reminders. Only when they agree do the reminders begin; until then, the app shows “Confirmation pending”. That way, nobody gets emails they didn't ask for.

Someone has set up a FamilyStories reminder for your email address, usually someone in your family. The reminder only starts when you agree in the email. If you don't want it, you don't have to do anything; then not a single reminder will arrive.

Your address is used only for this reminder. If you want it deleted, write to support@familystories.love.

To protect against too many emails, you can enter an address no more than twice within 24 hours. With “Enter the email address later”, the app tells you when it works again.

“Email address unavailable” means that the email provider has stopped reminders to this address. The app then turns email off. Choose another address, or try again once the email provider allows the address again.

The link has expired or belongs to a reminder that has since been changed. A confirmation link is valid for 72 hours. After a change to the reminder, a new email with a new link arrives.

Whoever may manage the reminder can save it again in the app, and a new confirmation arrives. To protect against too many emails, this can't be done as often as you like. You can also simply reply to the email.

In the person's app language. For another email address, you choose the language yourself when you set it up.

On the story's card, you see “Reminder active” with the weekday and time of the next reminder. “Confirmation pending” means the email address still has to agree. With “Reminder paused” and “Reminders off”, nothing is being sent right now, and with “Set up reminder”, there is no reminder.

When no question in a story is open anymore, the reminder pauses by itself. It also does not start again when new questions are added later. Then open the story's reminder and turn it back on.

If you tap a reminder and see “Story no longer available”, you can no longer open this story with your account.

Open the story's reminder, turn off everything that is on (push notification and email) and tap “Save changes”. Whoever receives the email can also stop the reminder themselves with the button for turning it off in every reminder email; this ends the whole reminder for the story, including a push notification.

The button in the email first only opens a page that asks you to confirm; only your tap on the button there turns the reminder off. After that, no more reminders arrive for this story, neither by email nor by push notification. Other stories stay unchanged.

Whoever may manage the story's reminder can turn it back on. If it goes to an address outside the family, a confirmation email comes first again.

Common reasons: the email address hasn't agreed yet, someone turned the reminder off, the end date has been reached, notifications are turned off on the iPhone, or the link was renewed. If no question is open anymore, the reminder stays paused. While the app is open, no notification appears.

Check what it says on the story's card.

Yes, by email. In the browser, they tap the menu with the three dots at the top and choose “Set up reminders”.

This story's reminder was set up in the app. The recipient and personal message then stay private and can only be changed there. Push notifications exist only in the app anyway.

In the browser, you can only change an email reminder that was set up through the same link or that goes to the person themselves.

Open the question and tap play under “Spoken memory”. With the speed button, you listen faster, and with the waveform, you jump to another spot. The recording also plays when your iPhone is on silent.

With the star in the top right, you mark a question for yourself. You'll find it again in the story under “Your favorites”. Favorites are your personal list; your family doesn't see them.

Open a question with text or a recording and tap the share icon in the top right. If you have both, first choose text or voice recording, then the format and a background. This creates an image or a short video that you can send through any app.

Yes. With a text card, you use “Select text” to choose the start and end and confirm with “Use selection”. With a card with your voice, you use “Choose clip” to choose a part of the recording, 5 minutes at most. Your saved answer never changes because of this.

Two backgrounds are already in the app; the app downloads the others in the background after it starts. If one is still missing when you share, you need internet. At the bottom of every card it says “Created with www.familystories.love” and our logo.

A shared card is an ordinary image or video file. After that, it is outside your protected family circle, and who sees it depends on the app you send it through. If the memory comes from someone else, ask first whether you may share it.

In the question, tap the photo and then tap “View photo”. In the large view, tap “Save photo”. The first time, the iPhone asks whether FamilyStories may save to your photo library.

At the top of the story, you swipe through cards: a short sentence about where things stand, how much has already been told, and “Storytelling tips”. Then come “Your favorites”, “Already collected” and the “Longest story” to listen to, as soon as there is something to show for them.

If you answer several questions in a row, a small card with a branch that grows with every answer appears after the 3rd, 5th, 8th, 12th and 20th answer. It closes by itself or with a tap.

The family tree shows how your family fits together and adds to the stories. You'll find it on the Home screen under “Discover”. The row is called “Family tree”, and the very first time “Start your family tree”.

The first time you open it, you give it a name. It belongs to the family circle, and all members see the same family tree.

In the family tree, tap the round plus at the bottom right, or “Add first person” the very first time. With “Link person” you pick someone from your family circle, including yourself; otherwise you enter a new person.

For the first person, only the first name is required. From the second person on, you also choose how they are related to someone in the family tree. You can add everything else later.

Only the first name is required. Under “Optional details” you'll find last name, “Gender”, “Birth name”, “Place of birth”, “Date of birth”, “Origin” and a note, plus up to three more photos in addition to the main picture. Dates may be incomplete, for example just a year.

For a person who has died, you turn on “Deceased” and, if you know it, enter the “Date of death”.

Tap a person and add a relationship: “Mother”, “Father”, “Partner”, “Child” or “Sibling”. A person can have two parents at most. Siblings share their parents in the family tree.

When you add a partner to a person, the partner automatically becomes the second parent of that person's children, as long as the children don't already have two parents. If that isn't right, you can correct it when you edit the child.

Tap the person and choose “Edit” or “Delete”. Deleting removes the person with all their connections and can't be undone.

If the person appears in several family trees, you choose: “Remove from this family tree” or “Delete everywhere”.

All members of your family circle see the same family tree and can edit it. It is end-to-end encrypted. Someone who only answers through a personal link doesn't see it.

Yes. Press and hold a person and drag them within the same row to a marked spot. With “Save” you keep the arrangement, and with “Automatic” the family tree arranges itself again.

Everyone in the family circle sees the saved arrangement, and the most recently saved one applies.

Yes, up to 5 per family circle. Tap the name of the family tree at the top, and then “Start a family tree” in the list. You need internet to create another family tree.

In the list, you can also rename or delete family trees with the small icons. One person can appear in several family trees.

On the Home screen, tap the story's picture and choose “Family tree”. The story then shows that person's picture, and a book appears next to them in the family tree.

For a person without an account, nobody gets permissions for the story, and you undo the connection with “Remove link to the family tree”. If the person is a member of your family circle, the story is linked to that member: they can always read and edit it and decide who else may see it.

There isn't a feature for that yet. But you can take a screenshot.

Yes, in the top right of the family tree with the two small round buttons: one for the frame of the people's pictures, one for the background. The choice applies only on your device.

At the bottom of the family tree, a small note says it was created with FamilyStories. This also appears in a screenshot.

Previous partnerships, adoptions and a search aren't in the family tree yet. Today, a person can be connected to up to two partners.

Open the story, tap the round button with nine dots in the top right, and choose the “Export” tab. “Save PDF” makes a nicely designed document for reading and printing, and “Save Word file” makes a file you can keep editing. “Save photos” and “Save recordings” save all photos and recordings. Each export covers one story.

Yes. In the Free version, the four exports are locked; tapping one shows you the plans. With Premium, the Family plan or Lifetime, all of them are unlocked, even during the free trial.

If the family circle has a paid plan, every member can export the stories they are allowed to see. Someone who only answers through a personal link can't export.

In the Free version, all four items are locked; tapping one shows you the plans. Otherwise something is still missing: PDF and Word need at least one answer, “Save photos” needs at least one photo, and “Save recordings” needs at least one recording that is on this device. Tapping the grayed-out item briefly shows what is missing.

On the “Export” tab, choose “Save PDF”. In five short steps, you choose the title, subtitle, cover image, dedication, and the style and text size; you can skip the subtitle, cover image and dedication. For the style there are “Simple” and “Warm”, and for the text size “Normal” and “Large”.

A title page, a dedication if you like, a table of contents, and then all answered questions with text and photos, arranged by areas and chapters. Spoken answers appear as text; the voice itself is not in the PDF. You can't leave out individual chapters, questions or photos.

Check whether the question is hidden, whether a recording has already been turned into text, and whether all photos have already arrived on this device. The PDF leaves out photos that are still missing on the device without any notice. The app downloads them as soon as you are online; then create the PDF again.

Whether the PDF needs an extra font depends on your app language and the characters in the story. Some fonts are already in the app; others are downloaded the first time they are needed. You need an internet connection for that download; after that, the font stays on the device. If the PDF cannot display some characters, save the story as a Word file.

Yes. The PDF is A4 portrait and can be printed like any PDF file, at home or at a print shop. For printing, the “Simple” style saves ink, because “Warm” colors the whole page. If you want to write the dedication by hand, check the box “Leave the page blank for a handwritten dedication” at the dedication step.

No. A file shows the state at the moment you create it. Just create it again after you add something; you choose the title, subtitle, cover image, dedication, style and text size again, because the app doesn't remember them.

The Word file is meant for further editing. It contains all the story's questions with answers and photos, including the unanswered ones, but no title page, dedication or page numbers.

You get a ZIP file, that is, a packed folder, with all the photos or original recordings of this story, sorted by areas and chapters. The app only creates it if all the files are already on this device; otherwise it tells you that something is still missing.

When the file is ready, the iPhone's sharing window opens. There you save it in the Files app or send it by AirDrop, email or message. If you close the window, just create the file again.

No. An exported file is an ordinary file and is no longer end-to-end encrypted. You decide where it goes. Nobody can take back a copy that has been sent.

No. An export contains only one story and only what you are allowed to see right now, and you can't load it back into the app. Your stories are already safely backed up, encrypted, with FamilyStories. For a new device, you sign in with your account, and if needed your recovery code helps; you don't need an export for that.

No. In the Free version, exports are locked. So create your files while your paid plan is still running. With a new plan, exporting works again right away.

Usually not. PDF, Word and ZIP files are created on your device, and nothing is uploaded. You only need internet if a font for the PDF has to be downloaded or if photos and recordings are still missing on the device.

Yes. The export contains everything in the story, including answers from the family and through the link, as well as custom and reworded questions. It doesn't say who wrote what. Hidden questions are left out.

It depends mostly on the number of photos, because everything is created on your device. Keep the app open until it's done. You can cancel the Word file and ZIP files with the X in the progress indicator.

You start for free, with no payment details. Premium, the Family plan and Lifetime cost money. Apple shows you the exact price in your currency on the Premium page of the app, because it depends on your country.

Free version: 1 story, 5 questions and 1 GB of storage.

Premium: 2 stories, all questions and 50 GB.

Family plan: 5 stories, all questions and 50 GB.

Lifetime: unlimited stories, all questions and 50 GB, paid once and with no subscription.

All questions instead of the first five, more stories, “Adjust questions”, the exports as PDF, Word, photos and recordings, and 50 GB of storage. Photos, speaking with transcription into text, and inviting your family also work in the Free version.

They are the first five questions of the first chapter. They count for the whole family circle, not per person. A skipped question, an answer with only a recording or photo, and answers through a personal link also use up one of the spots. You can keep changing questions that are already answered.

In the Free version, the first five questions of the first chapter are open. All other areas and chapters carry the “Premium” badge with a lock. Tapping it shows you what a paid plan unlocks.

You can still change questions that are already answered at any time.

Your plan has no room for another story. The Free version allows one, Premium two, the Family plan five and Lifetime as many as you like. With “See plans” you get to a bigger plan.

The number depends on the plan of the family circle you currently have open, not on your account.

Premium and the Family plan are yearly subscriptions: Apple charges you once a year. The monthly price in the app is only a guide. Extra storage is a monthly subscription, and you pay for Lifetime only once.

Premium and the Family plan start with 14 days free if Apple offers you the trial. It is available only once per Apple Account, for both plans together.

If you don't cancel with Apple at least 24 hours before it ends, it turns into a paid yearly subscription.

Yes. About two days before, the person who started the trial gets an email and, if notifications are allowed, a notification on their iPhone.

At the very top of Settings. It says “Free version” or, with a paid plan, “Premium”, and below that, how many stories there is room for.

If you tap the card or the button (“Get Premium” or “Premium active”), you see all the plans. Your plan is marked there as “Current plan”, and Lifetime as “Unlocked”.

No. Purchases only go through the App Store in the app on iPhone or iPad, not on the website. An Android version is planned.

FamilyStories does not receive your payment details, such as the card number. Apple handles the billing.

Yes, for exactly one family circle: all members of that circle share it. A subscription can only cover one family circle, though. If you are in several circles, each circle has its own plan.

Everyone in the family circle can see by name who pays for the plan. Any member may get a bigger plan, for example the Family plan instead of Premium; it applies to everyone right away. The previous subscription keeps running until it is canceled, and it steps in when the bigger one ends. The person who paid before is notified.

That is up to you. If you keep your subscription, it steps in if the new plan ever ends. If you cancel it, it stays active until the end of the paid period and then ends. Apple does not automatically refund amounts already paid.

Nothing is canceled automatically. You only receive this message if your subscription for the smaller plan is still active, and only once the larger plan has actually been paid for.

Yes, if the purchase upgrades your family circle's plan, that is, with Premium, the Family plan or Lifetime. Starting a free trial counts too.

All the other members then see a notice once in the app and get an email and, if notifications are allowed, a notification. There is no notice for extra storage, and nobody has to do or pay anything.

Their subscription keeps running until they cancel it with Apple, and the plan stays with the family circle until then. If the circle itself is deleted, the plan ends there too, but the subscription with Apple does not.

On the Premium page, tap the other plan. The button at the bottom then says “Change plan”.

You switch to the bigger plan right away: Apple charges the full yearly price and refunds the unused time of your paid subscription. During the trial, there is nothing to refund. You switch to the smaller plan at the next renewal.

This applies to your own subscription. If another member pays, you can only get a bigger plan.

“Lifetime” is a one-time payment with no subscription: nothing renews, and there is no recurring fee. You get unlimited stories, all questions and 50 GB for your family circle, for as long as we run the service.

If you already pay for a yearly subscription for this circle, it gets cheaper: you pay the price minus your yearly subscription, except during the trial. You then cancel your yearly subscription yourself with Apple.

A plan is grayed out if someone in your family already pays for a plan of the same size or a bigger one for your circle; the line below it names the person. You can still get bigger plans. If your subscription belongs to a different family circle, that is shown there too.

“Lifetime” is locked as long as a yearly subscription is running on your Apple Account, for example in the free trial or for a different family circle. A canceled subscription also keeps running until the end of the paid period. If you already pay for Premium or the Family plan for this circle, on the other hand, Lifetime costs you less.

You cancel subscriptions with Apple: on your iPhone, open Settings, tap your name at the top, and then tap Subscriptions. In the app, “Manage subscriptions” on the Premium page takes you there.

Cancel at least 24 hours before the end of the period, otherwise the subscription renews. Deleting the app or your account does not cancel it, and only the person who pays can cancel. Your plan runs until the end of the paid period.

After the paid period, the family circle goes back to the Free version. For now, nothing is deleted.

But new stories and answers beyond the limits of the Free version are then no longer possible, only the first five questions stay open, and the exports are locked. With a new plan, everything is back.

At first, nothing: your plan keeps running while Apple tries the payment again. Only when Apple really ends the subscription does your family circle fall back to the Free version. Nothing is deleted.

You check your payment details with Apple, in your iPhone's Settings under your name.

All purchases go through Apple, so you request a refund from Apple. Apple decides according to its own rules, and your legal rights are not affected. If a purchase is refunded, the plan it paid for ends.

No, and you don't need it. A plan applies to all members of your family circle in FamilyStories anyway, whether or not they belong to your family at Apple.

There is no feature for that in the app today. But a plan you buy always applies to everyone in your family circle.

The app checks whether your Apple Account already has a purchase of FamilyStories and connects it to your family circle again. Nothing is bought again and nothing is charged twice. On a new iPhone you usually don't need this, because the plan belongs to the family circle. The button is at the bottom of the Premium page.

Your subscription with Apple keeps running until you cancel it. If your old family circle still exists, the plan still applies there; with the new account, you need a new invitation.

If the old circle has been permanently deleted, tap “Restore purchases” at the bottom of the Premium page. If the app asks, confirm with “Transfer purchases”; your running subscription then applies once to your new circle of your own. Deleted content doesn't come back.

Please don't buy again. Open the Premium page: if the button at the bottom says “Check status”, tap it; if it says “Restore”, tap that. Nothing is bought again by doing so.

If the notice “Purchase awaiting approval” appeared, someone such as a parent still has to approve the purchase with Apple. After that, the plan becomes active by itself.

If that doesn't help, tap “Restore purchases” at the bottom or write to us through “Give feedback”.

The Free version has 1 GB, and every paid plan has 50 GB, shared by all members. Only photos, pictures and voice recordings take up storage; text hardly counts. You can see how much is used in Settings under “Manage storage”.

Yes, with a paid plan under “Manage storage”: +50 GB, +100 GB or +400 GB as a monthly subscription. The packages replace each other; they don't add up.

Any member may add storage. If someone in the family already pays for a package, you can only add a bigger one.

As a rule of thumb, +50 GB is enough for about 10,000 more photos, +100 GB for about 20,000 and +400 GB for about 80,000. The app marks the size it recommends for you.

A bigger package applies right away, a smaller one from the next renewal; you choose both under “Manage storage”. You cancel with Apple via “Manage subscription”. Only the person who pays for the storage can change and cancel it.

Under “Manage storage”, you see “Cloud storage is filling up” from 80 percent. From 90 percent, the card “Cloud storage almost full” appears on the Home screen, and from 100 percent “Cloud storage is full”.

Add storage in good time so that new photos and recordings still have room.

Then the app shows “Cloud storage is full”. New photos and recordings stay safe on your device, but they are not yet backed up for your family, so don't delete the app.

You get more room with extra storage under “Manage storage” (for that, you need a paid plan) or by deleting photos and recordings. As soon as there is room again, the backup continues by itself. Until then, nobody can send anything new through a personal link.

“Your phone is full” only affects your device: free up some space there, and it carries on by itself. Under “Manage storage”, you can also use “Remove from device” for a speech model; your stories are kept. “Cloud storage is full” affects your family's shared storage.

A photo can be up to 20 MB, and a recording up to 60 minutes long. The app doesn't accept larger photos.

Right now, FamilyStories doesn't delete anything automatically, not even in the Free version.

The plan is to delete a free family circle only after a very long time without use, after twelve months at the earliest. If someone in the family deliberately opens the circle again in the app, the period starts over. Before that, we will warn you in good time so you can decide in peace.

They are kept. But new photos and recordings are only backed up again when enough space is free or you have a plan again. Right now, FamilyStories doesn't delete anything automatically.

If your extra storage keeps running, your family circle keeps its full size until that ends too; all other features fall back to the Free version. In total, you have 100 GB with +50 GB, 150 GB with +100 GB and 450 GB with +400 GB.

If the extra storage ends too, you are left with 50 GB with a paid plan and 1 GB without one. Nothing is deleted.

Your answers, recordings, photos and the family tree are encrypted on your device before they go onto the internet. Only your family's devices have the keys. That's why nobody at FamilyStories can read, listen to or look at your stories.

You do. Each person keeps the rights to what they tell, write or upload. FamilyStories only gets the technical rights needed to store and transmit everything for you.

No. There are no ads and no advertising profiles, we don't sell data, and neither your content nor any other data is used to train our own or anyone else's AI models.

Only what is needed to run the service: your email address, your name, a date of birth if you chose to give one, your memberships with their permissions, purchase data, and technical details such as device and app version. In addition, there are email reminders with the recipient's address, schedule and personal message, as well as everything you send us through “Give feedback”.

Stories, photos and recordings are not part of it.

To send it, we have to be able to read the recipient's address, the schedule and the personal message. The address and message are stored encrypted on our server, but not end-to-end encrypted. The email itself contains neither the story, nor any answers, nor the personal link.

The address and message are deleted when email is removed from the reminder entirely, or when the story, the circle or the account is deleted. If you want it sooner, ask us at support@familystories.love.

The central data storage of FamilyStories is in the EU. The database is in Frankfurt, and end-to-end encrypted photos and voice recordings are kept in EU-restricted cloud storage.

For email, notifications, purchases and sign-in, we use service providers that may also process the data needed for this, such as your email address, outside the EU. The privacy policy lists which ones they are.

We only hand personal data over to authorities if we are legally required to. We can't hand over your stories, photos and recordings in readable form, because we don't have their keys.

Not permanently. When the app or the browser talks to our servers, the IP address is processed briefly in order to answer the request. To protect against misuse, such as many sign-in attempts, we count requests only with a check value of the address that can't be reversed, and only for a short time.

You'll find more detail in the privacy policy.

Notifications on the lock screen are short alerts without questions, answers or any other content from your stories. Emails never contain content from your stories either.

Only ones you need for your account: the sign-in code, a welcome message once, a confirmation after your feedback, reminders that someone has set up, notices about your plan and the trial, and about account or circle deletions. We don't send advertising. There is no notification for new answers from your family today.

Our emails come from support@familystories.love, and their links only lead to familystories.love or into the app. They never contain your stories, answers, photos or a story's personal link. You only enter your sign-in code in the app.

A sender can be faked. If you're unsure, don't tap any link and open the app directly instead.

Yes, purely technical error reports, so that we can find problems. They contain no answers, recordings, photos, names or email addresses, only an ID that doesn't include your name, plus device, language and app version.

When “Include the technical log” is switched on, short technical entries from the last few days are sent along, such as error codes, screen names and versions. Content from your stories is never included. You can switch it off before sending.

You have the right to access, correction, deletion, restriction, data portability, objection and withdrawal of consent. You can also complain to a data protection supervisory authority. Write to us about it at support@familystories.love; no special format is needed, and it's best to write from your account's email address.

We can't read your encrypted stories for you. You view, change and delete them directly in the app. Everything else is in the privacy policy.

Your stories are end-to-end encrypted, so we can't export them for you. You export them yourself in the app, as a PDF, a Word file, photos and recordings, with a paid plan.

For data that FamilyStories itself can read, such as your account and reminder data, an informal email to support@familystories.love is enough, ideally from your account's address.

As long as you use your account. You can delete it in the app immediately or with a 30-day grace period; then the account, sign-in details and personal keys are removed. Your contributions in existing family circles are kept without your name.

If you own a family circle, it passes to another admin. If there is none, the circle is deleted with all its content.

Right now, FamilyStories doesn't delete any content automatically because of inactivity or the end of a plan. A minimal proof of purchase is kept.

The recovery code is your personal emergency key: with it, you open your family circle on a new device if it doesn't open by itself. You'll find it in Settings under “Recovery code”. Whoever started the circle already has it; members create it there with “Create code”. Write it on paper and keep it somewhere safe.

The red 1 reminds you to keep your recovery code safe. In Settings, open “Recovery code”, write the code down and tap “I've kept it somewhere safe”. Then the 1 goes away, on your other devices too.

No. As soon as you tap “Create new code”, the old one is no longer valid. Write down the new one and destroy old slips of paper so you don't mix them up.

If your family circle is still open on one of your devices, you'll find the code there under “Recovery code”, or you can create a new one. Otherwise, a family member who is allowed to invite can send you the current family code.

With the family code, new people join your family circle, and you can also use it to open your circle on a new device. It belongs to the whole circle, is valid for 14 days and is then renewed; admins and members with “Can invite” may pass it on.

The recovery code belongs only to you and opens your circle on a new device. You give the family code only to people you trust, and the recovery code ideally to no one.

Sign in with the same account. If iCloud Keychain is switched on for your iPhone, your family circle often opens by itself. Otherwise, enter your recovery code or tap “Open with Family Code” and enter a current family code.

If iCloud Keychain is switched on for your iPhone, the app also stores your family circle's key and your recovery code there. Apple encrypts the keychain. On a new device with the same Apple Account, your family circle then often opens without a code.

You don't have to turn it on, and don't rely on it alone: the recovery code remains the safe way. If you delete your account, the app also removes this copy.

Yes. Sign in with the same account on each device. You open every additional device once, like a new one, and after that the devices sync with each other by themselves.

You are a member, but this device doesn't have the key for the family circle yet. Tap the circle, choose “Recovery code” and enter your recovery code, or open it with a current family code.

Your stories are backed up encrypted and aren't lost with the iPhone, as long as they were synced beforehand. You can't sign out or lock the device remotely in FamilyStories. A lock with “PIN & Face ID” protects the app, and with Apple's features you can lock a lost iPhone.

If iCloud Keychain is switched on, your family circle often opens by itself on a new device. Otherwise, a family member who is allowed to invite can send you a current family code; with it, you open the circle again.

If that isn't possible either, nobody can open the encrypted content, not even FamilyStories, because we don't have the keys.

You are probably signed in with a different account, for example with a different email address. Under “Profile”, “Sign-in” shows what you are signed in with. Sign out and sign in again with the right account.

Almost everything you do on your own: write and speak answers, add photos and read stories. If the speech model is already downloaded, you can also turn recordings into text. Everything is backed up as soon as you are back online.

You need internet for everything that involves other people or purchases, for example inviting, changing permissions, buying a plan or storage, and deleting your account. Photos and recordings from your family that are not on your device yet also only arrive with internet.

“Offline right now” means your iPhone has no internet at the moment, and “Waiting for internet...” appears on photos and recordings that are still waiting. Normally nothing is lost: the app saves your changes on the device and backs them up by itself as soon as you are back online and the app is open.

Only if your permission to edit was removed in the meantime, or the story was deleted, can something no longer be sent. The app then shows you this under “Changes not applied”.

It shows how the backup is going. “Everything saved in your family circle” means the app has nothing left to send or sync right now. Tapping it, or “Last sync” in Settings, shows more.

“Last sync” gives the time when everything was last fully in sync. If photos or recordings are waiting for storage space, the line still stays the same, and the Home screen explains this with a notice and a card of its own.

It shows that your changes are still on their way to your family. The ring fills up, and when everything has arrived, a check mark appears and the tab disappears again. Tapping it shows how many changes have already reached your family.

Without internet, it shows a crossed-out cloud. Your changes are then saved safely on your phone and go to your family, encrypted, as soon as you are back online.

“A photo is no longer available” means: the file is no longer in your family's storage and can't be loaded anymore. If it came through a personal link, the person may be able to send it again. With “Hide”, the notice disappears for everyone.

“One item needs a look” is not an alarm: an item can't be opened on this device at the moment, and the app keeps trying by itself.

Yes. FamilyStories only syncs while the app is open, not in the background. After telling a story, leave it open for a moment until photos and recordings are backed up. Otherwise, it simply continues the next time you open it.

Usually after a few seconds, if you both have the app open. Otherwise, your family sees the changes the next time they open the app.

Pull the Home screen down with your finger. Or tap the backup line and then “Check now” or “Sync now”. This doesn't work without internet.

Usually this isn't necessary at all: as long as the app is open, new answers arrive by themselves after a few seconds.

Photos and recordings from your family are first downloaded to your device. Until then, you see a blurry placeholder with “Downloading...”. With “Waiting for internet...”, it continues as soon as you are online, and with “Waiting for storage space...”, your device is full.

Leave the app open, and it downloads everything by itself.

For text, the app tells the person who saves later that the answer has changed in the meantime and asks which version should count. They choose “Send my version” or accept the other one. For photos and recordings, the most recently saved change counts.

Someone in your family, or you yourself on another device, has just changed or deleted the answer. If it was changed, you see the new version right away; if it was deleted, the answer is no longer visible. Tap “Got it” to keep reading.

It's the date the answer was last actually changed. It doesn't say who changed it. Saving without a change doesn't change the date.

Yes, if you have already used the app and it was online once in the last 30 days. After a reinstall, a sign-out or a longer break, it needs internet once.

Not for syncing: even with an older version, no answers are lost. Still, keep the app up to date so you get new features and improvements.

Your stories are safe. Restarting the app usually helps. If your iPhone is very full, free up some space. If that doesn't help, write to us through “Give feedback”.

“Not available right now”: So that your family circle can be opened safely, the app briefly needs internet at startup. Check your connection and tap “Try again”. Your data on the device stays protected.

“Your stories need a moment”: The app can't open the saved content at the moment and tries again by itself. If your device is very full, free up some space. If the message stays after restarting the app, write to us at support@familystories.love.

There is no password. You choose “Continue with Apple”, “Continue with Google” or “Continue with email”; with email, you get a 6-digit code. Your account is created automatically the first time you sign in.

Check that the email address is spelled correctly, and look in your spam folder. The code is valid for 30 minutes; if you requested several, the newest one counts. After a short wait, you can tap “Send code again”.

The sign-in email contains a 6-digit code that is valid for 30 minutes. Below it is a button that opens FamilyStories and signs you in directly. If the button doesn't work, open the app yourself and enter the code; the code always works.

Someone requested a sign-in with your email address, perhaps by mistake. If you didn't do it yourself, you can simply ignore the email. Never pass the code on.

If you think someone else has access to your account, write to us right away at support@familystories.love.

Your account is tied to your email address. If you sign in with a different address, a new, empty account is created.

That also happens if you now sign in with Apple using a hidden email address but were signed in differently before. Under “Profile”, “Sign-in” shows what you are currently signed in with. Sign out and sign in again the way you did before.

Not in the app so far. Keep signing in with your current address, because a new one creates a new, empty account. If you can no longer reach the old address, write to us.

In Settings, open “Profile” and tap “Sign out” in the “Sign-in” box. This only applies to this device. Your stories stay safely stored and are locked here until you sign in again.

This happens when you no longer have access to a family circle on this device, for example because you were removed from your only circle. Your account remains; you can join again with a new family code.

On the Home screen, tap the icon with two small switches in the top right. There you'll find your picture, your plan, “Profile”, “Family circles”, “Notifications”, the switch for vibrations, “PIN & Face ID”, “Language”, “Last sync”, “Manage storage”, “Frequently asked questions”, “Tips and help”, “About FamilyStories”, “Give feedback”, “Version” and “Recovery code”.

In Settings, open “Profile”, change “Profile name” or “Date of birth”, and tap “Save changes”. A year alone, or a month and a year, is enough as a date of birth.

No, it is optional, and even just a year is enough. Nobody else sees your date of birth in the member list.

If you are linked to a person in the family tree, though, it also appears with that person, and all members of your family circle see the family tree. FamilyStories stores it so that the app can show it to you.

Tap your picture at the very top of Settings. Under “Your picture”, you can upload a photo, design an avatar, choose a frame, or remove your picture.

FamilyStories is available in many languages, including German, English, French, Spanish, Portuguese and Italian. You can see the whole list in Settings under “Language”; that's also where you switch.

The app language determines the language in which the app and the preset questions are shown to you. Answers and questions you wrote yourself are not translated.

The “Speaking language” only sets which language you speak, so that the transcription into text is right. So you can read in English and tell your story in Italian.

In Settings, open “PIN & Face ID” and first set a 4-digit PIN. After that, you choose what unlocks the app: “Face ID”, “PIN code” or “Off”. With Face ID, Apple's own prompt alone unlocks the app.

The lock only applies to this device and protects against prying eyes.

Every time it starts, and whenever the app was in the background, for example after switching to another app or locking the iPhone. For short interruptions such as Control Center, you don't have to unlock again, but the app covers the content right away.

That's why your iPhone's app switcher doesn't show any stories either. After three wrong PIN entries, the app offers “Forgot your PIN?”.

After three wrong entries, “Forgot your PIN?” appears. With “Reset and sign out”, you are signed out and sign in again; after that, the PIN lock is off. Your stories are kept. You need internet for this.

The “Notifications” switch in Settings follows your iPhone's setting; to turn it off, it opens the iPhone's Settings. There are notifications for reminders about open questions, when someone buys a plan for the family, before a trial ends, and for deletions of an account or family circle. There is no notification for new answers today.

Yes, both in Settings: vibrations with the vibration switch, and the app's sounds with the sounds switch. Music you turn on at the edge of the screen keeps playing even when sounds are off. While sounds are on, they follow your iPhone's silent switch.

There is no dark mode yet. The text gets bigger when you increase the text size in your iPhone's Settings under Display & Brightness.

FamilyStories only asks when you use a feature for the first time: the microphone for telling stories, photos for saving to your photo library, notifications for reminders, and Face ID for unlocking. You can change each permission at any time in your iPhone's Settings under FamilyStories.

The introductions only appear once. You'll find everything they show, step by step, in Settings under “Tips and help”.

In Settings, open “Profile” and tap “Delete account” at the very bottom. If you own a family circle, the app first shows you what will happen to it. Then you choose “Delete after 30 days” or “Delete immediately”; “Delete immediately” can't be undone.

With the account, the usual reason is that a deletion is scheduled for a family circle that you own. Cancel it under “Family circles” or wait until it is finished; after that, it works.

When leaving, this applies: if you are the only member, you leave the circle by deleting it. If you are the owner and there is no other admin, first make someone an admin. To delete, the circle has to be open on this device.

Yes, if you chose “Delete after 30 days”. Sign in again before the date and tap “Cancel deletion”, and everything is kept. You get a confirmation by email.

Your account, your sign-in details, your keys, your profile picture, your feedback and all FamilyStories data on the device are deleted. Your contributions in family circles that continue to exist are kept, but they are no longer linked to your account.

A family circle that you own and that has no other admin is deleted with your account, for everyone. So make another member an admin first.

In addition, a small record of the deletion and purchases is kept, without email address, name or content, so that later purchases are assigned correctly. Your subscription with Apple keeps running until you cancel it there.

No. Neither deleting your account nor deleting the app cancels a subscription with Apple, not even a running trial. Cancel it yourself in your iPhone's Settings under Subscriptions. If the app detects a running subscription, it points this out during deletion.

In Settings under “Tips and help”, we explain step by step how FamilyStories works, separately for collecting and for telling stories. Here in the frequently asked questions, you'll find short answers. Both are also on our website.

In Settings, tap “Give feedback”, choose a topic and write to us. You get a confirmation of receipt by email. We read every message ourselves and get back to you within 48 hours if there is something to reply to. You can also simply reply to our emails.

Your message is not end-to-end encrypted, so don't put anything very private in it. You can also write to us at support@familystories.love.

After a while, FamilyStories asks once how you like the app. With “I like it”, Apple's rating screen opens, and after that we never ask again. “Give feedback” opens the form for your feedback; the X only closes it.

The question comes at most twice and never while you are writing or recording.

There we tell you why FamilyStories exists and what comes next, and you'll find the legal notice, privacy policy and terms of use. At the very bottom is your app's version.

The app noticed that a step is stuck and has already reported this to us, without any content. With “Send report”, “Give feedback” opens, where you can tell us more about it; the technical log contains no answers, recordings, photos or names. With “Not now”, it simply continues.