Secret Letter guide
A Privnote Alternative for Personal Letters You Can Read Again
Secret Letter is a Privnote alternative for a personal message that should open on a chosen future date and remain available to revisit. Privnote is built around encrypted notes and deletion. Choose according to whether your message needs a future opening, an expiration, or a one-time read.
Privnote vs Secret Letter at a glance
Both workflows produce a link you share yourself. The important decision is what happens when someone opens it and what protection the message requires.
| Question | Privnote | Secret Letter |
|---|---|---|
| Main purpose | Encrypted notes with deletion controls | Personal letters with a future reveal time |
| When can the text be read? | When the recipient opens the note | At or after the chosen reveal date and time |
| What happens after reading? | Default: deletion after the first read; timed-removal options allow repeat access before deletion | Reading does not delete the letter |
| Can I add a password? | Manual password option | No password setting or recipient verification |
| Protection model | Browser-side encryption described in official documentation | Private-by-link; content is stored by the service |
| How is the link delivered? | You copy and share it | You copy and share it |
Secret Letter is not end-to-end encrypted and has no burn-after-reading feature. It is a fit for low-risk personal writing when the opening date and later rereading matter.
Privnote already has more than a one-time-read option
Privnote's official note form includes a manual password, expiration settings, and an optional destruction notification. Check these options before deciding whether you need a different workflow.
Its FAQ explains that choosing a removal interval permits multiple reads before deletion. Repeat reading alone is therefore not a reason to switch. The FAQ also says unread notes are removed after 30 days.
Check the selected deletion mode before sharing a note. Opening a default one-time note yourself can consume the read you intended for the recipient.
A future reveal date does a different job from expiration
Expiration determines when a message stops being available. A reveal date determines when its contents first become available. Those two clocks solve different problems.
For example, suppose you write a letter in October for a friend's January birthday. With Secret Letter, you can create and share the link in October while the body stays closed until the January date and time you selected. Reading it on the birthday does not trigger deletion, so your friend can return to the same letter afterward.
Secret Letter has no automatic destruction timer. It also makes no promise of permanent hosting. Keep a separate copy of anything you want to preserve over the long term, and avoid relying on a future letter for information someone must receive at a guaranteed moment.
For the full link-and-reveal workflow, see scheduled online letters. The link is created immediately; you remain responsible for saving and sharing it.
When Secret Letter fits a personal message
Consider it when the message is a keepsake with a meaningful opening date. The reader gets a letter page, and the message can be revisited through its URL after it unlocks.
- A birthday letter you write before the day arrives.
- An anniversary message you both want to reread.
- A friendship letter timed for a reunion or milestone.
- A future-self note that records this stage of your life.
A reveal date restricts when the text appears. It does not restrict access to one named person: anyone with the URL may be able to read the letter once it unlocks.
When you should keep an encrypted-note workflow
If deletion after reading, a password, or browser-side encryption is a requirement, those needs should decide the tool. Secret Letter does not provide those controls. Do not move passwords, account recovery information, confidential records, or other high-risk secrets into a personal letter link.
Privnote's privacy policy describes encrypted storage and a decryption key associated with the link. These are the service's published claims; this comparison is not an independent security audit.
If you are evaluating an open-source paste workflow, PrivateBin's official documentation describes browser-side encryption and optional password, expiration, and burn-after-reading settings. Availability depends on the instance, and you still need to trust its operator and the code served to your browser.
Deletion also cannot take back a screenshot or text the recipient has already copied. Decide whether the content is appropriate to share before choosing its removal settings.
How to create a future-opening letter link
Write the letter in a draft you can keep. Remove anything you would not be comfortable exposing if the URL were forwarded. Then open the Secret Letter composer and paste the version you want the recipient to read.
- Add the sender and recipient names you want displayed; names are optional.
- Choose a future reveal date and time that makes sense for the reader.
- Adjust the available font and paper styling, then create the link.
- Copy the URL into a private message or save it with your own calendar reminder.
- Tell the recipient when it opens and keep a separate copy of the original text.
Secret Letter is free and requires no account. It provides no automatic delivery, reminder, read receipt, or personal dashboard for managing letters.
If you already created a Privnote
There is no direct import between the services. If you still have your original draft and decide that a future-opening keepsake is the better fit, use that draft to create a separate letter. You will receive a new URL with a different access model.
Take care before opening an existing one-time note just to copy it. Reading can delete that note, and a destroyed note cannot be restored through its old link. Creating a Secret Letter does not change or disable a Privnote you previously shared.
Tell the recipient which link you now want them to use. Reconsider any sensitive material before copying it into a service with different protection and retention behavior.
Choose the opening and deletion behavior you need
For a personal letter that opens later and can be revisited, Secret Letter offers a focused workflow. For an encrypted note with a password or removal settings, compare tools that provide those protections. The right choice follows the message's purpose and the risk of someone else obtaining its link.
If your starting point is publishing to an audience rather than sending one note, the Privatter alternatives comparison covers that separate set of needs. For terminology, read private links and encrypted letters.
Frequently asked questions
What is a Privnote alternative for a letter I want to keep?
Secret Letter can create a personal letter that opens at a chosen future time and is not deleted when read. Save your own copy too, since continued access depends on the service remaining available. It does not provide Privnote's encryption or deletion controls.
Can a Privnote be read more than once?
The default one-time note is deleted after reading. Privnote's FAQ says a timed-removal option permits multiple reads before the selected deletion interval ends.
Does Secret Letter automatically send the letter later?
No. You receive the URL when you create the letter and save or share it yourself. The reveal date controls when the body becomes readable, not when a message is delivered.
Can I use Secret Letter for passwords or confidential notes?
Do not use it for high-risk secrets. Secret Letter is private-by-link, with no end-to-end encryption, password setting, or recipient verification. Choose a protection model that matches the sensitivity of the information.
Related guides
Sources reviewed
This comparison was checked against the official pages below on October 2, 2026. Privnote's published privacy policy is dated May 25, 2018. Product documentation can change; the review did not include an independent security audit.