The Tale of Two Family Memory Products: My Honest Experience with Storyworth vs. Remento
- Naomi Griffin
- Oct 5, 2024
- 13 min read
Updated: Mar 28
Last Christmas, I found myself in that familiar dilemma—what do you get for parents who insist they "don't need anything"? My mom and dad, both in their early 70s, have amazing life stories that I've always wanted to preserve, not just for myself but for my kids and eventual grandkids. After some research, I decided to try an experiment: I gifted Storyworth to my dad and Remento to my mom, hoping to capture their memories in a meaningful way.
Now, nearly a year later, I have two very different products and two very different experiences to share. While both services aim to preserve family memories, the journey and results were dramatically different. If you're considering either service for a loved one (or yourself), here's my candid breakdown after watching both play out in real-time with my own parents.
The Research Phase: What Drew Me to Each Product
Storyworth: The Established Player
Storyworth was the first product I came across in my search. It's been around forever—I've heard their radio and TV commercials countless times over the years. The premise was simple: each week, my dad would receive an email with a question about his life. He would write his response, which would eventually be compiled into a printed book.
The cost was straightforward—$99 for a year of questions and one hardcover book. What appealed to me was the simplicity of the concept and the fact that many reviewers mentioned how much their parents enjoyed the writing process.
Remento: The Innovative Newcomer
I discovered Remento through an article comparing it to Storyworth. What immediately caught my attention was the "no writing required" approach. Instead of typing out responses, storytellers could simply record their answers, and Remento would transform those recordings into written stories.
The price point was identical to Storyworth—$99 for a year of prompts and one hardcover book. But Remento offered something unique: QR codes in the book that linked to the original recordings, meaning future generations could not only read my dad's stories but actually hear them in his voice.
I was really excited to read the reviews on Trustpilot and loved seeing all the great testimonials on their website too. The consistent praise for their approach to capturing family stories gave me confidence in my choice.
The Setup Process: Getting Started
Storyworth: Simple But Impersonal
Setting up Storyworth was straightforward. I purchased the subscription, entered my dad's email, selected a delivery date, and chose some initial questions. The interface was clean and easy to navigate.
However, I noticed the first limitation immediately: the question bank, while extensive, felt somewhat generic. I could add custom questions, but the provided ones often seemed like they came from a standardized list that could apply to anyone.
The gift notification was sent to my dad via email. It was functional but rather plain—just text explaining what Storyworth was and how to get started. There was no option to customize the gift message much beyond a basic note, which felt impersonal for what was supposed to be a heartfelt gift.
Remento: Thoughtful Onboarding
Remento's setup process was more involved, but in a good way. After purchasing, I was guided through a series of steps to customize the experience for my mom. I could select prompts from their question bank, but I immediately noticed these prompts felt more thoughtfully crafted than Storyworth's. They were designed to elicit meaningful stories rather than just facts.
What really stood out was the gift delivery. Remento allowed me to customize a gift message and even provided a printable gift card with a QR code that explained how the service worked. This was perfect since I was seeing my mom in person for Christmas, and I wanted something tangible to give her rather than just saying, "Check your email."
The User Experience: How My Parents Responded
Storyworth: A Writing Chore
My dad is reasonably tech-savvy and enjoys writing, so I thought Storyworth would be perfect for him. The reality was more complicated. While he appreciated the concept, the execution became problematic.
Each week, he'd receive an email with a new question. To answer, he needed to click a link, which took him to a browser-based editor where he could type his response. This sounds simple enough, but it presented several challenges:
The writing barrier: Even though my dad enjoys writing, sitting down to type out lengthy responses became a chore. Some weeks, the questions required significant reflection and writing, which felt like homework rather than enjoyment.
Technical frustrations: On several occasions, he reported losing work when his browser crashed or when he accidentally navigated away from the page. This was incredibly frustrating and demotivating.
Login issues: After the initial setup, Storyworth required him to log in to view previous responses or edit current ones. My dad frequently forgot his password, leading to reset emails and frustration.
Limited formatting options: The editor was basic, offering minimal formatting options. He wanted to organize his thoughts with bullet points and subheadings, but the tools were limited.
By month three, the weekly emails had become a source of guilt rather than joy. He was falling behind on responses, and the backlog of unanswered questions was growing. Despite my gentle reminders, it was clear that the process had become a burden.
Remento: Conversation, Not Composition
My mom, on the other hand, had a completely different experience with Remento. She's less tech-savvy than my dad and definitely not a writer, so I was initially concerned about how she'd adapt. Those concerns quickly evaporated.
Each week, she'd receive both a text message and email with a new prompt. I absolutely loved that Remento would text the storyteller rather than just email, which often got overlooked in my mom's crowded inbox. The text notifications made a huge difference in her engagement.
All she had to do was click the link and record her response. I was honestly skeptical that she could manage it herself, but the interface was incredibly simple: a big record button and clear instructions. This "no technical barrier" approach proved to be game-changing for someone like my mom who gets frustrated with complicated technology. And she loved that there weren't any downloads to manage or passwords to remember.
What happened next surprised me:
Natural storytelling: Rather than composing written responses, my mom could simply talk, which played to her strengths. She's always been a great storyteller in conversation, and Remento captured that natural quality.
No technical barriers: There was nothing to download and no passwords to remember. Even when she switched from her computer to her phone halfway through the year, the process remained seamless.
Immediate sharing: After each recording, I'd receive a notification that a new story was available. I could listen immediately and send her a reaction, which she loved. This created a virtuous cycle of engagement that kept her motivated.
Speech-to-Story technology: Perhaps most impressively, Remento automatically transformed her spoken words into written text. We could choose between a polished narrative or a more direct transcript. This "no writing required" approach eliminated the biggest barrier to participation.
By month three, my mom was not just keeping up with the weekly prompts—she was looking forward to them. She even started sending me suggestions for future questions and photos she wanted to talk about.
The Collaborative Experience: Family Involvement
Storyworth: Limited Collaboration
Storyworth does allow family members to contribute questions and view responses, but the collaborative features felt limited. I could suggest questions for my dad, but there was no easy way to engage with his responses beyond reading them.
I also found it frustrating that I couldn't easily check his progress without asking him directly, which sometimes felt like nagging. "Have you answered this week's question?" became a recurring conversation that neither of us enjoyed.
The lack of immediate sharing also meant that family discussions around his memories happened less organically. By the time I read a response (if I remembered to check), the moment for conversation around that memory had often passed.
Remento: A True Family Hub
Remento shined brightest as a collaborative platform. I could invite family members to join the project, and everyone could contribute in different ways:
Collaborative prompts: My siblings and I could suggest questions or upload photos for my mom to discuss. We even used their "polling" feature to vote on which stories we wanted to hear next.
Immediate reactions: After each recording, we could send reactions and comments directly through the platform. My mom loved seeing these pop up, and it encouraged her to share more.
Photo integration: We could upload photos for my mom to discuss, creating a "narrated photo album" aspect that was completely missing from Storyworth. Old family photos became gateways to stories we'd never heard before.
Progress visibility: I could easily see which prompts had been answered and which were still pending, making it simple to gently nudge my mom when needed (though she rarely needed nudging).
What truly surprised me was how engaged my teenage kids became with the project. I honestly didn't expect them to be interested in learning about their grandmother's life, but they were absolutely fascinated. They started asking her questions about her childhood, her first job, and what technology was like "back then." My 16-year-old pointed out that these short-form personal stories weren't all that different from the content they consume on TikTok—authentic glimpses into other people's lives and experiences. And my 8 year old loved learning these stories too.
The ability for anyone in the family to suggest questions created this wonderful multi-generational conversation that simply wouldn't have happened otherwise. My son even created a prompt about my mom's first car that led to a hilarious story none of us had ever heard before.
The Content Quality: Depth and Authenticity
Storyworth: Polished But Sometimes Sterile
When my dad did complete his Storyworth entries, they were typically well-written. As someone who enjoys writing, he took time to craft thoughtful responses, edit them for clarity, and organize his thoughts.
However, I noticed something interesting: his written responses often lacked the spontaneity and emotion that came through when he told the same stories in person. The act of writing seemed to push him toward a more formal, almost academic style. Personal anecdotes became more like historical accounts—accurate but sometimes missing the personality that makes his storytelling so engaging.
Additionally, because writing was such an effort, he often chose to answer the simpler questions and postpone the more complex ones that might have yielded richer stories.
Remento: Authentic Voice Preserved
My mom's Remento stories had a completely different quality. Because she was speaking rather than writing, her natural voice—complete with her characteristic humor, tangents, and emotional reactions—came through vividly.
The Speech-to-Story technology was remarkably effective at capturing her speaking style while removing the "ums" and false starts that might have made a raw transcript difficult to read. The result was written content that actually sounded like her, preserving not just the facts of her memories but the way she tells stories.
Most surprisingly, the recorded format encouraged depth. My mom would often start with a simple answer to the prompt but then expand with details and connected memories that I doubt she would have included if she'd had to write everything down. One question about her first job spiraled into a 15-minute exploration of the entire neighborhood where she grew up, complete with characters and anecdotes I'd never heard before.
The Final Product: Book Quality and Features
Storyworth: Serviceable But Basic
After a year, we received my dad's Storyworth book. The physical quality was decent—a hardcover book with a simple design and adequate paper quality. The layout was clean but very basic, with minimal design elements.
The content itself was incomplete. Because my dad had fallen behind on many questions, the book contained only about 60% of the intended content. Storyworth did allow us to edit and rearrange content before printing, but the interface for doing so was clunky and limited.
The biggest disappointment was the static nature of the final product. Once printed, the book was just a book—a physical repository of written memories with no connection to the digital content or my dad's actual voice.
Remento: A Multi-Dimensional Keepsake
My mom's Remento book, by contrast, felt like a next-generation memory product. The physical quality was noticeably superior, with better paper, color printing, and more thoughtful design elements.
The content was comprehensive because my mom had kept up with the weekly prompts. But what truly set the Remento book apart were the QR codes included with each story. Scanning these codes with a smartphone immediately played the original recording of my mom telling that story.
This feature transformed the book from a static object to a gateway to a more immersive experience. Hearing my mom's voice—her laugh, her characteristic pauses, the emotion in her tone when discussing her parents—added a dimension that no written content could capture.
The book also included all the photos we had uploaded throughout the year, integrated meaningfully with the stories rather than just tacked on as illustrations.
The Value Proposition: Was It Worth It?
Storyworth: Incomplete Value
For $99, Storyworth delivered a partial collection of my dad's memories in book form. The incomplete nature of the project left me feeling that we hadn't fully realized the value of the service.
The biggest cost, however, wasn't financial but emotional. What was intended as a gift became, in some ways, a burden for my dad. The obligation to write weekly responses created stress rather than joy, which was the opposite of my intention.
That said, the memories we did capture are valuable, and I'm glad to have them. I just wish the process had been more enjoyable and the completion rate higher.
Remento: Exceeding Expectations
Remento also cost $99, but the value delivered felt significantly higher. We received:
A complete collection of my mom's responses to a year of prompts
A higher-quality physical book
Permanent access to the original recordings
A collaborative family experience that brought us closer together
Stories and memories that might never have been shared otherwise
Perhaps most importantly, my mom genuinely enjoyed the process. Rather than becoming a chore, the weekly prompts became something she looked forward to—a chance to reflect on her life and share her experiences with her family.
The "no writing required" approach removed the biggest barrier to participation, and the speech-to-text technology ensured that her natural voice was preserved both literally (in the recordings) and figuratively (in the writing style).
Looking Forward
Storyworth: Unlikely to Continue
When the renewal notice came for Storyworth, I decided not to continue the subscription. While I value the memories we did capture, the process simply wasn't working well for my dad, and I didn't want to extend what had become a source of stress.
Storyworth does allow ongoing access to the digital content even without a renewal, so we haven't lost anything we've already created. If my dad ever wants to restart the process, we can consider it, but for now, we're taking a break.
Remento: Renewed Without Hesitation
In contrast, I immediately renewed my mom's Remento subscription when the time came. The $99 annual renewal doesn't include another book credit, but it allows us to continue capturing stories and creating new books if desired.
I was initially nervous about the subscription aspect with Remento, but once I read about it, I realized it was entirely flexible. You only pay after the first year if you want to continue recording new stories. What I particularly love is that all of the content remains accessible via the QR codes in the book even if the subscription lapses.
While I always have concerns about companies going out of business when important content is stored with them, Remento provides peace of mind by making it really easy to download all of the content and back it up to our family's own personal cloud account. Being able to preserve these irreplaceable memories independently was a huge selling point for me.
My mom was enthusiastic about continuing, and we've started a new project focused specifically on her career experiences—stories she wants to preserve for her grandchildren as they begin their own professional journeys.
The fact that we can start new projects for the same storyteller without additional fees (paying only if we want to print another book) makes the renewal even more valuable.
Final Verdict: Why Remento Won Our Family Over
After a year of parallel testing, Remento clearly provided the better experience for our family. Here's why:
The Power of Speech vs. Writing
The fundamental difference—recording vs. writing—proved decisive. Speaking is simply more natural, immediate, and expressive than writing for most people, especially older generations. By removing the writing barrier, Remento made memory preservation accessible and enjoyable rather than burdensome.
Technology That Enhances Rather Than Intrudes
Both services use technology, but in very different ways. Storyworth's platform sometimes created friction (logins, editor limitations, lost work). Remento's technology, by contrast, faded into the background, focusing on making the experience seamless rather than adding complexity.
The Speech-to-Story technology, in particular, represents a genuine innovation in memory preservation, capturing the authenticity of spoken stories while providing the permanence of written text.
Meaningful Collaboration
Memory preservation shouldn't be a solitary activity. Remento's collaborative features transformed the process into a family conversation, creating connections not just to our past but to each other in the present. The immediate sharing and reaction features kept everyone engaged and invested in the process.
Multi-Dimensional Preservation
Perhaps most powerfully, Remento preserved not just the content of my mom's memories but her actual voice—a priceless gift for future generations. The QR codes in the book create a bridge between physical and digital, ensuring that her voice will be heard long after she can no longer tell these stories in person.
Who Should Choose Which Service?
Despite my clear preference for Remento, I recognize that different families have different needs. Here's my guidance based on our experience:
Consider Storyworth if:
Your storyteller actively enjoys writing and prefers it to speaking
Written expression is important to your family's memory preservation
A simpler, text-only approach is preferred
You're comfortable with potentially lower completion rates
Choose Remento if:
Your storyteller finds writing challenging or tedious
Preserving authentic voice and speaking style is important to you
You want a collaborative family experience around memory preservation
Technology barriers are a concern for your storyteller
The multi-dimensional aspect (text + voice) appeals to you
You value higher completion rates and storyteller enjoyment
The Gift That Truly Keeps Giving
In the end, my experiment with two memory preservation services taught me something important: the best memory preservation tool is the one that actually gets used. Remento's thoughtful design, innovative technology, and focus on reducing barriers to participation resulted in a more complete, authentic, and enjoyable experience.
The true measure of success isn't just the beautiful book sitting on our shelf—though that's certainly valuable. It's the fact that my mom engaged joyfully with the process, shared stories she might never have told otherwise, and formed new connections with family members across generations.
That's the real gift, and it's why Remento has earned a permanent place in our family's memory preservation toolkit. While Storyworth has its merits, Remento's approach to turning spoken memories into written stories—while preserving the original voice—represents a genuine breakthrough in helping families capture and preserve their most precious stories.
For my family, at least, the verdict is clear: Remento didn't just help us preserve memories—it helped us create new ones in the process.
Update: Remento on Shark Tank
Since writing this review, I was thrilled to see Remento featured on Shark Tank in March 2025. The founder Charlie shared his touching story about losing his dad at an early age and creating Remento to preserve his mom's stories. His personal connection to the mission made it evident that this team truly understands the importance of family storytelling. Seeing them succeed on Shark Tank only confirmed I made the right choice for my family's memory preservation needs.
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