Write a letter to your future self that opens within a year

Updated October 15, 2026

Write to the person you will be in a few months or a year. Choose when it opens, up to one year from now. Until then, the link shows a countdown. Postdate sends no email, so keep the link.

Postdate shares a message and files through one link that opens at the time you choose. With Basic, Postdate holds the key until then; with Timelock, the key needs a scheduled drand release.

What to write

Write what you would want to read on that day. Some prompts:

What you want to have done by then, and your first step this week.
Three things you are grateful for right now.
A decision you are making, and your reasons, before you know how it turns out.
What you would want to hear if things went wrong.
What you expect to change, and what you hope stays the same.

When to open it

In six months, halfway through the year.
On your next birthday.
In one year, the longest wait Postdate allows.
When a project, a course or a training plan ends.

A New Year letter to yourself

On New Year's Day, write what you hope the year brings. Set the letter to open on New Year's Eve, or at midnight on the next January 1. Both are within one year.

Because it opens more than 7 days away, it costs $3.

How you will remember to open it

Postdate does not email you the letter or send a reminder. Keep the link where you will find it, such as a note on your phone or an email to yourself.

After you create it, Add to calendar downloads an event for the opening time. Turn on an alert for it in your calendar.

Send it before it opens

After a decision, you may remember being more or less certain than you were. Write your reasons before you know the outcome. Later, you can compare your original thinking with what happened.

Set the note to open when you expect to know the outcome. You can then read what you thought at the time.

What people see

Before opening: They see a countdown. Any public teaser you wrote also appears.
After opening: They can read the text and download attached files until the link expires. Files supported by the browser can also be previewed.

Before opening, you see a countdown. You can add a calendar event and copy the link. Any public teaser you wrote also appears. The letter stays encrypted until opening. File names and sizes stay hidden too. On the chosen day, the letter opens in your browser. The link expires after the availability period you chose, measured from the scheduled opening time.

Adding a calendar event downloads a file to import into your calendar. Set any reminder there. Postdate does not send opening notifications.

Choose a lock

Timelock. The saved letter cannot be edited. Timelock protects access through the link and removes the sender’s delete option. Copies or keys you retained remain usable.

Timelock costs $3 USD per Postdate. This covers opening dates within one year and 100 MB including encryption and file packaging. Opening depends on drand and Postdate being available, and on the encryption remaining secure. Senders can keep original copies. Postdates can still expire or be removed for abuse. You see the price before you create the link. Read about Timelock.

Create your Postdate

01
Write what you think and why you think it.
02
Set the opening time to when you will know the outcome.
03
Choose Timelock to protect the link until opening and remove your delete option.
04
Save the link somewhere you check.

Write to your future self Timelock: $3. No delete link.

Limits

Basic is free for letters that open within 7 days and are 1 MB or less. Timelock, later dates, or more than 1 MB cost $3 once. You can choose a date up to a year away. Your text and up to 10 files must fit within 100 MB after encryption and packaging. Your Timelock letter stays unchanged. You cannot delete it.

Compare Postdate with scheduled email

A scheduled email is sent later. A Postdate link can be shared now, with the same opening time for every reader. Postdate does not send the link or an opening notification for you. It shows when the Postdate was created.

Common questions

What if I want to add to it later?

Create a second message. The first stays unchanged, so you can compare what you wrote.

How is this different from emailing myself?

Postdate does not send anything. You keep one link. It shows a countdown until the day you chose, then opens in your browser. There is no account, and the letter cannot be edited after you create it.

Can I read it early if something changes?

Neither lock lets you open a message early. The private delete link removes a Basic message and its key. It does not open the message. Keep your own copy if you may need the text sooner.

More examples

Write a time capsule letter to open in a year, Leave a digital legacy letter for later

Browse all examples or read about Postdate.