Foundry Virtual Tabletop Show or Hide Journal Entry: What You Need to Know

If you run games on Foundry Virtual Tabletop, you will deal with journal entries a lot. They hold your handouts, quest logs, NPC notes, maps, and all the little bits of information your players collect. But not everything in your journal is for player eyes. Some entries are secret GM notes. Others are reveals you want to time perfectly. That is why learning how to show or hide journal entries matters.

This guide walks you through the whole process in plain language. No jargon, no skipped steps.

What Does Showing or Hiding a Journal Entry Mean?

In Foundry VTT, there is a simple rule: players only see what you show them.

Every journal entry in your sidebar has a visibility state. When an entry is hidden, it exists only for you, the GM. Your players cannot see it in their journal list at all. When you show it, it becomes visible to your players.

Think of it like a curtain. Hidden entries are behind the curtain. Shown entries are on the stage.

How to Show a Journal Entry to Players (Step by Step)

1. Open the Journal sidebar. Click the book icon in the right-hand sidebar of your Foundry game.
2. Find the entry you want to share. Look through your list of journal entries and folders.
3. Right-click the entry. A small menu will pop up.
4. Click “Show to Players.” The entry becomes visible to everyone at your table.

That is it. Your players can now open the entry from their own journal sidebar.

How to Hide a Journal Entry from Players

Hiding works the same way, in reverse:

1. Open the Journal sidebar.
2. Right-click the entry you want to hide.
3. Click “Hide from Players” (or toggle the eye icon off, depending on your Foundry version).

The entry disappears from your players’ view right away. It stays in your sidebar, so you can still read and edit it.

Show or Hide Individual Journal Pages Separately

Here is something many new GMs miss: journal entries can contain multiple pages. In newer versions of Foundry, you can control visibility page by page, not just for the whole entry.

This is handy when one entry mixes player-safe info with secret GM notes. For example:

• Page 1: “The Tavern of the Rusty Dragon” — visible to players.
• Page 2: “GM Notes: the innkeeper is a spy” — hidden from players.

To do this, open the entry, find the page you want to change, and look for its own visibility or ownership setting. Hide only the secret pages.

Ownership vs Visibility: Why Both Matter

Visibility and ownership are two different things, and both decide what players can do:

• Visibility decides whether players can see the entry.
• Ownership decides whether players can edit it.

A player might be able to see an entry but not edit it. That is normal. Most of the time, you want players to read your handouts but not change them.

To change ownership, right-click the entry, open its settings or permissions, and set the right level for each player. The default is usually fine: players can view what you show them.

If your players say they cannot see an entry you showed, check two things: is it actually shown, and do they have at least viewing ownership? One of those is almost always the problem.

Quick Tips for GMs

• Prepare reveals in advance. Write your handouts before the session, keep them hidden, then show them at the perfect dramatic moment.
• Use folders. Put all hidden GM notes in one folder and all player handouts in another. It keeps things tidy.
• Show, do not tell. Instead of reading a long description out loud, show the journal entry and let players read it. It feels more immersive.
• Double-check before the session. Quickly scan your journal list for the eye icons to confirm the right entries are visible.

For more ideas, check out our Foundry VTT beginner’s guide and our tips for running your first online session.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Showing the wrong entry. If two entries have similar names, double-check before you click. Players will see it the instant you show it.
• Forgetting to hide secret notes. Always keep GM-only notes in a separate entry or page from player handouts.
• Confusing ownership with visibility. Giving a player ownership does not automatically show them the entry, and showing it does not let them edit it.
• Not testing with a player account. If you are unsure what your players see, log in as a player (or ask one) to check.

FAQs

Can players see hidden journal entries?

No. Hidden entries are completely invisible to players. They do not appear in the player’s journal list at all.

Do I have to show each journal entry one by one?

Yes, entries are shown individually. But you can organize them into folders to make bulk management easier during prep.

What happens if I show an entry by accident?

Just hide it again right away. Right-click the entry and toggle it back to hidden. Your players may have glimpsed the title, but the content disappears from their view.

Can I show a journal entry to only one player?

Yes, using ownership settings. Set the entry’s permissions so only that player has viewing rights, then show it. Other players will not see it.

Why can’t my players see an entry I showed?

Check the ownership settings. The entry must be both shown and have viewing permission for the players. Also, ask them to refresh their browser.

Is there a module that makes this easier?

Yes. Modules like Monk’s Enhanced Journal add extra journal features, and some GMs use them for richer handouts. But the basic show and hide controls are built into Foundry itself — no module needed. You can browse community tools on GitHub and the official site at foundryvtt.com.

Conclusion

Showing and hiding journal entries in Foundry VTT is simple once you know where to click: right-click the entry, toggle the eye icon, and you are done. Use visibility to control what players see, ownership to control what they can edit, and page-level hiding for entries that mix secrets with handouts.

Master this one skill, and your reveals will land exactly when you want them to. Happy gaming!