Calorie counter apps compared

In short

You can count calories without a subscription in SmarTasty, Cronometer, Lose It!, MyFitnessPal and Yazio. Cal AI doesn’t mention a free plan and offers a 3-day trial.

Logging food from a photo is part of the paid plans at Cal AI, Cronometer, Lose It!, MyFitnessPal and Yazio. In SmarTasty: 3 photos a week free, no limit with Premium. SmarTasty shows no banner ads; Premium costs €7.99 a month or €39.99 a year.

Cronometer, Lose It!, MyFitnessPal and Yazio say “Contains ads” on the App Store and Google Play. Cronometer, MyFitnessPal and Yazio say their paid plans are ad-free; at Lose It!, a one-off purchase removes the ads.

Six apps at a glance

• Prices: in-app purchases shown on the App Store in Ireland on 27 October 2026, in euros incl. VAT – SmarTasty sets its prices in euros, so all prices are in one currency. Your local App Store may show other prices. It lists up to ten purchases per app, often several prices for the same term (tiers, offers); we give the lowest and the highest.
• Cal AI and Lose It! list their App Store prices without a term (Cal AI €2.99 to €36.00, Lose It! €10.99 to €85.99), so we can’t say what a month or a year costs.
• “Contains ads”: what the developer states on the App Store (age rating) and on Google Play.
• – means: nothing we could verify on the developer’s website or store page.
• SmarTasty is our own app. We took the details about the other apps from their websites and store pages – see the sources below.

Which app suits whom?

SmarTasty

If you want to log food from a photo without a subscription and also want recipes, a Meal Planner and a Shopping List for free. Photos: 3 photos a week free, no limit with Premium. There’s no Android app yet, and the app comes in English and German only – the others offer more languages.

Cal AI

If you want to log food from a photo, a barcode or a description: Cal AI does all three and offers a 3-day trial; after that it needs a subscription.

Cronometer

If you want to scan barcodes without paying: its free Basic plan includes unlimited barcode scanning, and it works in the browser too. The app is in English only.

Lose It!

If a very large food database matters most: Lose It! says it has over 50 million foods. Ads can be removed with a one-off purchase instead of a subscription.

MyFitnessPal

If you want to keep a diary in the browser too: the free version includes the food database, your own recipes and partner apps. Barcode and photo scanning need Premium.

Yazio

If you want the app in your language: Yazio comes in 20 languages on the App Store. You pay for the whole term up front; there’s no monthly payment.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a free calorie counter with no ads?

Yes. SmarTasty is free to use and shows no banner ads. Photos: 3 photos a week free, no limit with Premium; logging by text, barcode and search has no limit. Cronometer, Lose It!, MyFitnessPal and Yazio are free to use too, but say “Contains ads” on the App Store and Google Play.

What’s a good alternative to MyFitnessPal?

It depends on what you miss. Since 1 October 2022, MyFitnessPal’s barcode scanner is Premium only; SmarTasty and Cronometer include it for free. Logging food from a photo needs Premium at MyFitnessPal; in SmarTasty: 3 photos a week free, no limit with Premium. SmarTasty Premium costs €7.99 a month or €39.99 a year.

Is there a free alternative to Cal AI?

Cal AI doesn’t mention a free plan; it offers a 3-day trial. SmarTasty also logs food from a photo – you check the values before saving. Photos: 3 photos a week free, no limit with Premium; text and barcode logging have no limit.

What’s a good alternative to Yazio that isn’t so expensive?

According to its help centre, Yazio has no monthly payment – you pay for the whole term up front. The table above shows App Store prices with the date we checked them. SmarTasty is free to use; Premium costs €7.99 a month or €39.99 a year. Cronometer and MyFitnessPal are free to use as well, with paid plans in the table above.

How up to date is this comparison?

We checked every detail on 27 October 2026 and check again every month. Prices and features change often – the developer’s store page is always the latest. Spotted a mistake? Email kontakt@smartasty.de and we’ll fix it.

Sources

Every detail about another app comes from its website, help pages or store page. Retrieved on 27 October 2026.

• Cal AI: App Store (Ireland) · App Store (US): description · FAQ · Website · Google Play
• Cronometer: App Store (Ireland) · Free version · Help: photo logging · Meals and recipes · Google Play
• Lose It!: App Store (Ireland) · Help: tiers and pricing · Help: ad-free · Help: Snap It · Help: barcode scanner · Help: recipes · Help: planning food · Google Play
• MyFitnessPal: App Store (Ireland) · Help: Free, Premium and Premium+ · Help: ad-free · Help: Meal Scan · Help: barcode scanner · Help: Meal Planner · Help: web · Google Play
• Yazio: App Store (Ireland) · Terms · Help: Yazio Pro · Help: AI tracking · Help: app tutorial · Help: devices · Help: payment · Google Play

Details checked on 27 October 2026. We check them every month. Is something no longer right? Email us at kontakt@smartasty.de – we’ll correct it.

Try it yourself

Start right in your browser for free – no account needed. The iPhone app is free on the App Store.

SmarTasty for iPhone