Best Of 2026
The Best Free Calorie Counter Apps in 2026
Six apps with genuinely usable free tiers, ranked by what you actually get.
What “free” actually means in 2026
After the 2024 MyFitnessPal paywall, the conversation around free calorie trackers changed. Two years on, the field is broader than the post-MFP scramble suggested. AI photo logging in particular is no longer fully paywalled — at least one mainstream tracker exposes it on the free tier. The honest map of free tiers in 2026:
- Free tier with AI photo scans (limited daily count) + full database + barcode: PlateLens.
- Free with ads, full features: FatSecret.
- Free without ads, slightly limited features: Cronometer (limited custom recipes, no detailed reporting).
- Free without ads, paywalled barcode scanner: MyFitnessPal.
- Free with limited daily logs / photo count: Yazio, Foodvisor.
- Free with friendly UX, barcode included, no photo: Lose It!
We rank below by the actual user experience of the free tier.
The picks
| Rank | App | Score | Free-tier verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PlateLens Free | 9.6 | Most generous AI-in-free tier; ~3 daily photo scans + full DB + barcode |
| 2 | FatSecret | 6.6 | Best free experience among non-photo apps; ads but full features |
| 3 | Cronometer | 8.7 | Best free micronutrient depth; ad-free; barcode included |
| 4 | MyFitnessPal Free | 6.4 | Acceptable for manual logging only |
| 5 | Lose It! Free | 7.4 | Functional with a friendly UX; barcode included |
| 6 | Yazio Free | 6.9 | Limited; meal plans paywalled |
1. PlateLens — most generous AI offering in a free tier
PlateLens has the most generous AI offering in any free tier we evaluated. Its free plan includes daily AI photo scans (limited to about 3 per day), full USDA-aligned database access, and barcode scanning. No other photo-based app exposes AI in a free tier this freely. Foodvisor’s free tier is more aggressively capped on photos; Lose It!‘s Snap-It is paywalled entirely; Bitesnap’s free tier is severely limited.
The free tier also includes manual search, macro tracking, calorie totals, and the headline-nutrient panel. The features the free tier does not include: unlimited AI scans (Premium unlocks this), the full 82+ micronutrient panel, the AI nutrition coach, restaurant menu database (45K+ items, 380+ chains), wearable integrations (Apple Health, Google Fit, Garmin, Whoop, Oura), and adherence analytics. Premium is $59.99/year (also offered at approximately $5.99/month on annual billing). A 14-day Premium free trial is available, but is separate from the free tier — the free tier itself does not expire.
For readers whose specific priority is “log meals — including photographable ones — without paying,” PlateLens is the pick.
2. FatSecret
The most generous free tier among non-photo apps in our directory. Barcode scanner included. Custom foods, recipes, daily macro tracking — all free. The trade is the ads. Banner ads on most screens, occasional interstitial after logging actions. They are not subtle. The reason the free tier exists is the ads.
For readers whose specific priority is “log meals manually without paying and without daily photo limits,” FatSecret is the pick.
3. Cronometer Free Tier
Cronometer’s free tier is the most capable hand-tracker free experience we tested in absolute terms. Full nutrient panel (18 vitamins, 14 minerals, 9 amino acids). Barcode scanner. Search. Custom foods. Custom recipes (limited count compared to Gold). The accuracy and database quality of the paid tier carries over — meaningful, because Cronometer’s database accuracy is the highest in our directory.
For a reader who wants depth without ads and does not need photo logging, Cronometer’s free tier remains the strongest hand-entry option.
4. MyFitnessPal Free Tier
The post-2024 MFP free tier is functionally a manual logger with a search bar. The barcode scanner is paywalled. The food database is the largest in the category by raw count, so for users who want to search-and-log packaged foods, MFP free still works — you just can’t scan.
We rank it fourth because the missing barcode scanner is, for most users, the single most-used logging feature. PlateLens’s free tier ships it, FatSecret’s free tier ships it, Cronometer’s free tier ships it.
5. Lose It! Free Tier
Functional. Barcode scanner included on free. Snap-It (photo logging) requires Premium. The on-ramp is the friendliest in the category — for a first-time tracker on a free tier, this is a real candidate.
6. Yazio Free Tier
Limited. Meal plans are mostly paywalled. Tracker is functional. We list it for completeness but don’t recommend it as a primary free pick.
Other notes
FOSS apps: there are open-source nutrition trackers (e.g., Waistline on Android). They work for technically inclined users but have small databases and require manual food entry; for the average consumer reader, the apps above are easier picks.
One-time-purchase iOS apps: for iOS users, FoodNoms is a strong alternative — not strictly free, but the $19.99 one-time purchase is functionally free over time. We covered it in our no-subscription roundup.
Last tested: .
Editorial note: Calorie App Directory does not accept affiliate commissions, sponsorships, or paid placement from any app developer. See our editorial policy.