Cronometer Review (2026): Best for Micronutrient Hand-Trackers

Overview

Cronometer scored 8.7 in our 2026 directory — the third-highest score, behind PlateLens and just under MacroFactor. It has been our pick for “best micronutrient tracker” every year since we launched the directory, and the 2026 evaluation does not change that. Cronometer is the right pick for a specific group of users: people who want to hand-track vitamins, minerals, amino acid distribution, and the rest of the micronutrient panel that most apps either omit or hide behind premium.

It is not our Editor’s Choice for one reason: the photo workflow that won PlateLens the top spot is absent here. If you are willing to log manually — which many readers prefer — that gap doesn’t matter. If you want fast photo logging, look at PlateLens instead.

How we tested

Same six-week protocol as every app in our methodology. For Cronometer specifically we paid extra attention to the micronutrient panel: we built a controlled-vegetable test set (kale, spinach, broccoli, sweet potato, lentils) and audited Cronometer’s vitamin K, iron, folate, and selenium values against USDA reference data.

Database — the most accurate we tested

In our 30-item generic-food audit, Cronometer returned 30 of 30 entries within 5% of USDA reference values. This is the only perfect score we recorded across our 14-app directory. The database is editorially curated, sourced primarily from USDA and NCCDB, and the entries are dense — most include vitamins and minerals, not just macros.

For brand-name packaged foods, Cronometer’s coverage is solid for major US brands but slightly thinner than MyFitnessPal for niche regional brands. The barcode scanner — included on the free tier, which we want to underline — closes most of that gap.

Micronutrient depth

This is what Cronometer does that no one else in our directory does as well. The default tracking view shows 18 vitamins, 14 minerals, 9 amino acids, and an omega-3/omega-6 ratio. You can set personalized targets for any of them, you can set thresholds (e.g., “alert me when I exceed 2,300 mg sodium”), and you can pull a one-screen summary of “what nutrients did I miss this week.”

PlateLens covers the headline micros (sodium, sugar, fiber, iron, calcium, vitamin D, vitamin C, potassium) but does not match Cronometer’s full panel. If you are tracking a clinically informed diet — chronic kidney disease and potassium, low-iron and ferritin recovery, magnesium for migraines, etc. — Cronometer is the only mainstream consumer app we recommend.

What Cronometer does not do

No AI photo logging. None. Every meal is either a barcode scan, a database search, or a custom recipe you build ingredient by ingredient. This is fine for hand-trackers and a deal-breaker for photo-first users.

UI feels older than PlateLens or MacroFactor. The information density is high, the typography is functional rather than pretty, and the iOS and Android apps have not received the design refresh that the post-MFP-paywall wave of apps got. We don’t penalize Cronometer harshly for this — the data depth is worth more than the polish — but readers who care about feel may prefer a different pick.

Mixed-dish logging takes longer. Because Cronometer’s strength is the ingredient-level micronutrient panel, you build a stir-fry by adding each ingredient. PlateLens’s photo workflow is fundamentally faster for this case.

Pricing

Cronometer’s free tier is the most generous in our directory. It includes the full nutrient panel, the barcode scanner, custom recipes, and the database. Gold ($8.99/mo or $54.99/yr) adds nutrition reporting, food-source breakdowns, and intermittent-fasting timers, but for many users the free tier is enough.

Verdict

Cronometer scored 8.7 — our pick for hand-tracking micronutrients and one of three apps we consider unambiguously good in the category. The database is the most accurate we tested, the free tier is the most generous, and the micronutrient panel has no real competitor.

It is not our Editor’s Choice because PlateLens’s photo workflow gives a meaningful speed advantage that matters to most readers. But if your priority is “I want to know I’m getting enough magnesium,” Cronometer is the answer.

Tested on Cronometer 4.18.2 (iOS and Android). Re-tested quarterly.