What calorie counting apps have the least paywalled options?

Posted by RuachReader@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 28 comments

For me now MFP and Lose It have now put their barcode scanner behind a paywall. Which has made my continued weight loss challenging. I want to continue this journey without jumping through hoops and dealing with the ironic corporate greed of companies that say they want to help weight loss.

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thebradzter@reddit

You could try Flexidiet? It is brand new but the barcode scanner is not paywalled.

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FabrizioBO@reddit

If you’re looking for a nutrition app with a free barcode scanner, you can try Fitia. I’ve been using it like that for about a year, honestly, it’s an amazing....

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abaybektursun@reddit

FuelOS has a free barcode scanner, no paywall. You can also just take a photo of your meal and it logs it, which honestly ends up being faster than scanning anyway.

Full disclosure, I built it, so take that for what it's worth: https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id6756439581?pt=126258939&ct=reddit_abay&mt=8

The free tier covers 3 meals a day which is enough to get going. The frustration you're describing with MFP and Lose It is basically why I built it.

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New-Score3672@reddit

Well, the rest of the apps still have the free barcode scanner, and there are a lot lol. I tried a couple before and I'm currently using Fitia, which I like a lot!

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nand1609@reddit

When they moved the barcode scanner behind premium I kind of gave up on MFP too. These days I mostly just use Impakt since snapping the meal ended up being quicker than digging through the database every time.

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garvit__dua@reddit

That’s appreciating

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OldLondon@reddit

Just to say that not every single app is a big corporation. A lot of these are one man bands who are trying to make a living and rely on a few quid a month from people. Not saying in all cases but a lot of these aren’t big corps.

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LittleSadRufus@reddit

If you set your location in MFP as Turkey, you can buy a year's membership for something like 2.99.

Unless they've twigged and shut that off recently

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Additional-Ad-9817@reddit

I created this basic calorie counter that I use for myself. I added one ad per day to use it for free, or 0.99$ to remove ads for a lifetime, just so I can get some money for the time I spent building it. https://apps.apple.com/us/app/one-count-calories/id6758963069

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RealityStunning7663@reddit

Tough to get anything like that completely free. Pal is low cost and is a digital health coach / voice coach in your pocket as well as having all the nutrition upload features like MYFP etc.

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treeseacar@reddit

Cronometer free version is pretty good.

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kimba-the-tabby-lion@reddit

Agreed, cronometer is good, but calorie counting is unscientific nonsense.

I used Cronometer to count carbs and lost 20kg.

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Gullible_Dog3238@reddit

If you’re looking for a simpler option, you might want to try Diet Pulse. It lets you log meals easily, track calories and nutrients, and doesn’t lock basic features behind subscriptions. It’s been helpful for keeping my weight loss on track

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sumfuca@reddit

Nutracheck is the best. Costs about 27 quid for a year which is well worth it imo, that’s like 50p a week.

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melanie110@reddit

I have free MFP and I have the scanner and I’m on iPhone however my lad has it and is new to it, but he’s got Samsung and wondered if that was the issue

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MountainMuffin1980@reddit

I think if you had a legacy account it's still free. New accounts it isn't.

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melanie110@reddit

Ah okay. That makes sense. Thank you.

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iffyClyro@reddit

The barcode scanner being paywalled shouldn’t be presenting that much of a challenge, surely?

Just type in the details.

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VolcanicBear@reddit

You can also just search for the product by name.

The barcode scanner wasn't paywalled when I used the free version 3 weeks ago though.

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chincheckmcgee@reddit

How much is MFP?

I use MacroFactor which I pay for but honestly I don’t mind paying.

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GlitteringCowgirl@reddit

I use Yazio. I pay so I’m not sure if the barcode scanner is behind the paywall, but give it a try and see.

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