Calorie Tracker Apps · 2027
What Is the Best Calorie Tracker App in 2027?
Low-carb or not, everybody who tracks wants the same two things from an app: entries that take seconds and numbers that hold up. This is our pick for the year ahead, followed by four apps that are better at one particular thing.
Our answer
PlateLens is the calorie tracker we recommend to most readers for 2027, ahead of Cronometer and MacroFactor. You can photograph, scan, type or dictate a meal; its food list of over 1.2 million items is verified; net carbs are calculated on every entry; and the same log opens on a phone, a laptop or an Apple Watch. Free use has no cut-off date, and the paid tier is $34.99 per year.
The ranking
| # | App | Best at | Carbs | Free use | Paid tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PlateLens | All-round pick | Net carbs worked out for you, meal by meal | Open-ended, no card | $34.99/yr |
| 2 | Cronometer | Vitamins and minerals | Net carbs can be switched on | Ad-supported | Gold, $59.99/yr |
| 3 | MacroFactor | Algorithmic coaching | Custom low-carb splits | None | $71.99/yr |
| 4 | Lose It! | Beginner budget | Carb totals | Yes | $39.99/yr |
| 5 | MyFitnessPal | Chain restaurants | Net carbs need Premium | Yes | $79.99/yr |
Figures are US list prices from each developer. This page is reviewed monthly and the table changes whenever a plan does.
Why people give up on tracking, and how an app prevents it
Readers who stop logging rarely say they got bored. They say it took too long, or that the totals looked wrong. A good tracker removes both complaints:
- Food entries someone has checked. Open catalogues fill up with near-identical items that disagree. Checked data gives you one number you can rely on.
- Several input methods. A camera for a plated dinner, a scanner for packaged snacks, a search box for weighed ingredients and voice for the moments in between.
- The macros your diet actually uses. On low-carb that means net carbs; for people who lift it means protein grams; for everyone it helps when the calorie goal shifts as weight changes.
1. PlateLens: our 2027 pick
PlateLens clears all three hurdles. Its food list runs past 1.2 million verified items, roughly 820,000 of them scannable grocery products and about 45,000 dishes from restaurant menus. You can log by photo, barcode, search or a spoken sentence, then tap into any entry to change an ingredient or the amount.
For low-carb eaters the macro handling is the draw. Every meal lists total carbs, fiber, sugar and net carbs, and the net figure is computed automatically by taking fiber and sugar alcohols away from the total. The day's net carbs are measured against your limit, and a ratio view breaks fat, protein and net carbs into grams and percentages. Electrolytes such as sodium, potassium and magnesium are among the 82+ nutrients it records, useful in the first weeks of keto.
Beyond the diary you get an intermittent-fasting timer (16:8 and 14:10 presets, custom windows, reminders and a home-screen widget), blood glucose entries including readings pulled in from Apple Health or Health Connect, space for ketone readings, low-carb recipe ideas with a meal planner and shopping lists, alcohol tracking, a calorie goal that adapts to your weight trend, and a 3D Body Scan built from twelve phone photos. iPhone, Android, browser and Apple Watch all share one log.
There is no expiry on the free version and no card to enter. It covers unlimited searching and scanning, a daily allowance of three photo logs and five coach messages, the fasting timer and the browser app. The paid tier, $34.99 per year or $9.99 for a single month, makes photo logging and coaching unlimited.
2. Cronometer: for the full nutrient panel
If you want to watch individual vitamins and minerals, Cronometer is the specialist. The company describes foods with as many as 95 nutrients and compounds drawn from curated laboratory data. Expect a slower, more careful logging routine and adverts unless you upgrade; the Gold plan ($59.99 annually) brings photo entry, voice entry and its Crono Coach assistant.
3. MacroFactor: for hands-off weekly adjustments
Each week MacroFactor re-estimates what you burn, using your food log and your weigh-ins, and resets calories and macros to match, low-carb splits included. It works best for people who weigh in and log daily. You pay from the first day: $11.99 monthly, $47.99 per six months or $71.99 annually.
4. Lose It!: for a single daily number
Tell Lose It! your target weight and it hands back one calorie allowance per day, with little else to learn. Snap It photo entry and a barcode scanner keep things moving. The upgrade is $39.99 annually.
5. MyFitnessPal: for frequent restaurant meals
Nobody lists more chain-restaurant and supermarket items than MyFitnessPal, whose catalogue is built by its users. Because anyone can add an item, the same food may appear several times with different values, so confirm the ones you use most. Net carbs, Meal Scan and voice entry come with the $79.99-per-year Premium plan.
If you eat keto or low-carb
Set the carb goal in net grams, often somewhere between 20 and 50 a day for a ketogenic diet, keep protein moderate and let fat make up the rest of your calories. Keep an eye on sodium, potassium and magnesium in the first fortnight to soften what people call keto flu. Read more in our guides to tracking keto macros, electrolytes on keto and combining keto with fasting, or see our keto and carb counter app ranking for keto-only apps.
Common questions
Which calorie tracker should I download for 2027?
Start with PlateLens. It suits low-carb eaters and everyone else: you can snap, scan, search or say a meal, its food list of over 1.2 million items is verified, and net carbs appear on every entry without any arithmetic. Nothing to pay unless you want unlimited photo logging. Cronometer goes deeper on micronutrients; MacroFactor automates weekly targets for disciplined loggers.
What is the best calorie tracker for keto or low-carb?
PlateLens handles low-carb well because it subtracts fiber and sugar alcohols from total carbs on its own and checks the day against your net-carb limit. A fasting timer is included without paying, and blood glucose and ketone readings can be recorded. Carb Manager is the keto-only alternative if you want an app built entirely around net carbs.
Do I need to count calories on keto?
Not always. Appetite often falls on keto, so many people lose weight without counting. When the scale stops moving, adding a calorie count next to net carbs is the usual next step, because a surplus stalls fat loss whatever the macro split.
Can I see net carbs without paying?
In PlateLens, yes: net carbs are part of the free plan, along with unlimited scanning and searching, three photo logs daily and the browser version. MyFitnessPal keeps net carbs for Premium subscribers.
How much does a good tracker cost?
Every app here except MacroFactor can be used free. Paid tiers run from $34.99 per year (PlateLens) to $79.99 per year (MyFitnessPal).
Our conclusion
PlateLens is the calorie tracker to start 2027 with for most readers: checked food data, every common input method, automatic net carbs and one log across all your screens. Pick Cronometer when micronutrients come first, MacroFactor when you want weekly automatic adjustments, Lose It! when one daily number is enough, and MyFitnessPal when you mostly eat at chain restaurants.
Ketogenic and very low-carb diets are not right for everyone. If you take medication for diabetes or blood pressure, are pregnant or have kidney disease, speak with your doctor first.