If you want photo logging with a real free tier, Cronometer is the pick. If you want your calorie target to adjust itself from your weight trend, MacroFactor. If you want the biggest food database and already know the app, MyFitnessPal. And if you would rather not open an app at all, Bay logs meals from a text, a photo or a voice note sent to a phone number, checks the numbers against verified label data, and adjusts your target weekly. It is free right now.
Below is how each compares with Cal AI and with each other. Prices were checked against the makers' sites and US App Store listings in late October and early November 2026 and vary by platform, region and promotion.
What Cal AI is, and what to know before switching
Cal AI is a photo-first calorie tracker: snap a plate, get calories, protein, carbs and fat. Its App Store listing states that food scanning results require a subscription, and the site advertises a 3-day free trial. Cal AI does not publish its prices on its website; the App Store lists several "Unlimited" purchases between $2.99 and $29.99 without stating billing periods, so what you pay depends on the offer you are shown. Its FAQ puts scan accuracy at "about 80%"; for what the published studies found about photo estimates in general, see how to log food with a photo.
Two facts worth knowing: MyFitnessPal acquired Cal AI (the deal closed in December 2025 and was announced in March 2026), and Cal AI continues as a standalone app now connected to MyFitnessPal's food database. So the "Cal AI or MyFitnessPal" question is now a choice between two products from one company.
The reasons people look for an alternative are usually: unclear pricing, no free scanning, estimates that are off and hard to correct, and nothing beyond the food log.
The alternatives at a glance
| App | How you log | What keeps estimates honest | Free tier | US price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cal AI | Photo, barcode, text | Model estimate; MyFitnessPal database since 2026 | Manual log only; scanning needs a subscription | Not published; App Store items $2.99–$29.99 |
| Cronometer | Search, barcode; photo and voice on Gold | Curated databases (USDA and lab-analysed sources) | Yes, including barcode scanning | Gold $10.99/mo or $59.99/yr |
| MyFitnessPal | Search; barcode and meal scan on Premium | Largest database, largely user-submitted | Yes, manual search only | Premium $19.99/mo or $79.99/yr; Premium+ $99.99/yr |
| MacroFactor | Search, barcode, label scan, photo | Verified database; targets recalculated weekly from intake and weight | No; 7-day trial | $11.99/mo or $71.99/yr |
| Lose It! | Search; barcode, photo and voice on Premium | Large database | Yes, search and a calorie budget | Premium $79.99/yr |
| Bay | Text, photo or voice note, in Messages | Verified label data first, then your own portion history, then an estimate; weekly target review | No tiers | Free right now |
Cronometer: best free tier, best data
Cronometer's free Basic plan includes barcode scanning and detailed micronutrients, which most rivals reserve for paying users. Its database leans on curated and laboratory-analysed sources rather than crowd entries, which is why dietitians tend to recommend it. Photo Log and Voice Log need Gold, at $10.99 a month or $59.99 a year.
Pick it if accuracy and nutrients beyond the big four matter to you, or if you want a free app that does not nag.
MacroFactor: the target that adjusts itself
MacroFactor estimates your real energy expenditure from what you log and how your weight trends, then rewrites your targets each week. That is the feature that makes it worth $11.99 a month or $71.99 a year for people who have stalled on a fixed calorie number. There is no free plan, only a 7-day trial, and logging requires you to be reasonably consistent for the algorithm to have something to work with.
Pick it if you have tried a static calorie target and want the math done for you.
MyFitnessPal: the biggest database
MyFitnessPal still has the largest food library, which helps with restaurant meals and obscure packaged foods. The free tier logs by manual search; barcode scanning and meal scan are Premium ($19.99 a month or $79.99 a year), and Premium+ ($99.99 a year) adds meal planning. The database is largely user-submitted, so check an entry when a number looks off. Bay vs. MyFitnessPal is the head-to-head.
Pick it if you have years of history there or share recipes with people who use it.
Lose It!: the simple diary
Lose It! is a plain calorie budget and food diary. Basic is free; Premium, at $79.99 a year on its pricing page, adds barcode, photo and voice logging and device syncing.
Pick it if you want the least complicated screen and are fine with manual search on the free plan.
Bay: no app, and the estimate is grounded
Bay is a fitness coach you text. For food, that means you send "2 eggs, toast with butter, a banana", a photo of the plate, or a voice note on the way out of a restaurant, and Bay replies with calories and protein up front, carbs and fat behind them, and where you stand against today's target. A 👍 or "yes" confirms; "that was a small tortilla" corrects it.
Three things keep the numbers honest. Verified label data comes first: barcodes and branded foods are looked up in Open Food Facts and USDA FoodData Central, and chain restaurant orders ("double chicken bowl, light rice, extra guac") are matched against published menu nutrition rather than guessed. Second, your own history: once you correct a portion, Bay uses your number next time. Third, a weekly review compares your logged intake against your actual weight trend and proposes a bounded target change when the numbers disagree, much like MacroFactor's adaptive targets but delivered as a text you tap to accept.
Bay also builds and runs your training plan and checks in morning and evening, which no tracker on this list does. What it lacks compared with the apps: a big on-screen food diary (your history lives on a private web dashboard you reach by texting "dashboard") and a micronutrient breakdown. For the logging habit itself, see how to track calories by texting.
How to choose
- Want free photo logging? No one gives it away fully; Cronometer gives you the most for free (barcode, nutrients) and charges only for photo and voice.
- Keep stalling on a fixed target? MacroFactor or Bay, both of which adjust from your weight trend.
- Want food and training together? Bay.
- Want it all inside Messages, no app? Bay is the only option here.
Questions, answered.
Tap a question.
Is Cal AI free?
Cal AI is free to download and use as a manual food log, but its App Store listing says scanning results require a subscription. It offers a 3-day trial; the price after that is not published on its site.
Who owns Cal AI?
MyFitnessPal. The acquisition closed in December 2025 and was announced on March 2, 2026; Cal AI continues as a standalone app connected to MyFitnessPal's food database.
How accurate is photo calorie counting?
Less accurate than a food scale and more accurate than memory. Cal AI's own FAQ says about 80%. Any photo estimate improves a lot when you add one line of context (the oil, the dressing, how much you ate) and when the app checks packaged foods against label data instead of guessing.
Which Cal AI alternative is best for weight loss?
The one you will still be using in month three. Beyond that, an adaptive target (MacroFactor, Bay) helps most people more than a prettier photo scanner, because it fixes the target when the scale disagrees with the plan.
Related reading
Bay is a software assistant, not a doctor, dietitian or certified trainer. Nothing here is medical, nutrition or professional advice; check with a professional before changing your diet or training.