02 — The free plan
Free logging, forever.
Most calorie counters give you a taste, then charge for the basics. CalorieCounter keeps the whole logging loop free, permanently, and charges only for extras on top.
What stays free in CalorieCounter, forever?
Barcode scanning, food search, quick add, custom foods, saved meals, voice and text logging, your full diary history, weight, water, and export are free permanently, plus 2 AI photo scans a day. That is the whole logging loop, not a trial of it.
- Barcode scanning, unlimited.
- Food search across USDA FoodData Central, Open Food Facts, and your own foods.
- Quick add for a known calorie count, and custom foods with full nutrition.
- Saved meals you log again in one tap.
- Voice and text describe: say “two eggs and toast” and it becomes a meal, on your phone.
- Two AI photo scans a day, reset at midnight.
- Your full diary history, weight trend, and water log.
- Seven-day insights and a weekly lite card.
- Export of everything you logged, any time.
This list is a rule, not a promotion. Nothing on it gets a lock icon later.
Why is the barcode scanner free here when other apps charge for it?
Because it is the button people press most, and a food diary should not rent you its most-used tool. Several popular trackers have moved barcode scanning into a paid tier. Scanning a code costs almost nothing to run, so in CalorieCounter it costs you nothing.
It is also the most exact way to log anything that came in a package, which is a strange thing to put behind a paywall.
What does a full day of logging look like on the free plan?
Four meals, comfortably. Breakfast by barcode, lunch and dinner on your 2 photo scans, a snack by quick add, then water and weight in the evening. Anything beyond that gets described in a sentence, because voice and text logging is unlimited and runs on the phone.
- Breakfast, by barcode. Yogurt from the fridge: scan the pack, pick the serving, done.
- Lunch, by photo. A plate at work: one scan of your two, a glance at the labels, save.
- Snack, by quick add. A banana is 105 kcal. Type it, search it, or let Peel remind you.
- Dinner, by photo. Your second scan. Rice looked like a full cup; you drop it to half. Remembered for next time.
- Evening. Log your water, step on the scale, and watch the ring close. The week strip fills in.
If a third plate needs logging, describe it in a sentence instead. Voice and text logging is unlimited, and it runs on the phone, so it works on a plane.
What do you actually get for $11.99 a month?
Premium raises photo scans from 2 to 60 a day, re-analyzes uncertain meals on demand, and adds the full Sunday report, recipe creation, Apple Health write, 30, 90 and 365-day insights, a weekly streak freeze, and targets that adjust to your weight trend.
| Feature | Free | Premium |
|---|---|---|
| AI photo scans | 2 a day | Up to 60 a day |
| Re-analyze a result | Automatic only | On demand |
| Weekly report | Lite card | Full report every Sunday |
| Recipes | Log existing | Create and edit |
| Apple Health write | Off | On |
| Insights range | 7 days | 30, 90, and 365 days |
| Streak freeze | None | One a week, automatic |
| Adaptive targets | Static | Adjust weekly to your trend |
Premium is $11.99 a month or $49.99 a year, with a 7-day free trial on the annual plan. Prices are in US dollars; Apple sets local prices. See the plans side by side.
What happens to your data if you cancel or leave?
Nothing moves. Everything you logged stays yours on both plans. Cancel Premium in Settings, Apple Account, Subscriptions, and your diary, foods, and history stay exactly where they were. Export and account deletion both live in the app under Settings, Privacy.
Export gives you every meal you ever logged in a file you keep, whether or not you ever open the app again.
No ads and no data sale, on any plan. The App Store privacy label has no “Data Used to Track You” section, because there is none.
Sources
- Open Food Facts, the open database behind packaged products
- USDA FoodData Central, the reference database behind generic foods
Be first in line.
CalorieCounter is coming to the App Store for iPhone. Leave your email and you get the link the day it is live. One email, nothing else.