Cronometer vs MyFitnessPal (2026): Which Should You Use?

Cronometer and MyFitnessPal are the two most recommended calorie trackers in 2026, and they pull in opposite directions. MyFitnessPal optimises for database breadth and brand familiarity; Cronometer optimises for nutrient accuracy and data integrity. This guide compares them head to head — accuracy, database, cost, free plans, and logging speed — so you can pick the right one. (And if your real problem is consistency, we'll cover the faster option both of them are missing.)

Cronometer vs MyFitnessPal at a Glance

Here's how the two stack up on the dimensions that matter most:

Accuracy: Cronometer Wins Clearly

This is the biggest difference between the two. Cronometer's primary database is sourced from the USDA's National Nutrient Database and the Cronometer Research Database, with user-submitted entries clearly flagged so you can avoid them. When you log a food, the data is genuinely accurate.

MyFitnessPal's 14-million-entry database is broader, but the vast majority of entries are user-submitted and unverified. You'll often scroll past several wrong versions of the same food to find a correct one. For raw ingredients, packaged foods with labels, and micronutrient tracking, Cronometer is in a different league.

Database Size: MyFitnessPal Wins on Breadth

If accuracy is Cronometer's edge, coverage is MyFitnessPal's. With 14M+ entries, MyFitnessPal has almost every restaurant dish, regional product, and obscure packaged good you can think of. Cronometer's curated database is smaller and occasionally won't have a niche restaurant item, which means more manual entry for some users.

The trade-off is real: MyFitnessPal is more likely to have an entry for what you ate; Cronometer is more likely to have an accurate one.

Cost and Free Plans

Cronometer's free tier is genuinely usable — it includes full nutrient tracking, the food database, recipe builder, barcode scanning, and Apple Health sync. Gold costs $5.99/month or $49.99/year and adds reports, the fasting timer, and the recipe URL importer.

MyFitnessPal's free tier is more limited. Calorie tracking and the database are free, but barcode scanning moved to Premium in 2022, and the free experience carries ads. Premium runs around $19.99/month — over three times the cost of Cronometer Gold — with a Premium+ tier (~$99.99/year) for the Meal Scan feature.

On value, Cronometer wins decisively: its free tier does more, and its paid tier costs a fraction of MyFitnessPal Premium.

Nutrient Depth: No Contest

Cronometer tracks 80+ nutrients — every essential vitamin and mineral, amino acids, and fatty acids. MyFitnessPal tracks the three macros and a handful of micronutrients. If you're managing a deficiency, working with a dietitian, or optimising micronutrients for performance, Cronometer is the only real choice. If you only care about calories and macros, MyFitnessPal's depth is sufficient.

The Thing Both Apps Miss: Speed

Here's what the Cronometer vs MyFitnessPal debate usually overlooks. Both apps are slow. Cronometer takes 90–120 seconds to log a mixed meal; MyFitnessPal users spend 10–15 minutes a day searching, selecting, and setting portions. The number one reason people quit calorie tracking isn't accuracy or database size — it's that logging takes too long.

A new generation of photo-first apps removes that friction entirely. Instead of searching a database, you take a photo and AI identifies the food, estimates portions, and returns the macros in seconds. Bento Bunny logs an entire meal in about five seconds from a single photo — and on iOS 26+ it processes those photos on-device, so they never leave your phone.

Where Bento Bunny fits

Bento Bunny isn't trying to beat Cronometer on micronutrient depth or MyFitnessPal on database size. It's solving the problem both of them leave on the table: consistency. A month of fast, approximate logging beats a week of precise logging followed by three weeks of nothing. If you've tried Cronometer or MyFitnessPal and quit because logging felt like homework, the speed is the point.

And switching doesn't cost you your history — Bento Bunny reads Cronometer's Servings CSV directly. Want the deeper dives? See our Cronometer review and MyFitnessPal review.

Which Should You Choose?

Choose Cronometer if: accuracy and nutrient depth matter most, you want a generous free tier, you're managing a medical condition or working with a dietitian, or you eat mostly raw ingredients and home-cooked meals.

Choose MyFitnessPal if: you want the broadest database, you log a lot of restaurant and regional foods, you value the community and device integrations, and you don't mind paying Premium for barcode scanning.

Choose a photo-first app like Bento Bunny if: your real obstacle is sticking with tracking at all, and you want the fastest possible path from plate to logged meal.

The Bottom Line

Cronometer wins on accuracy, nutrient depth, and value; MyFitnessPal wins on database breadth and ecosystem. For most people choosing between the two, Cronometer is the better tracker and the better deal. But if you've bounced off both because logging took too long, the honest answer is that neither app solves your actual problem — a faster, photo-first tracker does.