How it compares
The big apps are good software funded by subscriptions and ads. Ethereal is funded by nothing, so it can be free, private and honest about the maths. Here is where that lands, as of late 2026.
| Ethereal | MyFitnessPal | Lose It! | MacroFactor | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | Free, forever | Free with ads; Premium for barcode scanning and macros | Free tier; Premium for most tracking features | Subscription only, no free tier |
| Account required | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Where your data lives | Your device only | Their servers | Their servers | Their servers |
| Ads and trackers | None | Ads on free tier | Ads on free tier | None |
| Barcode scanning | Yes, free | Paid | Limited free | Yes |
| Adaptive calorie adjustments | Yes, every two weeks from your trend | No | No | Yes, weekly |
| Weight trend smoothing | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Works offline | Yes, installable | Partly | Partly | Partly |
| Export your data | JSON and CSV, any time | Premium | Premium | Yes |
| Import your history from another app | Yes, from their CSV exports | No | No | Partly |
| Recipes and a day/week planner that hit your targets | Yes, 66 recipes, free | Recipes only | Recipes only | No |
| Eating out: chain menus ranked by protein per calorie | Yes, 20 chains, free | Menu items, unranked | Menu items, unranked | No |
| Open methodology | Every formula documented | No | No | Partly |
Competitor details reflect publicly listed features and plans at the time of writing and may change. Product names belong to their owners.
What the big apps do better
- Food database depth. Decades of user-submitted entries. Ethereal ships 1,400+ validated foods (generic, world cuisine, chains and brands, all halal-friendly) and uses Open Food Facts for packaged products, which is smaller but far cleaner.
- Sync across devices. They hold your data on their servers. Ethereal keeps it on your device and gives you backups and share links instead.
- Restaurant menus. Thousands of them. Ethereal covers the leanest orders at 20 major chains on its eating-out page, not every menu everywhere.