A Weight Watchers alternative app for people who just want to log food

WeightWatchers vs MyFoodBuddy, feature by feature

These two do different jobs. WeightWatchers is a weight-loss program, and the app is how you follow it. MyFoodBuddy is a food logger with an AI coach, and nothing else. The table shows where they overlap and where they do not.

Two rows matter most. What you count is different. WW gives every food a Points value and a daily Points Budget, while MyFoodBuddy shows calories and macros. And how you log is different. WW logs by search, barcode or photo, while in MyFoodBuddy you describe the meal in a sentence and Fiona splits it into foods.

How WeightWatchers works day to day

WeightWatchers has run weight-loss programs for more than 60 years. Here is the routine as its own pages and App Store listing describe it.

1. Pick a membership. Core for the Points program and app, Core+ to add workshops and dietitians, or Med+ to add clinician care and GLP-1 prescriptions if you qualify.
2. Get a Points Budget. You answer questions and get a daily Points Budget tailored to your body and goals. WW says the Budget changes as your body changes.
3. Log food. Search the database, scan a barcode or snap a photo. Each food gets a Points value, pushed up by sugar and saturated fat and pulled down by protein and fiber. ZeroPoint foods do not count against the Budget.
4. Pick a mode. Lose, Maintain or All-In, or Vacation Mode to pause tracking without breaking your streak.
5. Track the rest. Activity and sleep sync from Apple Health, Fitbit and other devices, and an AI Body Scanner shows 3D progress in some locations.
6. Get support. On Core+ you join workshops led by a WW Coach, in person or virtual, and can work with Registered Dietitians.

How MyFoodBuddy works day to day

MyFoodBuddy is only about logging what you eat and understanding it. There is no program to follow and nothing to convert into points.

1. Say what you ate. Type or speak a normal sentence, like two eggs, toast with butter and a coffee with oat milk.
2. Fiona logs it. She splits the sentence into foods and amounts, looks each one up and shows a card with calories, protein, carbs and fat before anything is saved.
3. Packaged food. Scan the barcode instead.
4. Fix it by chatting. Bigger portion or forgot the dressing? Tell Fiona and she updates the entry. You can also ask what is left for the day or how your week went.
5. See the full picture. Fiber, sugar, sodium and 20+ vitamins and minerals, plus weight, sleep, steps and workouts from Apple Health.
6. Keep going. Streaks, a color-coded calendar, friends and leaderboards.

Numbers come from USDA FoodData Central for everyday foods, Edamam for branded foods and Open Food Facts for barcodes. If you give a number yourself, your number wins. More on that on the About page.

How much does Weight Watchers cost compared to MyFoodBuddy

WeightWatchers sells three plans on its website, all priced on a 12-month commitment that auto-renews for another 12 months unless you cancel. The prices below are the current offer, which WW describes as 50% off the standard monthly price for 12 months. MyFoodBuddy has one plan with everything in it.

What you would actually pay

If you only want to log food, MyFoodBuddy costs less than even the discounted Core plan. If you want the workshops, dietitians or medication care, there is no MyFoodBuddy equivalent to price against.

Points vs calorie counting, which is easier to track

This is the biggest practical difference, and people search for it a lot as weight watchers vs calorie counting.

WeightWatchers Points combine calories, sugar, saturated fat, protein and fiber into one number per food. You get a daily Points Budget and some foods are ZeroPoint, so you do not track them. WW pitches this as simpler than counting, and many long-time members agree. The catch, which the Garage Gym Reviews tester mentioned, is that Points can be hard to translate to real-world eating once you stop following the plan.

MyFoodBuddy shows plain calories, protein, carbs and fat for every food, plus fiber, sugar, sodium and 20+ vitamins and minerals. Those numbers mean the same thing on any food label, in any app and at any doctor’s office, so nothing has to be relearned if you ever switch.

Can you cancel a Weight Watchers 12-month plan early

Read the terms before you pick a long plan. The WeightWatchers membership terms say this about commitment plans.

• The subscription fee is not refundable or cancellable once a commitment period has started, and you keep paying the monthly fee until the end of that period.
• If you cancel, it takes effect at the end of the commitment period.
• Refunds are made for a few listed reasons, such as a medical reason, moving away from a workshop location or a workshop closing, and within 3 days of the first purchase where the law requires it.
• Purchases made inside the iPhone app are handled under Apple’s rules.

MyFoodBuddy has a 7-day free trial, then either $39.99 a year or $7.99 a month. If you are unsure, the monthly plan means you are never paying for more than one month ahead.

What Weight Watchers Med+ and the GLP-1 program include

This is part of WeightWatchers that MyFoodBuddy does not try to match. Here is what WW lists, in its own words where possible.

• Med+ includes access to GLP-1 prescriptions if you qualify, unlimited virtual visits with a board-certified clinician, a 24/7 Clinician Care Team, GLP-1 nutrition guidance and tracking for doses and side effects, insurance support, and everything in Core+.
• Med+ is $25 for the first month, then $74 a month on a 12-month plan or $84 a month on a 6-month plan. The cost of the medication is not included.
• Medical services are provided through WW’s affiliated medical group, Weight Watchers Clinic.
• The GLP-1 Success Program in the app adds nutrition guidance, dose tracking and side-effect tracking for members already on these medications.

MyFoodBuddy has no medication program, and Fiona is an AI coach, not a doctor or dietitian. If you are on a GLP-1 and only want to log meals and protein, MyFoodBuddy works for that, but talk to your prescriber about anything medical.

Is Weight Watchers worth it, and what do reviews say

WeightWatchers is still a large, active business. It sells new plans, ships app updates every few weeks and has 2.4 million App Store ratings averaging 4.8, plus an Android app on Google Play.

Long-time members in App Store reviews praise the barcode scanner for checking Points in the store, looking up restaurant meals before going out, and the community. One recurring request in those reviews is offline logging. The Garage Gym Reviews tester liked that the Points system can be tailored and that no food is off limits, but found tracking tedious at times and noted the program expects weekly weigh-ins.

Whether it is worth it comes down to what you use. If you go to workshops, talk to a dietitian or use Med+, you are paying for things a logging app does not do. If you mostly open the app to log food, you are paying program prices for a tracker.

When WeightWatchers is the better pick

• You like the Points system and ZeroPoint foods and do not want to think in calories.
• You want people, coach-led workshops in person or online, or a Registered Dietitian.
• You want GLP-1 care, clinician visits and food tracking from one company.
• You use an Android phone. MyFoodBuddy is iPhone only.
• You want photo logging or a large library of recipes and restaurant guides.

When MyFoodBuddy is the better pick

• You want to log a whole meal in one sentence, typed or spoken, instead of searching each food.
• You want calories, protein, carbs and fat plus 20+ vitamins and minerals, not a points score.
• You want to fix entries by chatting with Fiona and ask her what is left for the day.
• You want one low price, $39.99 a year, or $7.99 month to month so you are not locked into a year.
• You want to know where the numbers come from, USDA FoodData Central, Edamam and Open Food Facts.

Still comparing programs? See Noom vs MyFoodBuddy, or compare classic trackers with MyFitnessPal vs MyFoodBuddy and Lose It vs MyFoodBuddy. All comparisons are on the compare page.

Frequently asked questions

Sources and how we checked