Zero fasting app review, and how it compares to MyFoodBuddy

Zero vs MyFoodBuddy, feature by feature

Zero started as a fasting timer and added meal logging and a Protein Score in its paid tier. MyFoodBuddy is a calorie tracker first, where you text or say what you ate and an AI coach named Fiona logs it. There is real overlap in how you log food, and none at all in fasting.

Two rows decide it. Fasting timer is Zero’s reason to exist and MyFoodBuddy does not have one. Vitamins and minerals goes the other way. MyFoodBuddy tracks 20+ of them on every meal, while Zero’s public pages describe protein and calories with no micronutrient breakdown.

How Zero works day to day

Zero is made by Zero Longevity Science, Inc. Here is the routine as its App Store listing and help center describe it.

1. Start a fast. Tap once to start the timer, using a preset such as a 13-hour circadian fast, 16:8 or a 36-hour fast. You can follow it from an Apple Watch, a widget or Siri.
2. Watch the zones. On Zero Plus, Fat-Burning Mode lights up the timer as your fast goes on, based on your health data.
3. Log a meal (Zero Plus). Tap Add to your day, then snap a photo, type a description, scan a barcode or pick a Quick Pick or saved meal. Zero estimates protein, calories and other nutrients.
4. Fix it in a sentence. Under Something off? you can write “add a side salad with olive oil” or “update total calories to 450”, or tap any number to edit it.
5. Check your Protein Score. One daily number that updates as you log, built to help you hit a protein target inside a shorter eating window.
6. Keep the streak. Fasting streaks, badges and challenges keep you going, and weight, sleep and heart rate sync from Apple Health, Google Fit, Fitbit or Oura.

Zero also publishes a plain safety page. It asks people who are pregnant or breastfeeding, under 18, have a history of disordered eating, have diabetes or take medication that affects blood sugar to talk to a doctor before fasting.

How MyFoodBuddy works day to day

MyFoodBuddy does one job, counting what you eat, and tries to make it take one message.

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 per food with calories, protein, carbs and fat. Tap Log it.
3. Fix anything by chatting. Tell Fiona what changed and she updates the entry.
4. Scan packaged food. The barcode scanner is included.
5. Ask about your day. Fiona answers what is left today or how your week went. Weight, sleep, steps and workouts sync from Apple Health, and streaks, friends and leaderboards keep you logging.

The numbers come from USDA FoodData Central for everyday foods, Edamam for branded foods and Open Food Facts for barcodes. AI reads your sentence and works out portions. See the about page for the details.

How much does Zero cost compared to MyFoodBuddy

Zero is free to download, and the fasting timer stays free. Zero Plus, which includes meal logging, is $89.99 a year or $9.99 a month at standard US prices. MyFoodBuddy is $39.99 a year or $7.99 a month after a 7-day free trial.

What you would actually pay

Zero prices move with its offers. Its help center says the App Store lists every price Zero has offered, including $69.99 and $89.99 a year, and that the one you pay is the one on the purchase pop-up. The free trial applies to the yearly plan only. For refunds, App Store purchases go through Apple, and Google Play or web purchases can be refunded within 30 days.

Is the Zero fasting app still free

Yes, for fasting. Zero’s help center says you do not need Zero Plus to track fasts, and people who used Zero for years without paying can keep doing so. When you open the app you may see a Zero Plus offer first. It can be skipped by tapping through to the option to continue without subscribing.

That is why people search “is Zero fasting app no longer free”. The timer is still free, but anything about food, and data older than a week, is part of Zero Plus. Garage Gym Reviews even lists “no free version” as a con, which reflects how much moved behind the subscription.

How does Zero meal logging compare to MyFoodBuddy

This is the closest the two apps get. Both let you describe a meal in words, and both let you correct it with a sentence instead of a form.

The bigger difference is the goal. Zero’s meal logging is there to support fasting, with protein front and center and the message “no food scales, no macro math”. MyFoodBuddy is built for people who want the full count every day, calories and macros against personal goals, set from age, weight, height and activity.

Can you use Zero and MyFoodBuddy together

Yes, and for some people that is the cheapest good setup. MyFoodBuddy has no fasting timer, and Zero’s timer is free. You can run your fasts in Zero and log your meals in MyFoodBuddy.

• The two apps do not connect to each other directly. Both work with Apple Health, so weight can come from the same place.
• You would pay $39.99 a year for MyFoodBuddy and nothing for Zero, as long as one rolling week of fasting history is enough for you.
• If you want Fat-Burning Mode, custom fasts or long-term fasting charts, that is Zero Plus.

Is Zero worth it, and what do reviews say

Zero is one of the most rated fasting apps. On October 18, 2026 it had about 445,000 ratings averaging 4.8 on the US App Store. On Google Play it averaged 3.8 from 61,200 reviews, with 1 million plus downloads.

Garage Gym Reviews lists a high user rating, a focus on healthy habits and backing by doctors and professionals as pros, and “pricier for a weight loss app” and “no free version” as cons.

In App Store reviews, long-time users praise the timer, the articles and Apple Health sync. Critical reviews mostly concern price, with one reviewer writing that it is “not worth $70/year” before updating to five stars after support helped, and another frustrated after a logging problem broke a long streak.

Is Zero Plus worth it? If you fast most days and want the protein target and longer charts, the sale prices make it easier to justify. If you mainly want to count food, you would be paying for a fasting app to get a meal logger.

When Zero is the better pick

• Intermittent fasting is your main plan and you want a timer, presets, streaks and fasting zones.
• You want a free app for fasting and do not need more than a week of history.
• You care most about protein and like one daily score instead of full macro tracking.
• You want to log meals from a photo, which MyFoodBuddy does not do.
• You use Android, or want to control fasts from an Apple Watch.

When MyFoodBuddy is the better pick

• You want every meal counted for calories, protein, carbs, fat and 20+ vitamins and minerals, not only protein.
• You want to log by talking, with several foods in one sentence.
• You want an AI coach you can ask what is left today or how the week went.
• You want one price, $39.99 a year, that does not depend on catching a sale.
• You want friends and leaderboards for food logging, plus streaks.

Still comparing? See MyFoodBuddy against MyFitnessPal, the keto tracker Carb Manager and the photo-first Eato, or browse every comparison.

Frequently asked questions

Sources and how we checked