MacroLog is a calorie and macro tracking app that logs a meal by photo, barcode, voice, or search, keeps unlimited barcode scanning on its free tier, and asks for no account. Choose Lose It! if you want the 56M+ item database, the community and challenges it has run since 2008, or the medication logging its Google Play listing now describes — none of which MacroLog has.
Disclosure: MacroLog is our app, so this comparison has an obvious commercial interest. Lose It! facts below are taken from its public Google Play listing, checked August 12, 2026; the judgements about fit are ours. MacroLog claims are checked against our internal product-facts ledger.
Lose It! is a weight-management app with a food diary inside it. MacroLog is a food and macro diary with no programme attached. That is the decision, and the free tiers make it concrete: Lose It! puts photo logging, voice logging, barcode scanning, and macro tracking under Premium, while MacroLog's free tier includes macro tracking and unlimited barcode scanning.
MacroLog vs Lose It! at a glance
| If you care most about… | Better fit | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Macros without paying | MacroLog | Protein, carbs, and fat with goals are on the free tier. Lose It!'s listing puts macro tracking under Premium. |
| Barcode scanning without paying | MacroLog | Unlimited on the free tier; Lose It!'s listing lists the barcode scanner as Premium. |
| Friends, groups, and challenges | Lose It! | Community support is in its free tier and it has run since 2008. MacroLog has no social features. |
| The widest database | Lose It! | Its listing claims 56M+ items and recipes. |
| Logging medication with your food | Lose It! | Its listing describes logging medication and viewing estimated GLP-1 levels. MacroLog tracks food only. |
| Starting without an account | MacroLog | There is no sign-up screen. |
| Blood pressure, glucose, sleep, measurements | Lose It! | All are listed under its Premium advanced tracking. MacroLog tracks food, water, and weight. |
Feature comparison
| MacroLog | Lose It! (per its Play listing) | |
|---|---|---|
| Ways to log a meal | Photo, barcode, voice, typed description, or search | Search, plus photo logging, AI voice, and barcode scanning on Premium |
| Account required | None — there is no sign-up screen | Yes |
| Free tier | Manual search, unlimited barcode scanning, macro tracking, streaks, local storage, plus a limited number of AI trials | Calorie tracking, a weight-loss plan, and community support; photo, voice, barcode, macros, fasting, and meal planning are Premium |
| Macros | Protein, carbs, and fat with daily goals and progress bars, free | Listed under Premium advanced tracking, alongside vitamins, minerals, and metrics such as blood pressure and glucose |
| Micronutrients | 12 micronutrients, on Pro | Vitamins and minerals under Premium |
| Food database | 10,000+ foods in in-app search; barcode data from OpenFoodFacts | 56M+ items and recipes |
| Community | None | Friends and support groups, in the free tier |
| Medication tracking | Not tracked. MacroLog does not know or ask what medication you take | Medication logging with estimated GLP-1 levels by phase |
| Integrations | Two-way Apple Health and Health Connect. Steps and active energy are read for display only and never change your calorie budget | Fitbit, Garmin, Withings, Google Fit, HealthKit, and more (Premium) |
| Offline use | The diary, your history, and the on-device food list work offline. AI photo, voice, and barcode lookups need a connection | Not described in the listing |
| Platforms | iPhone, iPad, Android | Android and iOS |
| Pricing | Free tier plus a Pro subscription — check the current store listing for terms | Free tier with ads plus a Premium plan — check the store for current terms |
What Lose It! genuinely does better
Community, and the eighteen years of it. Its listing puts friends and support groups in the free tier, and the app has been running challenges since 2008. Accountability from other people is a real mechanism, and MacroLog has nothing like it: no feed, no friends, no shared accounts, by design.
Breadth is the other one. Its listing claims 56M+ items and recipes, and its Premium tier tracks blood pressure, glucose, cholesterol, body measurements, and sleep alongside food, plus intermittent fasting and meal planning. MacroLog tracks food, water, and weight and leaves the rest to Apple Health or Health Connect.
Lose It! also logs medication: its listing describes recording doses and viewing estimated GLP-1 levels by phase. MacroLog does not track medication, doses, or symptoms and does not ask what you take. If you want the medication and the food in one timeline, Lose It! has built that and we have not. For the nutrition side on its own, our article on protein intake while on a GLP-1 medication is the relevant read, and your prescriber or dietitian sets the numbers.
What MacroLog does differently
The free tier includes the macros. Protein, carbs, and fat have their own daily goals and progress bars without a subscription, and barcode scanning is unlimited. In Lose It!'s listing both sit under Premium. If macros are the reason you are tracking at all, that difference shows up on day one.
Four ways in, one review step. Photograph the plate, scan a barcode, say or type what you ate, or search. AI photo and voice logging are Pro features, and both end with the app proposing a food and a portion for you to confirm or correct. A photo estimate is an informed guess; a barcode reads the printed label.
No account, no programme. There is no sign-up screen and no plan telling you which foods are helping or hindering. Goals come from the Mifflin-St Jeor equation adjusted for your activity level and whether you want to lose, maintain, or gain, and you can override them.
Steps do not move the target. Steps and active energy are read from Apple Health or Health Connect for display only.
When to choose which
Choose Lose It! if:
- Other people keep you consistent, and challenges or groups sound motivating.
- You want one app to hold food, fasting, sleep, glucose, and body measurements.
- You want medication logging next to the food diary.
- You want the largest possible library of items and recipes.
Choose MacroLog if:
- You want macros and unlimited barcode scanning without a subscription.
- You would rather log without creating an account.
- You want to pick the logging method per meal instead of typing every time.
- You want a diary, not a programme with opinions about your food.
Sources checked August 12, 2026
- Lose It!, official Google Play listing — free versus Premium feature split, database size, community features, GLP-1 support, launch year.
- MacroLog claims: internal product-facts ledger and the live store listings.