Best Calorie Counter With a Barcode Scanner (2026): Which Apps Keep It Free

---

title: "Best Calorie Counter With a Barcode Scanner (2026): Which Apps Keep It Free" description: "Which calorie counter apps keep the barcode scanner free in October 2026 and which charge for it, how big and how verified each food database is, which work best outside the US, and when photo logging beats scanning." publishedAt: "2026-10-05" updatedAt: "2026-10-05" category: "App comparisons" tags: ["calorie counter with barcode scanner", "free barcode scanner calorie app", "barcode scanner food app", "MyFitnessPal barcode scanner", "best calorie tracker 2026", "food scanner app", "calorie app barcode"] keyTakeaways:

• "Cronometer, FatSecret, Yazio and Fitia keep barcode scanning free as of October 5, 2026. Cronometer's listing says it outright: scan barcodes for free."
• "MyFitnessPal's barcode scanner is Premium. Its help center, updated September 3, 2026, says Barcode Scan has been Premium-only since October 1, 2022. Many articles still say otherwise."
• "Lose It! is moving its barcode scanner to Premium, and it only works with the device language set to English. Callie's barcode scanner is paid after the 3-log trial, at $34.99 a year in the US."
• "Database size and verification are different things. MyFitnessPal lists 20.5M+ foods, many added by users, with check marks on reviewed items. Cronometer has about 1.1 million, and its curation team reviews every user submission."
• "For packaged food bought outside the US, Yazio lets you pick a food database for 249 countries and territories, and FatSecret's platform covers more than 62 countries in 26 languages." faq:
• question: "Which calorie counter has a free barcode scanner?" answer: "Cronometer, FatSecret, Yazio and Fitia all include barcode scanning in their free apps as of October 5, 2026. Cronometer pairs it with a curated database and 84 nutrients. FatSecret adds free image recognition. Yazio has country-specific food databases. Fitia's free tier also includes text logging."
• question: "Is the MyFitnessPal barcode scanner free?" answer: "No. MyFitnessPal's help center says that as of October 1, 2022, Barcode Scan is available only with a Premium subscription, and its plan comparison lists the barcode scanner under Premium and Premium+. Premium is $79.99 a year or $19.99 a month in the US."
• question: "Is the Callie barcode scanner free?" answer: "No. Callie gives you 3 AI logs to try the app, and after that the barcode scanner, like photo, voice and text logging, needs a subscription: $34.99 a year, $14.99 a month or $4.99 a week in the US. If you only want free barcode scanning, Cronometer or FatSecret is the better choice."
• question: "Which barcode scanner app has the most accurate food data?" answer: "Cronometer has the strictest process we found: its curation team reviews every user-submitted food before it enters the database, and branded items only carry what is on the label or the brand's site. MyFitnessPal has far more foods, and a check mark shows which entries it has reviewed, but it says even those can contain mistakes."
• question: "What is the best barcode scanner calorie app outside the US?" answer: "Yazio for Europe, since you can choose your food database country (249 are available) and it comes from a German company with strong European coverage. FatSecret is the broadest, with verified data sets for more than 62 countries in 26 languages. If a product isn't found, check that your database country matches where you shop."
• question: "Should I scan barcodes or use photo logging?" answer: "Scan anything with a barcode. The label data is more accurate than any photo estimate. Use photo, voice or text logging for home-cooked and restaurant meals, which have no barcode, and review the estimate before saving: a 2026 NIH analysis found four photo apps underestimated meals by roughly 250 to 345 calories when nobody corrected them."

---

Callie is our app, and it is one of the apps below. Its barcode scanner is not free, and we say so in every section. Prices come from the US App Store, free and paid splits from each app's own listing or help center, all checked on October 5, 2026. Sources are at the bottom.

The 30-second answer

If you want barcode scanning without paying, pick Cronometer for verified data, FatSecret for coverage across many countries, or Yazio for European groceries. Fitia also keeps its scanner free. MyFitnessPal has the largest database, but its scanner is Premium ($79.99 a year). Callie: AI Calorie Tracker has a barcode scanner that is paid after the 3-log trial ($34.99 a year), and it makes sense if you also want photo, voice and text logging for the meals that have no barcode.

Which apps keep the barcode scanner free

The free and paid line has moved a lot since 2022, and plenty of articles still describe old splits. Here is what each app's own listing or help center says now.

Free: Cronometer's App Store listing says "Scan barcodes for free", and its subscription page leaves scanning out of the Gold list. FatSecret's listing puts the barcode scanner and image recognition in the free app and keeps meal plans and water tracking for Premium. Yazio's Google Play listing puts the barcode scanner in its free calorie counter, and its PRO feature list doesn't include it. Fitia's free vs Premium page lists the barcode scanner as free.

Paid: MyFitnessPal's barcode help article says "As of October 1, 2022, Barcode Scan is available only with a Premium subscription", and its plan comparison agrees. Some users report that free scanning still works on older accounts or in some regions, but MyFitnessPal's help center lists no exceptions, so don't count on it. MacroFactor has a barcode scanner but no free tier after its 7-day trial. Cal AI's listing says food scanning results require a subscription. Callie's scanner is paid after the 3-log trial.

In transition: Lose It!'s help center says it is moving the barcode scanner and nutrition label scanner to Premium. Some free members keep access during the transition and others don't, and the scanner only works with the device language set to English.

Database size is not the same as accuracy

A barcode scan is only as good as the entry it finds. Two numbers matter: how many products the database has, and who checked them.

MyFitnessPal lists 20.5M+ foods in its App Store listing. Many entries are added by users. A check mark means MyFitnessPal reviewed the entry, and it warns that even check-marked foods can have mistakes. More entries means more scans find something, and more duplicates to choose between.

Cronometer is smaller, at more than 1.1 million verified foods per its listing, and stricter. Its data sources page says the curation team reviews every user-submitted food before adding it, and branded products carry only what is on the package or the brand's website. If a scan finds nothing, you photograph the label and it goes to review.

FatSecret says its platform has more than 2.3 million verified foods, with every item reviewed before release.

Yazio lists more than 4 million searchable items and lets users add products that are missing.

Callie's App Store listing describes a 14M+ food database behind its barcode scanner. For European packaged goods, our coverage is thinner than Yazio's.

Lose It! lists a global database of 56+ million items and recipes, a figure that counts recipes too, so it isn't comparable with food counts. And MacroFactor says its database is verified and includes data from Open Food Facts.

Regional coverage: where you shop matters

US-built databases are strongest on US brands. If you buy groceries elsewhere, check this before anything else.

Yazio is built for it. Its food database country is a separate setting from the app language, and 249 countries and territories are available. Its help center says a failed scan is often a database country mismatch.

FatSecret runs verified data sets for more than 62 countries in 26 languages, per its platform page. Its US App Store listing says that app is customized for US foods and brands, so check which country's data your copy shows.

MyFitnessPal comes in 20 languages, but many of its entries are added by users, so coverage outside the US depends on what other users have entered.

Cronometer's lab-analysed data comes from US, Canadian and Irish sources (NCCDB, USDA, CNF and IFCDB), per its data sources page.

The best calorie counters with a barcode scanner, ranked

1. Cronometer: best free scanner with verified data

Free barcode scanning, a curated database, 84 nutrients and Apple Health and Health Connect sync, with ads on the free tier. Gold ($59.99 a year) adds photo and voice logging. Rated 4.8 from 99K on the US App Store. See Callie vs Cronometer.

2. MyFitnessPal: best database coverage, if you pay

The largest food count here (20.5M+), which matters most for obscure brands. The scanner needs Premium at $79.99 a year or $19.99 a month. Rated 4.7 from 2.37M.

3. Callie: best for mixing barcode scans with photo, voice and text logging

Callie is our app. Scan packaged food, and log everything else by photo, voice or a typed sentence. Photo scans open a review screen where you fix foods and portions before anything is saved. It also scans restaurant menus. The barcode scanner is paid after the 3-log trial: $34.99 a year, $14.99 a month or $4.99 a week in the US, with no free plan. That is less than half of MyFitnessPal Premium. Where it loses: a smaller database than MyFitnessPal and thinner European coverage than Yazio.

4. Yazio: best for European groceries

Free scanner, country-specific databases, a fasting tracker and 20 languages. PRO ($47.90 a year, offers from $23.90) adds AI photo tracking and fasting plans. See Callie vs Yazio.

5. FatSecret: best free scanner across regions

Free scanner and image recognition, verified data in many countries, Apple Watch complications. The design is plain. Premium annual plans run $38.99 to $59.99 on the US App Store.

6. Fitia: best free scanner with meal plans

Free scanner and text logging, plus meal plans built around your target. Photo and voice logging, Health sync and more than 4 meals a day need Premium ($59.99 a year). Rated 4.9 from 22.5K on the US App Store. See Callie vs Fitia.

7. MacroFactor: best scanner inside a paid coaching app

A barcode scanner and verified database inside the best adaptive calorie target we know, but no free tier: $71.99 a year. See Callie vs MacroFactor.

8. Lose It!: scanner moving to Premium

A large database and a nutrition label scanner, but both are moving behind Premium and need an English device language. Premium runs $39.99 to $79.99 a year, with a lifetime option. See best Lose It! alternatives.

Barcode scanners compared

Feature	Callie	Cronometer	MyFitnessPal	Yazio	FatSecret	Fitia	MacroFactor	Lose It!
Barcode scanner
Barcode scanner without paying	Paid after 3 logs		Premium				Trial only	Moving to Premium
Database size (vendor figure)	14M+	1.1M+ verified	20.5M+	4M+	2.3M+ verified	Not listed	Not listed	56M+ items and recipes
How entries are checked	Not listed	Every submission reviewed	Check marks on reviewed items	User-added products	All items verified	Nutritionist-verified (listing)	Verified (listing)	Not listed
Regional databases	Not listed	US, Canada, Ireland lab data	Not listed	249 countries	62+ countries	Not listed	Not listed	Not listed
Photo logging		Gold	Premium	PRO		Premium		Premium
Annual US price	$34.99	$59.99 (Gold)	$79.99	$47.90	$38.99–$59.99	$59.99	$71.99	$39.99–$79.99

When to use photo logging instead

A barcode gives you the manufacturer's label, which is about as accurate as home logging gets. Most meals don't have one. A plate of pasta you cooked, a curry from a takeaway, or a salad with dressing on top can't be scanned.

For those, photo, voice or text logging is faster than building the meal from database entries. It is less accurate unless you check it. A 2026 NIH analysis found four popular photo apps underestimated meals by roughly 250 to 345 calories when nobody corrected the estimate, mostly from fat the camera couldn't see. In our own 20-meal test, Callie averaged 13% mean absolute error against Cal AI's 17% (method on the Callie vs Cal AI page). That is our test, not an independent one.

A good rule: scan anything with a barcode, photograph or describe everything else, then add the oil, butter and sauces before you save. Our guide to tracking calories from a photo covers the method.

Related reading

• How to track calories accurately
• Best calorie tracker app for iPhone
• Best calorie tracker app for Android
• MyFitnessPal vs Lose It!

Sources

1. MyFitnessPal Help (updated September 3, 2026). "How to use the Barcode Scanner." https://support.myfitnesspal.com/hc/en-us/articles/360032624771-How-to-use-the-Barcode-Scanner
2. MyFitnessPal Help (updated September 20, 2026). "The difference between Free, Premium, and Premium +." https://support.myfitnesspal.com/hc/en-us/articles/34889191368077-The-difference-between-Free-Premium-and-Premium
3. MyFitnessPal Help (updated September 21, 2026). "Check Marked items." https://support.myfitnesspal.com/hc/en-us/articles/360032273292-Check-Marked-items
4. MyFitnessPal App Store listing (accessed October 5, 2026). https://apps.apple.com/us/app/myfitnesspal-calorie-counter/id341232718
5. Cronometer App Store listing (accessed October 5, 2026). https://apps.apple.com/us/app/cronometer-calorie-counter/id1145935738
6. Cronometer Support (updated October 4, 2026). "Subscription Types." https://support.cronometer.com/hc/en-us/articles/360028026971-Subscription-Types
7. Cronometer Support (updated October 3, 2026). "Data Sources." https://support.cronometer.com/hc/en-us/articles/360018239472-Data-Sources
8. Cronometer Support (updated October 4, 2026). "Mobile - Scan Food." https://support.cronometer.com/hc/en-us/articles/360020441392-Mobile-Scan-Food
9. FatSecret App Store listing (accessed October 5, 2026). https://apps.apple.com/us/app/calorie-counter-by-fatsecret/id347184248
10. FatSecret Platform API (accessed October 5, 2026). https://platform.fatsecret.com/platform-api
11. Yazio Google Play listing (accessed October 5, 2026). https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.yazio.android
12. Yazio Help Center (updated October 4, 2026). "How does Yazio Pro support my goals?" https://help.yazio.com/hc/en-us/articles/208847005-How-does-Yazio-Pro-support-my-goals
13. Yazio Help Center (updated October 3, 2026). "How can I change the app language or food database?" https://help.yazio.com/hc/en-us/articles/208126989-How-can-I-change-the-app-language-or-food-database
14. Yazio Help Center (updated September 13, 2026). "The scanned product will not be recognized, why?" https://help.yazio.com/hc/en-us/articles/208555549-The-scanned-product-will-not-be-recognized-why
15. Fitia Help. "Free vs Premium Features." https://fitia.app/help/articles/free-vs-premium-fitia/
16. Lose It! Support (updated April 1, 2026). "Unlocking the Barcode Scanner/Scan It." https://loseit.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/47773984823700-Unlocking-the-Barcode-Scanner-Scan-It
17. Lose It! App Store listing (accessed October 5, 2026). https://apps.apple.com/us/app/lose-it-calorie-counter/id297368629
18. MacroFactor App Store listing (accessed October 5, 2026). https://apps.apple.com/us/app/macrofactor-macro-tracker/id1553503471
19. Cal AI App Store listing (accessed October 5, 2026). https://apps.apple.com/us/app/cal-ai-calorie-tracker/id6480417616
20. Callie App Store listing (accessed October 5, 2026). https://apps.apple.com/us/app/callie-ai-calorie-tracker/id6748760925
21. Charles O, Hengist A et al. (July 2026). "Accuracy of photo-based dietary tracking applications." Presented at NUTRITION 2026. Press release: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1136415