Top 5 Nutrition Apps

The World Health Organization defines overweight and obesity as “abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that may impair health,” with more than 650 million people living with obesity as of 2016. Those numbers keep climbing, but several companies are working hard to push back against the trend.

Here are the top 5 nutrition apps that help you eat differently, eat healthier, and eat lighter, so you can lose weight and actually keep it off.

#1 Noom

Taking the top spot is Noom, a weight-loss app focused on helping users lose weight and maintain that loss for good. Plenty of nutrition apps make that same claim, but research published in Scientific Reports and JMIR mHealth and uHealth confirms it — among 35,000 users studied, more people lost weight with Noom than with a traditional weight-loss plan.

Noom builds each user a personalized 16-week weight-loss plan, moving from small dietary and lifestyle changes toward a genuinely lighter, more sustainable way of living. Features include food logging, exercise tracking, goal setting, and support from an assigned human coach, so there’s always someone in your corner.

For anyone looking for more than basic macro and vitamin tracking, Noom’s more comprehensive approach tends to deliver stronger results.

#2 Lose It!

At first glance, Lose It! centers on calorie counting — the official site says as much — but its standout feature, Snap It! (still in beta as of late 2019), lets users snap a photo of their food for quick logging. Early-stage tools like this can have hiccups, but it shows real ambition toward next-generation nutrition tracking.

Set a goal, track food and exercise, and watch progress unfold — Lose It! with Snap It! is a genuinely capable program.

#3 My Diet Coach

My Diet Coach has held a spot among top nutrition apps for years, offering a fun, customizable avatar-based design alongside meal logging and exercise tracking. What really sets it apart is its goal-tracking feature — set personal targets like parking farther from the store entrance or doing 25 jumping jacks a day.

For a genuinely fun, simple interface, My Diet Coach is a solid pick.

#4 MyFitnessPal

Don’t let the name fool you — MyFitnessPal goes well beyond exercise tracking. It integrates thorough food logging, including carbs, fat, and protein tracking, photo uploads, a food diary, progress tracking, and social connections with friends, all from your phone.

For a strong integration of food logging and exercise tracking, MyFitnessPal remains one of the best options available.

#5 Numi

Numi is the companion app to the Nutrisystem diet plan, designed to work alongside Nutrisystem entrées but fully capable as a standalone nutrition app too — even after you stop ordering from the company. Alongside detailed nutritional data for millions of foods, Numi offers weight tracking, articles, recipes, and coupons.

For a nutrition app that’s simple to use and flexible enough to adapt to your specific eating style, Numi is worth a look.

Research shows obesity has increased worldwide over the past two decades, according to Gastroenterology Clinics of North America — but no one has to fight that battle alone. Nutrition apps like these are built to support a genuinely healthier, more sustainable path forward.

Nutrition Apps: Finding the Right Nutrition App for You

Each of these nutrition apps takes a slightly different approach to helping you eat better, from personalized coaching to simple photo-based food logging. The best nutrition app for you ultimately depends on how much structure and support you want along the way, and how comfortable you are logging meals daily. Whichever nutrition app you choose, consistent tracking tends to be the single biggest factor in long-term success.

Frequently Asked Questions About Nutrition Apps

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For general guidance on healthy weight management, see the resources available from Mayo Clinic.