13 Best Weight Loss Apps to Consider

If you’ve ever been on a weight loss journey, you’ve probably experienced the frustration of not seeing progress firsthand. You’re putting in the effort, trying to eat whole foods, drinking enough water, and getting your cardio in, but nothing seems to have changed even after months of hard work. Sound familiar? 

Weight loss plateaus can be frustrating, but don't double down on your efforts blindly just because you've hit one. When you're trying to reach a weight loss goal, an important thing to remember is that there's no one-size-fits-all. Instead of trying every fad diet and intense fitness routine out there, it's best to focus on healthy lifestyle changes and dietary tweaks that best suit your specific needs—without sacrificing nutrition. 

But even if you have all the right ideas, it can be challenging to stay on track, hold yourself accountable, and maintain your results once you start your journey towards healthy weight loss.  

Here's where an app can help! Read on to learn more about the 13 best apps available in 2022 to help you meet healthy weight loss goals.

Best Diet-Focused Weight Loss Apps

A diet-based weight loss app can include any app that can help you meal plan, track calories and macros, or make decisions about your nutrition. A healthy, nutritious diet can play a crucial role in weight loss.

When you're picking through these apps, consider the pros and cons of each and choose one that can help you achieve your individual goals. It’s also essential to make sure the plan encourages you to maintain your weight loss goals after you hit them.

Here’s our selection of the best apps to guide, support, and motivate you through your weight loss journey:

1) Nutrisense

 The Nutrisense app uses continuous glucose monitor (CGM) technology to provide real-time data and insights about your body. 

As a member of the Nutrisense program, you're also paired with a credentialed dietitian or nutritionist who will help you interpret your body’s response to food and create a personalized meal plan to help you meet your goals.

Learn more about the Nutrisense app and how measuring your glucose levels can help with your weight loss goals here.

Unique Features

• The Nutrisense app gives you a real-time glimpse into how your body responds to your diet and lifestyle.
• You get in-app support from a credentialed dietitian or nutritionist to help you interpret your blood glucose levels and design a plan that works for your specific needs.

Pros

• It’s easy to view which foods are causing your glucose spike with in-app meal tracking.
• The app also tracks other lifestyle factors like exercise, sleep, and stress.
• Members can track macros and calories with its built-in Nutritionix database.

Cons

• To get the most accurate readings, you have to use the app with a CGM device.

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2) Cronometer

Cronometer is a calorie-counting app that allows you to track your diet, macros, and other health information to make better-informed decisions about your daily food intake. 

This app includes an analysis of your daily food intake and a community forum where you can connect with other users.

Unique Features

• The app is available both via website and app.
• Chronometer integrates with many popular health apps like Strava, Garmin, FitBit, Polar, and Qardio.

Pros

• Cronometer is free to use and includes video tutorials for new users.
• The app uses the USDA food database, and users can also add their own foods to the database.

Cons

• It can be time-consuming to enter food data each day.
• To use the integrations with third-party apps, users will need to upgrade to the paid version.

3) MyMacros+

MyMacros+ is a calorie tracking app designed to help users track their body weight, diet, and macros. Users can set goals, track progress, and benefit from the built-in nutrition database that contains over 20,000 everyday food items.

Unique Features

• Created and designed by a professional bodybuilder.
• Integrates with Apple Health to provide a complete picture of all your health data.

Pros

• All the information is stored locally to use without an internet connection.
• You can 'favorite' various foods and meals for easy access within the app.

Cons

• The app’s design is a bit outdated.
• The app is not free to use.

4) Lose It! Calorie Counter

Lose It! Is an app designed to help users reach their weight loss goals. This app lets you input personal information like your weight, height, activity level, and the foods you eat to help you set goals and stay on track to accomplish them.

This app is community-focused and encourages users to participate in forums and discussions to stay motivated, learn, and get advice.

Unique Features

• This app promotes a holistic approach to weight loss.
• Users can form part of the in-app community for more accountability.

Pros

• This app has a very user-friendly interface.
• Lose It! provides users with a questionnaire to help users create realistic goals and track progress.
• Users can personalize their macronutrient goals on the app.

Cons

• The app does not include meal or exercise plans.
• After the free trial period, Lose It! requires a monthly payment to use.

5) MyPlate Calorie Counter

MyPlate is a food logging app for improving your nutrition and meeting set dietary goals. The app is run by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and helps users track progress and earn badges for meeting their health goals.

Unique Features

• The app has a “Challenges” feature to help motivate users to meet specific targets.
• MyPlate puts more focus on achieving goals than simply tracking everything you eat.

Pros

• The app makes it easy for users to pay attention to serving sizes.
• Allows users to set goals for each food group (i.e., protein, grains, dairy, etc.).

Cons

• The app’s interface is basic and not the most visually appealing.
• MyPlate’s search feature does not always work. 

6) Nutritionix

Nutritionix is a diet-focused app that allows users to track their daily nutrition and exercise. Also available via its website, this platform offers users access to the largest verified database of nutritional information. 

It gives you all the information you need to make informed choices about your diet.

Unique Features

• The app displays nutritional information in the same label format found on store-bought products.
• Nutritionix has a portal that your doctor or coach can access to view your data.

Pros

• The app is free to use but also includes a paid version.
• It possesses the largest verified database of nutritional information, which is also used by the Nutrisense app.

Cons

• The app’s interface is a bit outdated.
• Nutritionix does not offer diet plans for its users.

7) FatSecret

FatSecret is a calorie-counter and diet tracker designed to help with weight loss goals. 

This app is free to use and uses the community to help users motivate themselves, make educated dietary choices, and sustainably lose weight.

Unique Features

• Users can interact with others in the FatSecret community to stay motivated and feel supported.
• FatSecret provides its users with a complete nutritional breakdown of their meals.

Pros

• Healthy recipes are available for meal inspiration.
• FatSecret allows users to track their progress in a journal to help them stay on track. 

Cons

• Macronutrient data may not always be available on FatSecret.
• The app’s primary focus is weight loss, and it may not take other factors into account.

8) Fooducate

Fooducate is an app that allows users to track food and get insights into total calories and macro and micronutrient consumption. 

This app gives you feedback and tips on maintaining a healthy diet and tracks your progress over time.

Unique Features

• The Fooducate app allows you to plan meals tailored to specific dietary plans, like paleo, keto, and the Mediterranean diet. 
• The app gives foods a grade based on nutritional value to help you make informed dietary choices.

Pros

• Fooducate gives users easy-to-understand feedback about their nutrition.
• Macro, calorie, and vitamin information is easy to view and interpret on the app.

Cons

• Some features of Fooducate are locked without upgrading to the paid version.
• Limited community features are available for users of this app.

Exercise-Focused Apps

One of the most challenging aspects of weight loss can be finding a workout regimen that works for you, so we’ve picked some of the top exercise-focused weight loss apps designed to support weight management and fitness goals. 

9) MyFitnessPal

MyFitnessPal is a calorie counter and exercise tracking tool that makes it easy for users to set informed fitness and nutrition goals. 

The app includes one of the most extensive food databases on the market and allows users to track their calorie intake, view and set macro goals, and track daily exercise routines.

Unique Features

• MyFitnessPal integrates seamlessly with many other exercise and diet apps.
• The MyFitnessPal online forum allows users to ask questions and share insights about exercise and nutrition.

Pros

• Users can add friends to create a community feed and follow others on their fitness journeys.
• The free version of the app includes almost all essential features.

Cons

• Inputting food eaten can be time-consuming if you want to track your calories on MyFitnessPal.
• Food data manually input by users in the database can be inaccurate.

10) Fitbit

Fitbit is a fitness tracker worn on the wrist to track exercise and measure activity levels. Users can track their daily steps, calories, weight loss goals, and more. 

There are many models of the Fitbit tracker available, and they're all linkable with the Fitbit app, which displays your fitness data.

Unique Features

• The community aspect of Fitbit can help drive competition between users and make it fun to stay active.
• The app is user-friendly and designed to boost your motivation to stay active.

Pros

• Fitbits are thin and lightweight to wear on the wrist and have decent battery life.
• Having access to your activity level data can help push you to move more.

Cons

• Tracking data is not always 100 percent reliable.
• Fitbits can be expensive.

11) FitOn

FitOn is an app for diet and exercise tracking that provides users with meal plans, workout routines, and meditations for a well-rounded, active lifestyle. FitOn also includes workout videos that users can follow to stay active.

Unique Features

• FitOn offers live and on-demand workouts ranging from yoga to HIIT that users can follow.
• Some of FitOn’s workouts are led by celebrity trainers for a dash of extra motivation.

Pros

• FitOn allows users to create their own exercise routines with varying workout lengths.
• The app includes an “Advice” section full of educational content for users to learn from.

Cons

• Meal plans are only available on the app’s paid version.
• FitOn may be geared towards people who are already in decent shape.

12) StepsApp Pedometer

StepsApp is a step counter and walk tracker to help users measure their daily activity. 

This app allows users to turn their iPhone into a pedometer and get more insight into their fitness levels. It also integrates directly into the Apple Health app.

Unique Features

• StepsApp sends push notifications to help users stay on track to meet their daily step goals.

Pros

• The app’s interface is clean, easy to use, and syncs with the Apple watch.
• StepsApp keeps users motivated by offering badges for specific achievements, such as walking 10,000 steps.

Cons

• StepsApp is only compatible with iPhone and Apple products.
• It needs to be paired with other apps for a more well-rounded fitness regimen.

13) Nike Training Club

Nike Training Club is a fitness-based app offering over 500 free on-demand workouts for all fitness levels. 

The app became free for all users after the Covid-19 pandemic and contains unique video-based workouts that allow you to create your own training plan with home equipment.

Unique Features

• Nike’s program offers workout videos of varying lengths and styles.
• The workout instructors are experts carefully selected by Nike and come from various backgrounds and specialties.

Pros

• The app uses an introductory survey to help recommend workouts for their goals.
• It’s easy to search for types of workouts and save your favorites on the app.
• Nike workouts are designed to be done at home with minimal equipment.

Cons

• Workouts are not ideal for more advanced athletes.
• It can be hard to track your progress on the app.