Cal AI vs MyFitnessPal: Price, Free Plan and Photo Logging

MyFitnessPal is the better choice if you want a free plan and a huge searchable food database, and Cal AI is the better choice if you want a camera-first app and are happy to pay for it. One thing surprises most people: MyFitnessPal announced on 2 March 2026 that it had bought Cal AI, though it says Cal AI keeps running as a separate app.

Disclosure: this page is written by the Calo AI Team. Calo AI is our own app, and we have no link to Cal AI or MyFitnessPal. Every Cal AI and MyFitnessPal fact below comes from their own websites, help centres, corporate blog and app store listings, checked on 9 October 2026. Prices change, so treat them as a snapshot.

Cal AI vs MyFitnessPal at a glance

Does MyFitnessPal own Cal AI?

Yes. MyFitnessPal announced the deal on 2 March 2026, on its corporate blog. It says “Cal AI will continue operating as a standalone product” and describes the two apps as serving “distinct but complementary audiences”.

In practice this means they are still two apps, with two accounts and two subscriptions. Paying for MyFitnessPal Premium does not unlock Cal AI, and Cal AI’s FAQ adds that subscriptions are tied to the platform you bought on, so an iPhone subscription does not move to Android.

Is Cal AI or MyFitnessPal free?

MyFitnessPal is, in part. Its free plan covers nutrition and exercise tracking, so you can search foods, log meals and see your calories without paying. The extras sit in Premium: its premium page lists barcode and meal scanning, voice logging, custom macro goals, ad-free logging, intermittent fasting, Net Carbs Mode and syncing with more than 35 apps and devices.

Cal AI is free to download, but not free to use for long. Its website offers a “3-day free trial”, and its App Store listing says “food scanning analysis results require a subscription”. We found no permanent free plan on Cal AI’s official pages. Our page on whether Cal AI is free explains how the trial and cancelling work.

How much do Cal AI and MyFitnessPal cost?

MyFitnessPal is easy to price. Its premium page lists Premium at $79.99 a year or $19.99 a month in the US. It also offers a 7-day free trial to people who have never had Premium or a Premium trial, and your card is charged when the trial ends unless you cancel.

Cal AI is harder to price from the outside. Its website lists no prices. Its US App Store listing shows in-app items called “Unlimited” at $2.99, $5.99, $9.99, $19.99 and $29.99, plus a $0.99 “Streak Restore”, but it does not say how long each item lasts. The price you see depends on the offer on Cal AI’s paywall, so read that screen carefully before your trial ends.

The App Store also lists other MyFitnessPal Premium items, including $49.99 yearly and $9.99 monthly options, which may be offers. In Canada and Australia, both apps charge in local currency, so check the upgrade screen in your own app store.

Which is more accurate, Cal AI or MyFitnessPal?

We have not run a head-to-head test, so we will not claim one wins. Here is what each company says.

Cal AI says it uses “your phone’s depth sensor” to work out food volume, then its AI estimates calories, protein, carbs and fat. Its FAQ is honest that “CalAI is about 80% accurate”, and it suggests a clear, in-focus photo that fills the frame.

MyFitnessPal’s database is a mix of foods added by MyFitnessPal and foods added by its users. It marks reviewed entries with a check mark, so picking those helps. Searching a database is slower than a photo, but you can choose the exact brand and serving.

With either app, portion size is usually the biggest source of error. Our guide on how accurate AI calorie trackers are explains why photos struggle with hidden oil, sauces and mixed dishes.

When is Cal AI the better choice?

Cal AI does several things well:

• Speed. Logging is built around one photo, which suits people who quit diary apps because searching felt like a chore.
• Several ways in. Its website says you can snap a photo, scan a barcode or describe your meal.
• Health app syncing. Its FAQ explains how to connect Apple Health on iPhone and Google Fit on Android.
• No ads label. Its Google Play listing does not carry a “Contains ads” label.

When is MyFitnessPal the better choice?

MyFitnessPal is likely the better fit if:

• You want to log for free, at least for the basics.
• You eat a lot of restaurant and branded food, where a database of over 20.5 million foods helps.
• You want a website as well as the phone apps.
• You want lots of connections: its premium page says more than 35 apps and devices sync.

If you would rather leave both, our MyFitnessPal alternative and Cal AI alternative pages go further.

Is there a free app with photo logging?

Cal AI needs a subscription for scan results, and MyFitnessPal keeps Meal Scan in Premium. If free photo logging is what you want, Calo AI is an option on Android, with a web app at caloai.fit/app that runs in the browser on iPhone, iPad, Mac and PC.

Be clear on what Calo AI does not do. It has no barcode scanner, no native iPhone app and no database the size of MyFitnessPal’s. Photo results are estimates, so describing the dish or correcting a result by voice or text gives a closer number. You can check your targets first with our calorie deficit calculator.

You can try the web app free or get Calo AI on Google Play.

A note on safety: if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, under 18, or have diabetes, PCOS, kidney disease or a history of eating disorders, speak to a doctor or registered dietitian before following a calorie target from any app. Real results vary from person to person.