Cronometer vs MyFitnessPal

Two tools coaches often weigh against each other, compared on the same terms.

Cronometer

FreemiumSoftware

A food diary with unusually careful data — micronutrients included — plus a professional view that lets a coach see a client's logs.

Visit Cronometer Full entry

MyFitnessPal

FreemiumSoftware

The food diary most clients have already installed, with the largest branded-food database — convenient, if less precise than the alternatives.

Visit MyFitnessPal Full entry

Pricing

Cronometer: Free tier covers logging; paid tiers add coach features

MyFitnessPal: Free tier exists; barcode scanning and macros moved behind Premium

What it is

Cronometer

Food logging built around verified nutrition data rather than a crowd-sourced database. It tracks micronutrients as seriously as it tracks macros, and its professional tier gives coaches a dashboard of client diaries.

MyFitnessPal

The default calorie tracker. Its advantage is not accuracy, it is that the food your client actually ate is probably already in the database, and they probably already have an account.

Best for

Cronometer

Coaches who need the numbers to be right — working with athletes, restrictive diets, or anyone whose intake you are reporting to a dietitian or doctor.

MyFitnessPal

Clients new to tracking, where the goal is awareness and adherence rather than precision to the gram.

Watch out for

Cronometer

Careful data means a smaller database of branded and restaurant foods, so logging takes longer. Clients who want to scan a barcode and move on may resist it.

MyFitnessPal

The database is crowd-sourced and full of wrong entries. Several features coaches rely on — including some macro and scanning tools — have moved into the paid tier over the years, so check what is free before you build a protocol on it.

Editorial comparison — nothing here is paid placement. Pricing changes often; treat the vendor’s own page as the truth. How we review