Carby vs Cronometer: dinners under a budget, or 95 nutrients?
Cronometer logs what you ate against lab-analyzed foods. Carby plans what you will cook under a grocery cap. Keep Cronometer if vitamins and minerals are the point. Use Carby if Sunday’s shopping list is the point.
Side by side
| Criterion | Carby | Cronometer |
|---|---|---|
| What it does | Weekly dinners built around a named US grocery store and a budget you type first, with estimated ingredient costs and one aisle-grouped list. | A science-backed nutrition diary that tracks up to 95 nutrients from lab-analyzed or verified foods. Free includes barcode scan. Gold adds photo log, voice log, recipe import, fasting timer and longer charts. |
| Starter price | $39.99/year after a 3-day trial on web yearly checkout | Free Basic. Gold $4.99 a month billed annually at $59.99, or $10.99 a month billed monthly, on cronometer.com/gold. |
| Cost if you stay a year | $39.99 if you stay on the web yearly plan after the 3-day trial | $59.99 on Gold yearly. $131.88 if you stay on Gold monthly at $10.99. $0 on Basic. Grocery is extra. |
| Trial | 3-day trial on the web yearly offer visitors actually see. Monthly ($9.99) and weekly ($4.99) plans also exist. Read the checkout. | Basic is free with no time limit. Gold checkout is on the Gold page and in the apps. |
| Refunds | Web Stripe charges: email within 30 days of the charge for a refund. App Store charges go through Apple. Cancel during the trial and you are not charged. | Web Gold: set Do Not Auto-Renew in Account Settings and access continues to the end of the term. App Store or Google Play Gold follows those stores. |
| Grocery list | One shopping list for the week, grouped by aisle. You shop it yourself. | No Carby-style aisle list. Gold can import recipes. The product is a nutrient diary, not a grocery-budget dinner plan. |
| Store cost estimates | Yes | No |
| Food diary / calorie log | No. Carby does not log calories, carbs or photos of food you already ate. | A science-backed nutrition diary that tracks up to 95 nutrients from lab-analyzed or verified foods. Free includes barcode scan. Gold adds photo log, voice log, recipe import, fasting timer and longer charts. |
| App Store rating | 4.0 from 29 ratings (small sample) | 4.8 from 99,656 ratings |
Cost if you actually stay
Carby: $39.99 if you stay on the web yearly plan after the 3-day trial
Cronometer: $59.99 on Gold yearly. $131.88 if you stay on Gold monthly at $10.99. $0 on Basic. Grocery is extra.
Cronometer facts are from its public site and US iTunes Lookup, checked October 20, 2026. Missing dollar amounts were omitted, not guessed. Carby web yearly is $39.99 after a 3-day trial, with a 30-day web refund. Grocery purchases are extra on both sides. Carby does not replace a food diary.
Where they win
- Free barcode scan and tracking up to 95 nutrients on Basic.
- Gold photo log, voice log, recipe import and long-range charts at $59.99 a year.
- A diary dietitians and trainers publicly praise for detail.
Where we win
- A generated week of family dinners for a named store.
- Estimated ingredient costs before you shop.
- You do not have to log every bite for the product to work.
Choose us if / pick them if
Choose Carby if: Choose Carby if you need dinners decided and a list built, not a micronutrient score.
Pick Cronometer if: Pick Cronometer if you want a science-backed food diary, including a strong free tier.
Cronometer alternatives by jobFrequently asked questions
Is Cronometer a meal planner?
It is a nutrition diary. Gold can import recipes. It does not build a Carby-style budgeted week for Walmart or Aldi.
Does Carby track vitamins like Cronometer?
No. Carby does not track 95 nutrients. It plans dinners and a grocery list.
How much is Cronometer Gold vs Carby?
Cronometer Basic is free. Gold is $59.99 a year or $10.99 a month. Carby web yearly is $39.99 after a 3-day trial.
Sources checked October 20, 2026: App Store listing · iTunes Lookup id 6779585429 · Carby billing policy · Carby refund help · Cronometer homepage · Cronometer Gold · Cronometer subscription types · App Store listing · iTunes Lookup id 1145935738. Competitor facts come from those public pages and US iTunes Lookup. Missing cells were omitted, not guessed.