Pensum
Pensum vs MyFitnessPal
MyFitnessPal is the app most people start with. It also shows ads on the free tier and has moved basics behind Premium over the years, the barcode scanner most famously, in 2022. Pensum gives you a full tracker for free, with no ads and no account, and barcode scanning is part of the free core.
Download for AndroidEarly build, Android only. An honest comparison; where MyFitnessPal is better, we say so.
Side by side
Facts as of 2026. Subscription prices change and vary by region, so treat any figure as approximate and check the app store for the current number.
| Pensum | MyFitnessPal | |
|---|---|---|
| Free tier | Full-featured core, free | Ad-supported and limited; several basics moved to Premium |
| Cost to keep using | Everything free now; tracking stays free, optional Pro one day | Free tier usable; Premium around 80 USD per year, Premium+ around 100 USD per year |
| Behind the paywall | Nothing. Diary, barcode scanning, custom macros, meal photo scan, data export: all free | Ad-free, barcode scanner, custom macro goals, meal photo scan, voice logging, data export |
| Ads | None, on any tier | Yes, on the free tier |
| Barcode scanning | Free, via Open Food Facts | Premium only since 2022 |
| Card required to start | No account, no card | Free account; card needed for Premium |
| Food database | USDA plus German and Swiss national databases, generic foods first, values flagged | Very large but crowdsourced, many duplicate and user-submitted entries |
| Adaptive expenditure / TDEE | Yes, in the free core, with weekly check-in | Goals from a static formula |
| Privacy | Local-first, no account | Cloud account |
| Platforms | Android (early); Health Connect sync | iOS, Android, web, wide integrations |
Where MyFitnessPal is stronger: breadth. Its branded and restaurant coverage is enormous, it runs on every platform, and it connects to a long list of apps and devices. If you eat a lot of US chain-restaurant food, that coverage is hard to match.
What actually differs
The three differences that actually matter.
No ads, and no metered basics
MyFitnessPal's free tier carries ads in the middle of logging, and it has narrowed over the years. Features that were once free now sit in Premium at around 80 USD per year. Pensum runs the opposite way: the whole app is free with no ads, no account and no card, and everyday tracking stays that way. If pricing ever changes, only the AI extras become an optional Pro upgrade; manual tracking stays free forever.
Barcode scanning stays free
MyFitnessPal moved its barcode scanner to Premium in 2022, so on the free tier you scroll the food list instead of pointing your camera at a package. Pensum scans barcodes for free using the Open Food Facts product database. It is a small thing you do dozens of times a week, which is exactly why paywalling it stung.
Quality over volume in the database
MyFitnessPal's database is huge, and that breadth is real. It is also crowdsourced, so a single food can return dozens of entries with conflicting numbers, many submitted by other users. Pensum's database is smaller, around 16,000 foods, built from national sources with USDA first plus the German and Swiss composition databases. Generic whole foods rank above branded products, and every value is flagged verified, partial or estimated, so you know what you are logging.
Who should switch, and who should not
If your logging is mostly US branded and restaurant food, or you need iOS today, MyFitnessPal's breadth and platform coverage are hard to beat and Premium buys back the features it removed. If you are tired of ads in the diary and paying to scan a barcode, and you mostly log generic foods, Pensum does the everyday work for free, with no ads and every basic included.
Questions
Is Pensum a good MyFitnessPal alternative?
If what pushed you off MyFitnessPal is ads in the diary and basics that moved behind Premium, Pensum is a direct answer: the whole tracker is free with no ads, no account and no card, and barcode scanning is included. MyFitnessPal still wins on sheer breadth, with huge branded and restaurant coverage and apps on every platform, so if you log a lot of US chain-restaurant food its database is hard to beat.
What does MyFitnessPal paywall behind Premium?
Several things that used to be free. Premium removes ads and unlocks the barcode scanner, which moved to Premium in 2022, along with custom macro goals, meal photo scan, voice logging, different goals by day, and data export. Premium costs around 80 USD per year and Premium+ around 100 USD per year. In Pensum all of that everyday tracking, barcode scanning included, is free.
Does MyFitnessPal show ads?
Yes, the free tier shows ads, and many users describe them as frequent and intrusive during logging. Removing ads is one of the reasons to pay for Premium. Pensum has no ads on any tier, and there are none to remove.
Is Pensum free?
Right now everything in Pensum is free with no ads on any tier: the full diary, the 16,000-food database from USDA, German and Swiss sources, saved meals, recipes, trends, targets, weigh-ins, Health Connect sync, and AI meal-photo scanning. If that changes one day, the AI extras become an optional Pro upgrade; everyday manual tracking stays free forever.
Does barcode scanning cost money in Pensum?
No. Barcode scanning is free in Pensum, powered by the Open Food Facts product database. MyFitnessPal moved its barcode scanner behind Premium in 2022, so on the free tier you scroll the food list instead of scanning.
Which has better food data, Pensum or MyFitnessPal?
It depends on what you eat. MyFitnessPal's database is enormous, with wide branded and restaurant coverage, but it is crowdsourced, so it carries many duplicate and inaccurate user entries. Pensum's is smaller, around 16,000 foods, built from national sources with USDA first plus the German and Swiss databases, ranks generic whole foods above branded products, and flags every value as verified, partial or estimated. Pensum trades breadth for consistency.
The basics MyFitnessPal moved behind Premium, the barcode scanner included, are free in Pensum.
Download for Android