MyFitnessPal Alternative That
Plans Your Meals
Instead of Tracking Them
Free barcode scanning.
Household portion calculation with leftover planning.
Built by a nutritionist in New Zealand.
Reviewed by Brad Gorlicki, ISSA-certified nutritionist (NZIHF, NZQA-recognized).
MyFitnessPal Tracks What You Ate.
FlexiDiet Tells You What to Eat.
That's not a feature difference. That's a category difference.
MyFitnessPal Looks Backward
A calorie tracker
- You eat first, then log it
- Manual entry for every meal, snack, drink
- User-generated database with errors
- Red warnings when you go over
- No idea what to cook tonight
- Most users quit within 6 months
FlexiDiet Looks Forward
A meal planner that calculates everything
- Your week is planned before it starts
- Portions calculated automatically, no logging
- Recipes verified by a qualified nutritionist
- Adjusts when life happens (takeaway nights, etc.)
- You always know what's for dinner
- Designed to be sustainable for years, not weeks
The reframe: Tracking is what you do when you don't have a plan.
FlexiDiet gives you the plan. So you can stop tracking.
FlexiDiet vs MyFitnessPal: Quick Comparison
Every feature, side by side.
| Feature | MyFitnessPal | FlexiDiet |
|---|---|---|
| Meal planning built-in | ||
| Per-person household portions | ||
| Free barcode scanning | ||
| Nutritionist-verified recipes | ||
| Pre-calculated portions | ||
| Leftover & cross-week planning | ||
| Scheduled takeaway nights | ||
| Couples & partner linking | Limited | |
| Built-in coach platform | ||
| Ad-free | ||
| Calorie & macro tracking | ||
| Food database | User-generated | Verified |
| New Zealand built | ||
| Free tier | ||
| Premium price | $79.99/yr | Lower |
Comparison based on MyFitnessPal Premium features as of November 2026.
Why People Are Leaving MyFitnessPal
We analysed 1,727 New Zealand App Store reviews. Five complaints came up over and over.
The barcode scanner moved behind an $80 paywall
In 2022, MyFitnessPal moved barcode scanning to its premium tier. For millions of free users, the single most-used feature became locked overnight. FlexiDiet includes barcode scanning in the free tier, with native camera integration on iOS and Android.
The food database is full of errors
MyFitnessPal's database is user-generated. Search for 'chicken breast' and you'll find 50 different entries with 50 different calorie counts. FlexiDiet uses nutritionist-verified recipes and ingredients, with no duplicates and no guessing.
Manual logging is exhausting
Every meal, every snack, every drink, every day, forever. Most users quit within six months. FlexiDiet pre-calculates everything from your weekly plan. You cook and eat. The math is already done.
The 1,200-calorie default is dangerous
MyFitnessPal defaults women to 1,200 calories per day for aggressive weight loss. This is sub-clinical and not a real nutritionist recommendation. FlexiDiet calculates your target based on activity level, job type, training, and goal pace, with safety floors built in.
It doesn't tell you what to eat
MyFitnessPal can show you what you ate yesterday. It can't tell you what to cook tonight. This is the fundamental gap FlexiDiet was built to fill.
One Pan. Whole Household. Different Portions.
MyFitnessPal logs your food. FlexiDiet coordinates everyone's plate at the same dinner.
The Household Problem
You're cutting on 1,400 calories. Your partner is bulking on 3,200. The kids need 600. MyFitnessPal makes you log all four people separately. Every meal. Every day.
FlexiDiet calculates every plate from one recipe. Automatically. Forever.
Tonight's dinner: Butter Chicken (6 servings)
Divide Dish into 6 servings
FlexiDiet tells you exactly how much to put on each plate.
No other meal planning app does this. Not MyFitnessPal, not PlateJoy, not Mealime, not Eat This Much.
FlexiDiet vs MyFitnessPal: Key Differences
Pre-Built Plans, Not Blank Diaries
MyFitnessPal hands you an empty food diary and tells you to fill it in. FlexiDiet hands you a complete weekly plan, calibrated to your calories, goals, dietary requirements, and cooking time.
Set up your profile once. The plan generates itself. Cook the meals. That's it.
10
minutes to set up
Then never again.
Verified Database, Not Crowdsourced
MyFitnessPal's database has 14 million entries. Most are user-submitted, full of errors, missing data, and duplicates. Search 'banana' and you'll find one listed as 4 calories and another as 200.
FlexiDiet's database is curated by a qualified nutritionist. Quality over quantity. You can trust the numbers.
Free Barcode Scanning
In 2022, MyFitnessPal moved its barcode scanner to premium. Scanning a yoghurt pot now costs $79.99 per year. For most users, this was the breaking point.
FlexiDiet includes barcode scanning in every tier, including free. Native camera integration on iOS and Android with sub-second scan times.
The MFP cost over time
Just to scan barcodes.
Built for couples & families
- Link your partner's account
- Different calorie targets, same meal
- Kids get age-appropriate portions
- One grocery list for the whole house
Designed for Households, Not Individuals
MyFitnessPal treats every user as if they live alone. If you cook for a family, you log your portion and ignore everyone else's.
FlexiDiet was built around the kitchen, not the gym. Set up your household once, and every meal calculates portions for everyone. Same dinner, different goals.
Flexibility Built In
Ordered Uber Eats on Tuesday? Pizza with mates on Friday? Real life happens. MyFitnessPal punishes you with red bars and broken streaks.
FlexiDiet has scheduled takeaway nights, automatic plan rebalancing, and one-tap meal swaps. No guilt. No restarts. Just adjustment.
When life happens
Tuesday 6pm: Ordered takeaway. Logged via barcode.
Tuesday 6:30pm: Plan auto-adjusts Wednesday's dinner.
Wednesday 9am: Grocery list updated automatically.
Pricing: FlexiDiet vs MyFitnessPal
More features. More flexibility. Less money.
MyFitnessPal
Free tier
$0
With ads, limited features, no barcode scanner
Premium
$79.99 USD /year
Required for barcode scanner
- No meal planning
- No household coordination
- Manual logging required
- Ads on free tier
Switching from MyFitnessPal?
Bring Your History with You.
Years of logged meals shouldn't disappear when you switch apps. Upload your MyFitnessPal printable-diary PDF and FlexiDiet imports every meal onto the right date — in under a minute.
Export from MyFitnessPal
Open Food → Printable Diary, pick your date range, then in your browser Print → Save as PDF (Chrome, not Microsoft Print to PDF — with Background graphics on).
Upload to FlexiDiet
Profile → Account → Import MyFitnessPal Diary. Pick the PDF you just saved. FlexiDiet reads every food on every date.
Review and import
Untick anything you don't want. Re-map any custom meals. One click imports everything to your FlexiDiet history — on the right date, in the right meal slot.
Your data stays yours
The PDF goes straight to your private FlexiDiet account. Nothing's shared.
Review before commit
See every parsed food and uncheck what you don't want. Nothing imports without your OK.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is FlexiDiet a free MyFitnessPal alternative?
Yes. FlexiDiet is free to start. You get a full personalised meal plan, household setup, recipe library, and barcode scanning at no cost. Premium unlocks unlimited plan swaps, smart grocery lists, and price insights. No credit card needed to start.
Why are people switching from MyFitnessPal to FlexiDiet?
Three main reasons. First, MyFitnessPal moved barcode scanning behind an $80 a year paywall in 2022, frustrating millions of users. Second, manual logging is exhausting and most people quit within months. Third, MyFitnessPal tracks what you ate yesterday, while FlexiDiet plans what you'll eat tomorrow. That's a category difference.
How is FlexiDiet different from MyFitnessPal?
MyFitnessPal is a calorie tracker. You log every meal, every ingredient, every snack, forever. FlexiDiet is a meal planner. It builds your week's meals up front, calculates the portions automatically, and you just cook and eat. No logging required. It's called tracking without tracking.
Does FlexiDiet have a barcode scanner?
Yes. Barcode scanning is included in FlexiDiet without paywalls. It works on iOS, Android, and web, with native camera integration on mobile for sub-second scanning.
Can FlexiDiet handle my whole family?
Yes. FlexiDiet is the only meal planning app that calculates different portion sizes for every household member from a single recipe. Your husband can hit 2,800 calories, you can hit 1,600, and the kids get age-appropriate servings, all from one pan. MyFitnessPal doesn't do this. No app does this.
Is FlexiDiet good for weight loss?
FlexiDiet was built by a qualified nutritionist specifically for fat loss, muscle gain, and maintenance goals. Every recipe is nutritionist-verified for accuracy. You set your goal, the app builds a plan that hits your calorie and macro targets, and adjusts automatically when life happens.
Does FlexiDiet use AI to generate meal plans?
No. Your meal plans are never generated by AI. FlexiDiet was designed by an ex-nutritionist and bodybuilder and builds every plan from carefully selected formulas. It links each recipe to real ingredients in your local supermarket and makes sure you get enough calories, carbs, protein, fat and fiber for a balanced diet. When it comes to building what you eat every day, we trust proven nutrition formulas, not unreliable AI guesswork.
Will FlexiDiet work if I'm using a personal trainer?
Yes. FlexiDiet has a dedicated coaching platform called FlexiCoach that lets your trainer build your nutrition plan and monitor adherence in real time. If your PT isn't on FlexiCoach yet, send them our way.
Does FlexiDiet have ads?
No. FlexiDiet is ad-free on every tier including the free tier. MyFitnessPal serves ads on its free tier.
What countries is FlexiDiet available in?
FlexiDiet is built in New Zealand by an ex-nutritionist and is rolling out worldwide one country at a time. FlexiDiet has real grocery product data that links to your meal plan so you get up-to-date prices and supplier-provided nutrition information. No more scrolling through 50 versions of user-submitted chicken breast. All product information is directly from the source.
Can I import my MyFitnessPal data into FlexiDiet?
Yes. In MyFitnessPal, go to Food → Printable Diary, pick a date range, and use your browser's Print → Save as PDF. Upload that PDF in FlexiDiet from Profile → Account → Import MyFitnessPal Diary. The importer reads every food on every date, lets you review and uncheck anything you don't want, and writes the entries to your FlexiDiet history. Most users back-fill a few months in under five minutes.
Keep Reading
Best Calorie Tracker NZ
See how FlexiDiet compares to MyFitnessPal, MacroFactor and more, side by side for New Zealand.
Free Calorie Calculator
Find your daily calorie target with the Mifflin-St Jeor equation. No signup required.
FlexiDiet Pricing
Free tier with full meal planning. Premium unlocks unlimited swaps and price insights.
How FlexiDiet Works
See the full meal planning workflow, from profile setup to your first weekly plan.
MyFitnessPal is a trademark of MyFitnessPal, Inc.. FlexiDiet is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by MyFitnessPal. All comparisons reflect publicly available information as of May 2026 and may change.