Cronometer Review (2026): The Best Micronutrient Tracker, But Not a Meal Planning Tool
800,000+ verified foods, 80+ vitamins and minerals tracked, and a level of nutritional precision most apps don't come close to. Cronometer is the gold standard for nutrition tracking. But tracking what you eat and creating meal plans for clients are two different jobs.
What Is Cronometer?
Cronometer is a nutrition tracking app that stands out for data accuracy and micronutrient depth. While most apps stop at calories and macros, Cronometer tracks 80+ nutrients: vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and fatty acids.
Founded in 2011 in Canada, the app built a strong reputation among health-conscious individuals. Its database contains 800,000+ manually verified foods, sourced from USDA, NCCDB, and other official databases. Unlike MyFitnessPal, where the database is user-contributed (with the errors that come with that), Cronometer prioritizes data reliability over volume.
The app is primarily for individuals who want to understand exactly what they're eating. There's also a Pro tier for practitioners (dietitians, naturopaths, doctors), but the core function remains tracking, not meal plan creation.
Cronometer Homepage
Screenshot captured April 2026.
Key Features
Verified food database
800,000+ foods, manually verified by the Cronometer team. Data comes from official sources: USDA, NCCDB, and national databases from multiple countries. Every entry is reviewed, which dramatically reduces the errors common in user-contributed databases. For people on therapeutic diets or medical restrictions, this reliability matters.
Micronutrient tracking
This is the standout feature. Cronometer tracks 80+ nutrients: vitamins (A, B1-B12, C, D, E, K), minerals (iron, zinc, magnesium, selenium...), amino acids, and omega-3/omega-6 fatty acids. Progress bars show your intake relative to recommended daily values, making tracking visual and concrete. No other consumer app offers this level of detail.
Macro tracking with custom targets
Beyond micronutrients, Cronometer handles standard macro tracking (protein, carbs, fat) with adjustable targets in grams or percentages. It supports keto, zone, IIFYM, or any custom ratio you set. The interface is more minimal than MyFitnessPal's, but the data is more reliable.
Barcode scanning
The mobile app includes a barcode scanner for logging packaged foods quickly. Coverage is strong for North American products. European and Latin American products have thinner coverage, but manual entry fills the gap.
Recipe importer
Cronometer lets you import recipes from a URL or build them manually. The app auto-calculates nutritional values per serving. Useful for people who cook the same meals often and want accurate tracking without re-entering ingredients every time.
Gold subscription and Pro tier
Gold ($5.99/month) removes ads and adds an intermittent fasting timer, food suggestions to meet your nutrient targets, and data exports. The Pro tier ($35/month) is for practitioners: it lets you manage client profiles and view their food logs. It doesn't generate meal plans.
Cronometer Pricing (2026)
Three tiers: a free plan with ads, a Gold subscription for individuals, and a Pro plan for practitioners.
Screenshot captured April 2026.
| Free | Gold | Pro | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $0 | $5.99/mo or $39.99/year | $35/mo |
| Nutrition tracking | Macros + micronutrients | Macros + micronutrients | Macros + micronutrients |
| Ads | Yes | No | No |
| Fasting timer | ❌ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Food suggestions | ❌ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Client management | ❌ | ❌ | ✔ |
| Meal plan generation | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
For individuals, the free plan already covers serious nutrition tracking. Gold at $39.99/year is a solid deal if you want ad-free access and the extras. The Pro tier at $35/month is limited compared to B2B tools like Promealplan ($49/month, plan creation + white-label) or That Clean Life ($30-60/month).
Need to create meal plans, not just track nutrition? Promealplan includes white-label branding, a branded client portal, and 1,000+ dietitian-crafted recipes. Try it free, no credit card required.
Try Promealplan free →Pros and Cons for Coaches
What works well
- + Best micronutrient tracking available (80+ nutrients)
- + Manually verified database (800,000+ foods)
- + Reliable data from official sources (USDA, NCCDB)
- + Client food logs visible on Pro tier
- + Clean, functional interface
- + Free plan is already very capable
Where it falls short for coaches
- − No meal plan generation at all
- − No white-label branding (clients see Cronometer)
- − No branded client portal
- − Limited multi-client management on Pro
- − Consumer-first interface, not built for professional workflows
- − Primarily English (no multilingual support)
Who Should Use Cronometer?
Cronometer excels at precise nutrition tracking. The further you move from that use case, the more its limitations show.
Great fit: Health-conscious individuals
You want to understand exactly what you're eating, including micronutrients? Cronometer is the best app available for this. The verified database and 80+ nutrient tracking are unmatched in consumer apps.
Good fit: Coaches who want clients to self-track
With the Pro plan, coaches can view their clients' food diaries. This works if your role is limited to analyzing what clients eat, without creating or delivering custom meal plans.
Poor fit: Coaches who deliver meal plans
Cronometer doesn't generate meal plans. If your business involves creating branded plans for clients, you need a creation tool, not a tracking tool. The two complement each other but don't replace each other.
Not ideal: Multilingual practices
Cronometer's interface is primarily in English. If you serve Spanish-speaking or French-speaking clients, the app and nutritional data will be in English.
Cronometer vs Promealplan
These are two different categories of tools. Cronometer tracks what people eat. Promealplan creates what people will eat. One analyzes the past, the other builds the future. For a broader comparison, see our meal planning software comparison.
| Feature | Cronometer | Promealplan |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | Individuals (nutrition tracking) | Coaches and dietitians (plan creation) |
| White-label branding | ❌ | ✔ on every plan |
| Meal plan generation | ❌ | ✔ with custom macros |
| Food database | 800,000+ verified foods | 1,000+ dietitian-crafted recipes |
| Macro tracking | ✔ with custom targets | ✔ calories, protein, carbs, fat |
| Micronutrient tracking | ✔ 80+ nutrients (best in class) | ❌ macro-focused only |
| Client portal | Clients see Cronometer | Your-branded portal |
| Languages | Primarily English | English, French, Spanish |
| Coach price | $35/month (Pro) | $49/month (all features) |
Cronometer wins on micronutrient tracking. No contest. Promealplan wins on meal plan creation, white-label branding, the client portal, and multilingual support. They're not direct competitors: one tracks, the other plans. For more on planning tools, see our best meal planning software for coaches guide.
The Verdict
Cronometer is the best micronutrient tracking tool available. Its verified database of 800,000+ foods, 80+ nutrient tracking, and data reliability make it the standard for anyone who wants to understand exactly what they're eating. For personal use, nothing comes close.
But tracking and planning are different activities. Cronometer records what you eat. It doesn't create personalized meal plans for your clients. It doesn't put your brand on the documents. It doesn't run a branded client portal. The Pro tier lets you view your clients' food diaries, which is useful, but it's not a creation tool.
If you're a coach or dietitian who builds their business on delivering meal plans, you need a planning tool alongside Cronometer. Cronometer for tracking, a tool like Promealplan for creation. The two roles don't substitute for each other. For more on macro tracking with clients, check out our guide to calculating macros for clients.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Cronometer free?
Partially. Cronometer's free plan lets you track nutrition using the verified food database and micronutrient tracking. It includes ads and doesn't have the fasting timer, food suggestions, or data exports. The Gold subscription costs $5.99/month or $39.99/year and removes ads with full feature access. The Pro plan for practitioners costs $35/month.
Is Cronometer good for personal trainers?
Cronometer is excellent for nutrition tracking, but it doesn't generate meal plans. Coaches can use the Pro plan to view their clients' food logs, but they can't create or deliver branded meal plans. For meal plan creation, a dedicated B2B tool is a better fit.
Is Cronometer accurate for micronutrients?
Cronometer is widely considered the gold standard for micronutrient tracking. Its database of 800,000+ foods is manually verified, with data sourced from USDA, NCCDB, and other official databases. The level of detail on vitamins and minerals (80+ nutrients tracked) surpasses most competing apps.
What's the difference between Cronometer and Promealplan?
Cronometer is a nutrition tracking tool for individuals who want to log and analyze what they eat, with a focus on micronutrients. Promealplan is a B2B meal plan creation tool for coaches and dietitians. Key differences: Promealplan includes white-label branding, a branded client portal, 1,000+ dietitian-crafted recipes in 3 languages, and is built to create plans FOR clients. Cronometer is built to track what you eat, not to generate plans.
Cronometer vs MyFitnessPal: which is better?
Cronometer is superior for micronutrient tracking thanks to its verified database and detailed vitamin/mineral breakdowns. MyFitnessPal has a larger database (user-contributed, so less reliable) and stronger social features. For precise nutrition tracking, Cronometer is the better choice. For quick macro logging with a large community, MyFitnessPal works better.
Need to Create Meal Plans for Clients?
Promealplan is built for coaches and dietitians. White-label branding, branded client portal, and 1,000+ dietitian-crafted recipes. Create 3 plans free, no credit card.
Try Promealplan FreeRelated Articles
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