15 best weight loss apps that actually work

Welcome to the know-everything era. We’re obsessed with knowing everything that goes into our bodies (calories along with macronutrients like fat , carbs, and protein the calories we’re burning vi, how many steps we’re taking, our hydration status, and sleep you name it. And in some cases, more info is actually a weight-loss tool. Losing weight is a journey. It requires a ton of motivation and support, and at the end of the day, shedding pounds isn’t just about the number on the scale. It’s about overhauling your lifestyle and making positive, long-lasting changes. That’s where the help of an app comes in.

Weight loss apps can connect you with dietitians, doctors, and trainers to help you navigate everything from what to buy at the grocery store to choose a healthy dish at a restaurant. They can also be a great source of providing support through active online communities.

Some apps have extra features, such as support forums, barcode scanners, and the ability to sync with other health and fitness apps or devices. These features aim to keep you motivated toward your weight loss goal.

Not only are weight loss apps easy to use, but many of their benefits are supported by scientific evidence.

And if you need some help with fitness in the best weight loss apps are equipped with on-demand workouts from top trainers that you can do right at home. Best of all, they connect to smartwatches and wearables, like an Apple Watch or fit  so you can keep track of your progress and make informed health decisions—everywhere and at any moment

Several studies have shown that self-monitoring may promote weight loss by increasing awareness of your habits and progress.

Many modern apps also provide specific support for people who follow keto paleo and vegan diets.

 WW (Weight Watchers)

There’s a reason WW is one of the top-rated weight loss apps: This app gathers all the best aspects of the program in one convenient spot. You can track your food and fitness progress and even chat with others in the community for motivation and support, says Rebecca Gahan, C.P.T. and owner of Kick@55 Fitness in Chicago. You can also sync it to any smartwatches or devices to convert daily steps into points.

An iOS reviewer raves, “With the ability to walk into a grocery store, scan a barcode and instantly know the points value of food, I can shop healthy and proactively without fear. I can also pair my activity tracker so I know the value of each activity I complete.

Lose it up

Lose It! is a user-friendly weight loss app focused on calorie counting and weight tracking.

Through an analysis of your weight, age, and health goals, Lose It! generates your daily calorie needs and a personalized weight loss plan. Once your plan is established, you can easily log your food intake into the app, which pulls from a wide database of over 34 million foods, restaurant items, and brands.

Additionally, you can use the app’s barcode scanner to add some foods to your log. It saves foods that you enter frequently, so you can quickly select them from a list whenever you eat them.

One feature that makes Lose It! different from many other weight loss apps is that it has a snap this feature, which allows you to track your food intake and portion sizes simply by taking pictures of your meals.

Studies have shown that taking pictures of your meals may help you keep track of portion sizes more accurately and observe trends in your dietary intake, both of which are helpful for promoting weight loss.

Noom  

With Noom , there’s a weight loss coach by your side throughout your journey. Using psychology-based approaches, the app reveals your weight loss obstacles and provides adjustments to make better progress, making it a terrific tool for personalized attention. What’s more, if you have medical conditions, like diabetes or heart dieses the app tailors its program accordingly. “This app is helping me change small habits one day at a time and it’s doing more for my brain than my body right now,” one iOS user writes. “I am moving more and making better food choices. I have not lost much weight yet, but my mind is definitely changing, and I truly believe that weight loss and a healthy body is in my near future.”

Myfitnesspal

If you’re trying to cut back on carbs, MyFitnessPal makes it easy. “I like apps with built-in nutrition information, like MyFitnessPal, especially for my patients who have diabetes or who are interested in following some specific diet plan,” says Dr. Adimoolam. With its bar code scanner, you don’t have to search for the specific food you’re eating, which really speeds the food tracking process. You’ll also like how at the top, all your nutrition stats are congregated in a clean way, displaying your goal calories, how much you’ve eaten, how much you’ve burned through exercise, and how many you have left.  MyFitnessPal found that, while 80 percent of participants surveyed praised the ease of use within the app, the authors found that there were discrepancies in nutrient measurements as much of the data is user-generated. This means some of that data may be inaccurate.

MyMacros

With five million food items in the database, MyMacros+ makes watching your food intake seamless. If you’re tracking your macros (protein, carbohydrates, and fat) as a way to stay fit, you’ll be able to set a macro goal and use the macro calculator to stay on course. Handy graphs lay out your progress in a simple, visual way.

Pros

MyFitnessPal has a “Quick Add” feature, which you can use when you know the number of calories you ate but don’t have the time to enter in all the details of your meal.
MyFitnessPal can sync with fitness tracking apps, including Fitbit, Jawbone UP, Garmin, and Strava. It will then adjust your calorie needs based on what you burned via exercise.

Foodcuate

It’s can be impossible to feel confident in your weight loss journey if you’re unsure of what “healthy” really means. Fooducate offers 60,000 recipes and educates users on what to look for in a nutrition label so that they can keep nutrient-rich foods in their pantries and fridge. Simply scan the label to see a list of ingredients in any product, plus its health grade compared to other options. Beyond food, you can also track sleep, mood, and fitness.

Fooducate helps me be more aware of every bite I put into my mouth because I know I will have to enter it into the app. I like that it also helps me understand more about the quality of ingredients and nutrients I’m consuming.”

Fitbit App

One potential way to shed pounds is by keeping track of your exercise habits with a wearable activity tracker.
Fitbits are wearable devices that measure your activity level throughout the day. They’re an excellent resource to help you track physical activity.

The Fitbit can record the number of steps taken, miles walked, and stairs. The Fitbit also measures your heart rate.

Depending on the type of Fitbit you have, you can set alarms as reminders to get up and exercise, and Fitbit will send notifications to your phone to tell you how close you are to your fitness goals for the day.

Additionally, you receive awards whenever you achieve a specific goal. For example, you may receive the “New Zealand Award” once you walk 990-lifetime miles, signifying that you’ve walked the entire length of New Zealand.

fatsecret

Having a support system may be helpful for weight management. FatSecret focuses on providing its users with that support.

The app allows you to log your food intake, monitor your weight, and interact with other people through its community chat feature.

Not only are you able to chat with other users, but you can also join groups to connect with people who have similar goals.

In addition to a large collection of healthy recipes that you can make, FatSecret features a journal where you can record information about your weight loss journeys, such as your successes and drawbacks.