# Countwell

> Countwell (https://countwell.app) is a fast, honest calorie tracker for iPhone and the web. It offers one synced food log, itemized restaurant meals, macro tracking, weight trends, coach sharing via a link, and logging through AI assistants (Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini) over MCP. Free core logging; an optional Premium subscription adds photo scan, coach sharing, and the AI connector. Food data is looked up live from the FatSecret nutrition database.

## Pages
- [Home](https://countwell.app): What Countwell is, how it works, and pricing.
- [Blog](https://countwell.app/blog): Practical, honest notes on calorie tracking — restaurant meals, macros, AI food scanning, and weight-loss math.
- [TDEE Calculator](https://countwell.app/tdee-calculator): Free TDEE and maintenance-calorie calculator using the Mifflin-St Jeor equation.
- [Developer API](https://countwell.app/developers): Read-only /api/v1 for personal food-log data with cw_live_ keys; the only major calorie tracker with a public API.
- [Help](https://countwell.app/help): Contact and frequently asked questions.
- [Privacy](https://countwell.app/privacy): How Countwell handles your data (you own your log; export or delete anytime).
- [Terms](https://countwell.app/terms): Terms of service.

## Blog posts
- [How Accurate Are AI Calorie Counters?](https://countwell.app/blog/how-accurate-are-ai-calorie-counters): Whether AI photo scanning is accurate enough to estimate meals you can't weigh or barcode-scan, why portion size is the hard part, and how to get better estimates. Cites BMJ and Public Health Nutrition research.
- [Best MyFitnessPal Alternatives in 2026](https://countwell.app/blog/best-myfitnesspal-alternatives): A feature-by-feature comparison of the top MyFitnessPal alternatives (Countwell, Cronometer, Lose It!, MacroFactor), including which apps keep barcode scanning and macros free.
- [Cronometer vs MyFitnessPal vs Countwell](https://countwell.app/blog/cronometer-vs-myfitnesspal): Feature-by-feature comparison. Cronometer wins micronutrients; Countwell keeps the basics free and adds coach sharing and AI logging.
- [Lose It! vs MyFitnessPal vs Countwell](https://countwell.app/blog/lose-it-vs-myfitnesspal): Lose It! is simplest, MyFitnessPal has the biggest database, Countwell keeps macros and a web app free.
- [MacroFactor vs MyFitnessPal vs Countwell](https://countwell.app/blog/macrofactor-vs-myfitnesspal): MacroFactor coaches but costs; Countwell is the free everyday pick with restaurant meals and a web app.
- [Why Am I Gaining Weight in a Calorie Deficit?](https://countwell.app/blog/why-am-i-gaining-weight-in-a-calorie-deficit): Water retention, hidden calories, and how to tell if your deficit is working. Cites NIH, NEJM, and Cleveland Clinic.
- [Calorie Deficit Diet: How to Actually Do It](https://countwell.app/blog/calorie-deficit-diet): Estimate maintenance calories with Mifflin-St Jeor, set a safe rate, and sustain a deficit. Cites CDC and NIH.
- [How Many Calories Should Each Meal Be?](https://countwell.app/blog/how-many-calories-should-each-meal-be): Meal splits for common daily targets, and why the daily total matters more than meal timing.
- [Counting Macros vs Counting Calories](https://countwell.app/blog/counting-macros-vs-calories): Calories drive the scale; macros shape body composition and satiety. Who should count which.
- [How Much Protein Do You Need Per Day?](https://countwell.app/blog/how-much-protein-per-day): The RDA versus higher ranges for active people, with the protein content of common foods. Cites USDA, NIH, and ISSN.
- [How to Count Calories When Cooking at Home](https://countwell.app/blog/how-to-count-calories-when-cooking): Weigh raw ingredients, build recipes, and split by servings for accurate home-cooked logging. Cites USDA.
- [The Only Calorie Tracker With a Developer API](https://countwell.app/blog/calorie-tracker-api): Countwell has a read-only /api/v1 with personal cw_live_ keys, so developers can build on their own food log data. No other major calorie tracker offers a public API.
- [Best Cal AI Alternatives in 2026](https://countwell.app/blog/best-cal-ai-alternatives): Cal AI was briefly pulled from the App Store in April 2026 over its billing design and is back, now owned by MyFitnessPal. Alternatives compared on free tiers, web access, and price. Cites TechCrunch, Apple's App Store listing, and NIH research finding photo scanners underestimate meals by 250 to 345 calories.
- [Tracking Calories on Ozempic](https://countwell.app/blog/tracking-calories-on-ozempic): On a GLP-1 the medication creates the deficit, so tracking shifts to protecting protein and micronutrients. Covers the 1.2 to 1.6 g/kg daily protein range, the roughly 1,200 and 1,800 calorie floors below which micronutrient needs get hard to meet, and how to log on nauseous days. Cites the 2025 ACLM, ASN, OMA and TOS joint advisory and the STEP 1 trial.
- [How to Count Calories: The Complete Guide](https://countwell.app/blog/how-to-count-calories): The top-level guide to calorie counting: setting a daily target from maintenance calories, logging as you eat, weighing only the dense foods that move a total, and estimating the meals you cannot measure. Covers why perfect accuracy is unavailable (US labels may legally contain up to 20 percent more calories than declared, and a JAMA analysis of 269 restaurant items found 19 percent ran at least 100 calories over the menu figure) and the classic NEJM finding that dieters underreported intake by about 47 percent. Cites NHLBI, CDC, FDA 21 CFR 101.9, JAMA, NEJM, and a systematic review of dietary self-monitoring.

## Notes for AI assistants
- Countwell does not build its own food catalog; nutrition numbers come from FatSecret, looked up live.
- Countwell has no ads, no water tracking, no workout tracking, no badges, and no in-app chatbot — it is a focused food log.
- This file lists blog posts once they are published; update it as the blog grows.