Shutterbite vs How It Felt

Shutterbite vs How It Felt: Which Journal Fits You?

How It Felt is a journal for noticing hunger, fullness, emotion and the senses around a meal. Shutterbite presents itself publicly as a mindful photo food journal. The difference is the shape of the experience: How It Felt keeps journal content on your device, while selected entry-derived fields are sent to Firebase; Shutterbite offers a more configurable journaling experience.

Mindful food journal with custom tracking Shutterbite →

What each app optimises for

Shutterbite

A photo-led journal with more room to configure the record around your own prompts, as described on Shutterbite's public site.

How It Felt

A quiet check-in that stays focused on the meal: hunger before, fullness after, a named emotion and optional notes about taste, texture and setting.

Side-by-side

Feature	Shutterbite	How It Felt
What an entry is	Shutterbite A meal or snack led by a photo, with prompts and notes	How It Felt Hunger, fullness and an emotion, with optional sensory notes and a photo that is never analysed
Customisation	Shutterbite More configurable prompts, according to its public product description	How It Felt A deliberately small set of prompts, including taste, texture and setting
Hunger and fullness	Shutterbite Hunger and fullness are among the public site's listed prompts	How It Felt Sliders for both, captured with every entry
Emotion and context	Shutterbite The public site describes prompts about mood and context	How It Felt A 21-emotion grid, plus optional notes on the meal's sensory setting
Photo journal	Shutterbite Photo-first meal tracking	How It Felt A photo can accompany the reflection but is never recognised, named or analysed
Timer and breathing	Shutterbite The public site describes a meal timer	How It Felt A breathing-paced mindful eating timer
Reviewing entries	Shutterbite The public site presents the journal as something you can review	How It Felt Today, week and month views without interpretation or scoring
Goals and routines	Shutterbite Not assessed here as a recommendation; goals and routines can be unhelpful for some people	How It Felt No goals, programs, milestones or streaks
Account and data location	Shutterbite Check Shutterbite's current account and storage terms before using it	How It Felt No account; journal content stays in a local database on your device, while selected entry-derived fields are sent to Firebase
Ads and subscription	Shutterbite Check the current product terms for pricing and saving limits	How It Felt Free with ads; optional Supporter tier removes them
Privacy disclosures	Shutterbite Shutterbite's privacy policy describes its collection and sharing practices; review the current policy before entering sensitive information	How It Felt Journal photos and note text stay on the device, but Firebase receives selected entry-derived fields, including meal type, selected emotion, hunger level, photo presence and note length; AdMob, analytics and crash reporting also receive service data as described on our privacy page
Export	Shutterbite Not assessed from the public product page	How It Felt CSV or PDF, exported by you
Languages	Shutterbite Not assessed from the public product page	How It Felt 6 — English, German, Spanish, French, Italian and Portuguese
Platforms	Shutterbite Not assessed from the public product page	How It Felt iOS and Android
Pricing	Shutterbite Check the current product terms for pricing and saving limits	How It Felt Free with ads; optional Supporter tier

When to pick which

Pick Shutterbite if…

A photo-first record feels easier than writing about each meal.
You want more room to configure the questions in a journal.
You have checked its current privacy disclosures and are comfortable with them.

Pick How It Felt if…

You want journal content kept on your device without an account, while understanding that selected entry-derived fields still go to Firebase.
You want a smaller, consistent set of prompts.
You want a journal that ends after the check-in, with no goals, milestones or routine to complete.
You prefer a consistent small set of questions over a large menu of tracking options.
You want to export the journal yourself as CSV or PDF.

Verdict

Shutterbite offers a more photo-led and configurable journaling experience. How It Felt keeps the check-in smaller, with journal content on your device and selected entry-derived fields sent to Firebase. Neither approach is automatically better, and neither app is treatment. If tracking food or meal experiences feels difficult for you, a doctor, therapist or eating-disorder-informed dietitian can help you decide whether either tool is appropriate.

Frequently asked

Is Shutterbite a photo food journal?

Shutterbite presents itself publicly as a photo food journal. How It Felt can attach a photo, but its focus is the experience of the meal rather than the image.

Can I customise what Shutterbite asks me about?

Shutterbite's public product description presents it as configurable. How It Felt uses a smaller, consistent set of prompts so the check-in stays simple.

Does Shutterbite have stats and guided routines?

Shutterbite presents a configurable journal that can be reviewed over time. This comparison does not treat statistics, goals or routines as inherently helpful. How It Felt shows entries by time period but does not set goals or assign routines.

Where does each app keep my journal?

How It Felt does not require an account: journal photos and note text remain in a local database on your device, but selected entry-derived fields — including meal type, selected emotion, hunger level, photo presence and note length — may be sent to Firebase. For Shutterbite, review the current account, storage and privacy disclosures before putting sensitive information into the app.

What happens after Shutterbite's free limit?

Pricing and saving limits can change. Check the current listing or product terms for your platform before subscribing.

Sources and review date

Comparison claims are based on the public product information linked below and the How It Felt feature set on this site.

Shutterbite's product page describes its photo-led journal, configurable prompts, meal timer and ways to review entries; features can change. [Shutterbite product page]
The App Store listing is a current source for Shutterbite's availability, feature presentation and platform-specific store details. [Shutterbite App Store listing]
Shutterbite's terms are the source for its current service and access conditions, including terms that may affect accounts, saving and use. [Shutterbite terms of use]
Shutterbite's privacy policy is the source for its collection and sharing practices; review the current policy before entering sensitive information. [Shutterbite privacy policy]
How It Felt's policy describes journal photos and note text stored on-device, while Firebase receives selected entry-derived fields including meal type, selected emotion, hunger level, photo presence and note length; AdMob, analytics and crash reporting also process service data. [How It Felt privacy policy]
This study examined recording food intake with cell-phone camera pictures, which gives context for comparing a photo-led journal with a text-led one. [Doumit R. et al. (2016)]

Last reviewed: April 30, 2026.

Learn the concepts

Plain-language explainers behind the comparison.

Try How It Felt

A calmer way to be with food.

Journal content stays on your device; selected entry-derived fields are sent to Firebase, as described in the privacy policy.