How It Felt vs
How It Felt vs MyFitnessPal.
MyFitnessPal is one of the largest calorie trackers in the world — built around a food database, weight goals, and macro targets. How It Felt is a mindful eating journal: no calories, no macros, no weight tracking. They optimise for opposite things, and that makes them complementary rather than substitutable for most people.
What each app optimises for
MyFitnessPal
Hitting a calorie or macro target by logging quantities of food.
How It Felt
Noticing how meals felt — emotionally, sensorially, before and after — without measurement.
Side-by-side
| Feature | MyFitnessPal | How It Felt |
|---|---|---|
| Counts calories or macros | MyFitnessPal Yes — core feature | How It Felt No — by design |
| Weight tracking | MyFitnessPal Yes | How It Felt No |
| Food database / barcode scan | MyFitnessPal Yes — large database | How It Felt No food database |
| Emotional check-in | MyFitnessPal No | How It Felt Yes — 21 emotions per entry |
| Hunger / fullness sliders | MyFitnessPal No | How It Felt Yes |
| Mindful eating timer | MyFitnessPal No | How It Felt Yes — breathing-paced |
| Data location | MyFitnessPal Cloud account required | How It Felt Local-only on device |
| Account / sign-up | MyFitnessPal Required | How It Felt None |
| Free tier | MyFitnessPal Free with ads + paid Premium | How It Felt Free forever; optional Supporter tier |
When to pick which
Pick MyFitnessPal if…
- You have a specific calorie or macro goal (cut, bulk, medical).
- You want a barcode scanner and a large food database.
- You're comfortable with daily weigh-ins and external metrics.
Pick How It Felt if…
- Counting has stopped helping — or started hurting — your relationship with food.
- You want to notice patterns (stress eating, distracted eating) without measurement.
- You want everything to stay on your device, with no account.
Verdict
MyFitnessPal is the right tool when the goal is a number. How It Felt is the right tool when the goal is awareness — or when stepping away from numbers is itself the point.
Frequently asked
Can I use both?
Plenty of people do — using MyFitnessPal during a specific cut and How It Felt for everyday meals — but the two answer different questions. Counting and noticing are skills that compete for attention; you usually get more out of one at a time.
Does How It Felt have a food database?
No. There's no database, no barcode scan, no portion estimator. An entry is a feeling, a hunger and fullness reading, optional sensory notes, and an optional photo or short text note.
Is How It Felt good for weight loss?
It isn't a weight-loss app. It doesn't track weight, calories, or progress toward a target. Some users find that mindful eating naturally changes their relationship with portion size — but that's not a promise the app makes.
Does my data stay private?
Yes. All entries live on the device in a local SQLite database (Drift). There are no accounts and no cloud sync. You can export to CSV or PDF whenever you want.
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.
Last reviewed: May 1, 2026.
Learn the concepts
Plain-language explainers behind the comparison.
Try How It Felt
A calmer way to be with food.
Free, no account, all data on your device.
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