# MacrosFirst vs Barkle

The clearest difference is ads: Barkle at none against MacrosFirst's shown. Barkle also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 74%). MacrosFirst's advantage is ratings volume (22K vs 6) and update cadence (weekly vs every 2 weeks). On price, rating, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. MacrosFirst sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $11.99 per month and Barkle sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for MacrosFirst against 5.0 for Barkle. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: MacrosFirst has 22K ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 74% of MacrosFirst's written reviews are positive against 100% of Barkle's.

MacrosFirst ships an update weekly, Barkle every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 15, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | MacrosFirst | Barkle |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.9 (22K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/macrosfirst-macro-tracker/id1253012487/reviews) | **[5.0 (6 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/barkle/id6463427532/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **22K** | 6 |
| Positive reviews | 74.0% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Every 2 weeks |
| Monetization | Freemium | Freemium |
| Best chart rank | **#79** | — |
| Size | 211 MB | 80 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | **15.1** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 12+ | 17+ |
| Developer | [MacrosFirst, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1275597328) | [22 Eleven Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/1704339903) |

## What reviewers say

### MacrosFirst

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/macrosfirst-macro-tracker/id1253012487)

**Currently charting:** #79 Top Grossing · Health & Fitness, #199 Top Free · Health & Fitness (US App Store)

This app helps users track their food intake, calories, and macronutrients to achieve health and fitness goals. It offers features like custom goal setting, automatic serving size calculation, and quick food logging via barcode scanning or label analysis. Users can also monitor progress, share meals, and even convert alcohol calories into macro equivalents.

**Highlights:** Custom macro goal setting, Automatic serving size calculation, Barcode and label scanning for food logging, Detailed macro and nutrient tracking, Progress analysis and trend reporting, Meal sharing and social support, Alcohol calorie conversion

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (7)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| MacrosFirst Premium | $11.99 | per month |
| MacrosFirst Premium | $11.99 | per month |
| MacrosFirst Premium | $41.99 | per year |
| MacrosFirst Premium | $71.99 | per year |
| MacrosFirst Premium | $71.99 | per year |
| MacrosFirst Premium | $79.99 | per year |
| MacrosFirst Premium | $79.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Easy to use
- 🚀 Intuitive interface
- 💯 Accurate macro tracking
- 🔍 Extensive food database
- 🔓 Free features without paywall

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional bugs and glitches
- 📚 Limited food database for some users
- 🔢 Difficulty adjusting serving sizes
- 🔍 Inaccurate nutrition info for some items
- 🔧 Lacking certain customization options

**Reported bugs**

- Search function not working properly
- Time zone issues causing date discrepancies
- Scanning feature recording incorrect nutrition info

**Requested features**

- Integration with Apple Health
- Ability to share meals/recipes with friends
- Customizable macro goals (e.g., carb cycling)
- Improved reporting and progress tracking
- Option to submit food data corrections


### Barkle

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/barkle/id6463427532)

Analyze your fitness data and enhance your performance with community-driven tools. Upgrade for exclusive features, cross-platform data integration, and early access to live events and races.

**Highlights:** Data analysis tools, Performance enhancement features, Community-driven features, Exclusive previews, Cross-platform data integration (coming soon), Early access to live events and races

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Barkle+ | $7.99 | per month |
| Barkle+ | $69.99 | per year |
| Single Event Access. | $4.99 | one-time |
| Pay As You Use | $4.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is MacrosFirst free?

MacrosFirst is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Barkle free?

Barkle is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, MacrosFirst or Barkle?

Barkle is rated higher. MacrosFirst averages 4.9 out of 5 from 22K ratings, while Barkle averages 5.0 from 6 ratings.

### Do MacrosFirst or Barkle have ads?

MacrosFirst shows ads; Barkle does not.

### Which is updated more often, MacrosFirst or Barkle?

MacrosFirst ships an update weekly, and Barkle every 2 weeks. Most recently, MacrosFirst was updated on October 15, 2026 and Barkle on October 1, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*