# a better meal vs Doughly

The clearest difference is monetization model: Doughly at free with in-app purchases against a better meal's subscription. Doughly also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.6) and review sentiment (100% vs 88%). a better meal's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (61 vs 1). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. a better meal sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Doughly sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Doughly holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: a better meal has 61 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 88% of a better meal's written reviews are positive against 100% of Doughly's.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 22, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | a better meal | Doughly |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.6 (61 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/a-better-meal-menu-planner/id6443470543/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/doughly/id6502307680/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **61** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 88.0% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | Fortnightly |
| Monetization | Subscription | **Free with in-app purchases** |
| Size | 101 MB | 67 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 | **14.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Better Meal LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1646237236) | [Joshua Brusse Merrell](https://appshunter.io/developer/1744997644) |

## What reviewers say

### a better meal

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/a-better-meal-menu-planner/id6443470543)

Simplify meal planning and discover personalized recipes with this AI-powered organizer. Create custom weekly meal plans, import recipes from anywhere, and build cooking confidence with instructional videos. Effortlessly generate grocery lists and integrate with popular shopping apps.

**Highlights:** Custom weekly meal plans, Import recipes from any source, Cooking skill instructional videos, Automated grocery lists, Grocery app integration, Thousands of quick & healthy recipes, Meal planning calendar

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

**In-app purchases (7)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly Subscription | $4.99 | per month |
| Monthly Subscription | $6.99 | per month |
| Annual Subscription | $39.99 | per year |
| Annual Subscription | $44.99 | per year |
| Annual Subscription | $44.99 | per year |
| Annual Subscription | $49.99 | per year |
| Lifetime Subscription | $199.00 | one-time |


### Doughly

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/doughly/id6502307680)

Digitize your favorite recipes from photos and websites with smart AI importing. Generate shopping lists based on your recipes and share your collection with friends and family. Discover new culinary inspiration from a curated selection of public recipes.

**Highlights:** AI-powered recipe importing from photos, URL importing for online recipes, Automated recipe-based shopping lists, Pantry inventory checking for shopping, Social sharing of recipe collections, Discover curated public recipes

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Doughly AI Credits (10) | $2.99 | one-time |
| Doughly Lifetime | $11.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is a better meal free?

a better meal is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Doughly free?

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

### Which has better reviews, a better meal or Doughly?

Doughly is rated higher. a better meal averages 4.6 out of 5 from 61 ratings, while Doughly averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do a better meal or Doughly have ads?

Doughly shows ads; a better meal does not.

### Which is updated more often, a better meal or Doughly?

a better meal ships an update fortnightly, and Doughly fortnightly. Most recently, a better meal was updated on October 30, 2026 and Doughly on October 22, 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.*