Comparison

Private Meal Planner vs Dinner Plans

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Private Meal Planner

Features
Read full description

Private Meal Planner helps you plan your meals, manage your pantry, and generate shopping lists in minutes — all while keeping your data on your device. Build a weekly plan that matches your diet, cook from what you already have, and avoid impulse spending at the supermarket. No accounts, no ads, no tracking — just a clean, private meal planner that works the way you do. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Dinner Plans

This app simplifies meal decisions, planning, and cooking. It offers a "Dinner Roulette" for inspiration, a smart pantry to track ingredients, and a weekly planner. It also generates shopping lists and can help find nearby restaurants.

Highlights
  • Dinner Roulette for meal inspiration
  • Smart pantry to track ingredients
  • Weekly dinner planner
  • Automated shopping list generation
  • Find nearby restaurants
  • Dinner voting for groups
Read full description

What’s for dinner? Dinner Plans helps you decide. Dinner Plans brings dinner decisions, meal planning, pantry ingredients, recipes, shopping, and nearby dining together in one easy-to-use app. DINNER ROULETTE Can’t decide what to eat? Spin Dinner Roulette and explore categories including Italian, Mexican, Caribbean, Asian, BBQ, seafood, comfort food, healthy choices, and more. SMART PANTRY Add ingredients you already have and discover recipes you’re ready to make—or see what you’re missing. Dinner Plans includes a built-in collection of 100 recipes with ingredients, preparation and cooking times, serving adjustments, estimated nutrition information, and easy-to-follow directions. DINNER PLANNER Plan ahead with a simple weekly dinner planner so you know what’s for dinner before the question gets asked. SHOPPING LIST Keep track of what you need in one convenient shopping list. Dinner Plans Full can also add missing recipe ingredients directly to your list and provide optional grocery reminders. DON’T FEEL LIKE COOKING? Find nearby restaurants and quick-bite options based on what you’re in the mood for, then get driving directions with Apple Maps. DINNER VOTE When everyone wants something different, nearby family members or friends can vote on dinner together without creating accounts. DINNER HISTORY Keep track of recent dinners and bring more variety to what you eat next. DINNER PLANS FULL Upgrade with one optional purchase to unlock the complete recipe library and Smart Pantry matching, step-by-step Cooking Mode, full weekly Dinner Planner, recipe-to-shopping integration, grocery reminders, and complete Dinner History. One purchase. No subscription. No ads. Dinner Plans does not require an account. Pantry, planner, shopping-list, and dinner-history information is stored locally on your device. Dinner Plans — Decide. Plan. Cook. Enjoy. Recipe and nutrition information is provided for general informational purposes and may include estimates.

Screenshots

Private Meal Planner4 screens
Dinner Plans4 screens

Verdict

The call

Private Meal Planner and Dinner Plans are too close to call on the numbers: across 6 compared parameters — price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Private Meal Planner sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Dinner Plans sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Private Meal Planner ships an update fortnightly, Dinner Plans every 2 weeks. Both last shipped on November 5, 2026.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
Private Meal Planner versus Dinner Plans: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPrivate Meal PlannerDinner Plans
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (3 ratings) — better
Number of ratings—3 — better
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterEvery 2 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
Monetization—Free with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhoneiPhone
Requires iOS17.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size4 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperPlatka Software DigitalNehemiah Pettway

In-app purchases

6 purchases

Private Meal Planner

Subscriptions6
  • Plus Monthly Plan$2.991 Month
  • Pro Monthly Plan$5.991 Month
  • Plus Quarterly Plan$7.993 Months
Show 3 more
  • Pro Quarterly Plan$14.993 Months
  • Plus Annual Plan$22.991 Year
  • Pro Annual Plan$49.991 Year
1 purchases

Dinner Plans

One-time1
  • Dinner Plans Full Unlock$4.99

Questions

Is Private Meal Planner free?
Private Meal Planner is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Dinner Plans free?
Dinner Plans is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Private Meal Planner or Dinner Plans have ads?
Neither Private Meal Planner nor Dinner Plans shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Private Meal Planner or Dinner Plans?
Private Meal Planner ships an update fortnightly, and Dinner Plans every 2 weeks. Most recently, Private Meal Planner was updated on November 5, 2026 and Dinner Plans on November 5, 2026.

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