Calorie counter app with no ads: how to tell before you install (2026)
In short
You can spot an ad-free calorie app on its store listing, before installing it. On Google Play, every app that shows ads must declare it, and its listing then carries the label “Contains ads”. The App Store has no equivalent label: the “App Privacy” section tells you whether data is used for advertising. Radish shows no ads. Checked on 23 October 2026: its Google Play listing does not carry the “Contains ads” label, and its App Store privacy label declares no advertising purpose.
A banner under your food diary, a video to watch to unlock a feature, a full-screen ad between two meals: advertising is the most common way to fund a free app. It is not forbidden, and plenty of people live with it. But if you want a calorie counter with no ads, you don't have to take the description at its word: both stores make you look in a specific place. Here is where, and what you find there for Radish.
On a computer? Scan this code with your phone to install Radish.
Why so many free calorie apps show ads
A food tracking app costs money to run: a food database to maintain, updates for two platforms, servers for some features. When the app is free, someone still pays. The three most common models are advertising (ads shown inside the app), subscription (some features are paid), or a mix of both, where the subscription often removes the ads.
This is not a moral judgement, it is a question of use. A calorie app gets opened several times a day, at every meal. One ad per opening adds up to a lot of ads. And an app that lives on advertising has, in effect, an interest in you spending time inside it.
On Google Play: the “Contains ads” label
This is the simplest check. Google asks every developer to declare, in its publishing console, whether the app contains ads. According to the official Play Console help page “Prepare your app for review”, listings of apps that include ads carry a “Contains ads” label, and this covers ads served through third-party ad SDKs, display ads, native ads and banner ads.
Where to look: in the header of the Google Play listing, under the app and developer name. Two labels can appear there: “Contains ads” and “In-app purchases”. The first is about advertising, the second about paid options. They are independent: an app can carry one, the other, both or neither.
The limit to know: the declaration comes from the developer. Google can check it and display the label itself, and a false declaration breaks its policies, but it starts as a declaration.
Want to check a number? Look the food up: its values per 100 g and the official table they come from, no account needed.
See the food’s value →On the App Store: read the “App Privacy” label
The App Store has no “contains ads” label. The information sits in the privacy label shown on every listing. Apple makes developers declare, for each category of data, what it is used for. Two purposes relate to advertising, as defined in Apple's documentation on app privacy details:
- Third-Party Advertising: displaying other companies' ads in the app, or sharing data with entities who display them.
- Developer's Advertising or Marketing: displaying first-party ads in the app, or sending marketing communications to users.
A third section matters too: “Data Used to Track You”. Apple calls “tracking” the linking of app data with other companies' data for targeted advertising or advertising measurement.
Where to look: on the App Store listing, scroll down to the “App Privacy” section and open the details. The listing itself states that this information is declared by the developer and has not been checked by Apple. It is a first filter, not a guarantee. Our article on calorie counters for iPhone covers the other points of that label.
No ads does not mean no data, or everything free
Two common confusions to keep in mind when you compare.
No ads is not no data collection. An app can show no ads at all and still send usage statistics, or pass a meal photo to an AI service. “Are there ads?” does not replace “what leaves my phone?”. For that one, see what really leaves your phone.
No ads is not everything free. An ad-free app is often funded by a subscription. The “In-app purchases” label on Google Play, or the “In-App Purchases” section on the App Store, lists the paid options. What matters is what stays free day to day: see our article on free calorie apps without a subscription.
What Radish looks like, checked on 23 October 2026
For transparency, here are our own answers. You can check all of them on both listings.
- Google Play: the Radish listing does not carry the “Contains ads” label. It does carry “In-app purchases”, because two paid options exist (see below).
- App Store: the Radish privacy label has no “Data Used to Track You” section and declares neither “Third-Party Advertising” nor “Developer's Advertising or Marketing”. The declared purposes are app functionality and analytics.
- Inside the app: no banner, no video to watch to unlock a feature, no ad screen between two meals. On iPhone, the Firebase analytics tool (Google), which stays off until you accept it, does bundle a Google Ads campaign-measurement component.
- What is free: the food diary, food search, barcode scanning, Nutri-Score, macros, 11 vitamins and minerals, personal recipes and the full backup. No account to create, no card to enter. Two paid options sit on top, Premium (subscription, AI included) and Lifetime (one-time payment): details in Radish free vs Premium.
- Data: your journal stays on your phone — never sent to our servers (except AI or barcode scanning, if you use them). Usage statistics (screens seen, sessions: never a food, a weight or a calorie) are also sent to Google Firebase: in the EU only if you agree, elsewhere by default, and you can turn them off in Settings > Data & privacy. Your journal, foods and weight never are. Details in our article on Firebase audience measurement and in our privacy notice.
- Sources: values for generic foods come from CIQUAL (ANSES), the USDA and the national tables (BLS, AUSNUT, CoFID, CNF), those for scanned products from Open Food Facts. Every food page shows its source and code, and our sources page explains where each family of data comes from.
Prefer to see the listing before installing? Download Radish →
Frequently asked questions
How can I tell whether a calorie app contains ads?
On Google Play, look under the app name: apps that show ads must declare it, and their listing carries the “Contains ads” label. The App Store has no equivalent label: open “App Privacy” and look for the “Third-Party Advertising” or “Developer's Advertising or Marketing” purposes.
Is there a free calorie counter app with no ads?
Yes. Radish is free and shows no ads: as checked on 23 October 2026, its Google Play listing does not carry the “Contains ads” label and its App Store privacy label declares no advertising purpose. The food diary, barcode scanning, Nutri-Score and micronutrients are free, with no account.
Does an ad-free app still collect data?
It can. The absence of ads says nothing about usage statistics or features that send data out, such as an AI that analyses a meal photo. Read the privacy label on the listing and the app's privacy policy.
Why doesn't Radish show ads?
Radish is funded by two optional paid tiers, Premium (subscription) and Lifetime (one-time payment). The core of the app stays free, with no account and no ads.
Is Radish available on Android and iPhone?
Yes. Radish is available on Google Play (Android) and on the App Store (iPhone and iPad). The page nutri-track.fr/app sends each visitor to their device's store.
Before installing anything, you can browse the food pages on this site, no account needed, each one with the source of its values: apple, whole wheat bread, Greek yogurt and cooked basmati rice.
General information about choosing an app, not medical advice. A calorie counter is a tracking tool: it does not replace advice from a health professional.
🔎 Methodology & sources. The store rules cited here come from the official Google Play Console help and Apple's documentation on app privacy details. The Radish listings on Google Play and the App Store were checked on 23 October 2026; a listing can change after that date. The absence of displayed ads was checked in the app; its dependencies were re-read on 27 October 2026. See our full methodology →