Best food allergy tracker apps
in the UK, compared.
Seven apps a person with an allergy or a worried parent could install today. Honest notes on what each one does, what it costs, and where it falls down. We start with ours because we built it. We tell the truth about the rest.
The Big 14
in plain English.
Under UK Food Information Regulations 2014, every UK pack has to declare these 14 by name if they're in the ingredients. Anything outside the 14 is a personal trigger, and that's where a diary starts earning its place.
Cereals, milk, eggs, fish, peanuts
The household-name five. Cereals containing gluten cover wheat, rye, barley and oats. Milk includes lactose. Eggs are eggs. Fish and peanut allergy reactions are often the ones a hospital admits.
Tree nuts, soy, sesame, mustard, celery
Tree nuts cover almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, cashews, pecans, Brazil nuts, pistachios and macadamia. Sesame is on the rise. Mustard and celery hide in dressings and stocks.
Crustaceans, molluscs, lupin
Crustaceans (prawns, crab, lobster). Molluscs (mussels, squid). Lupin shows up in some gluten-free flours and bread mixes. A small set, but the reactions can be severe.
Sulphur dioxide and sulphites
Above 10mg/kg or 10mg/litre. Dried fruit, wine, some sausages, pickled goods. Trigger asthma-style reactions in some people and rarely cause typical anaphylaxis, but worth knowing about.
The line-up,
honestly written.
We don't grade other apps. We tell you what they do and where they fit, so you can pick the one that matches the way you shop.
1. NutraSafe (us)
UK iPhone app. Scan a pack and we spot the Big 14 in the ingredient list and flag them in plain English. Reaction diary, food log, vitamins and minerals against UK NRV. Branded and own-brand across Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda, Morrisons, Aldi, Lidl, Co-op and Waitrose. Free tier covers up to 25 food logs a day, 5 reactions, basic allergen flag. Pro is £3.99 a month or £34.99 a year and adds suspected-triggers, the AI Coach, workouts and fasting.
2. Yuka
French app, big global brand. Scans a barcode and shows additive flags plus a score. UK supermarket catalogue is patchy because the database leans French. Allergen support exists but isn't the headline feature.
3. Spoon Guru
UK-friendly. Filters supermarket searches by diet and allergen. Used to power Sainsbury's online search at one point. Reaction diary isn't its angle; it's about finding products you can eat.
4. Foodvisor
French calorie-focused app with photo-recognition meal logging. Allergen detection exists but is secondary; UK supermarket coverage is reasonable. Strong on macros, light on the Big 14 detail per pack.
5. Fig
US app aimed at people with specific dietary needs (low-FODMAP, allergen-free, condition-specific). You set your filters, scan a pack, get a green or red. UK coverage improving, but the catalogue still skews US own-brand.
6. Coeliac UK
The charity app. Single-focus: gluten. The barcode check tells you whether a UK product is on the verified gluten-free list. Authoritative, narrow. No reaction diary, no calorie side.
7. ZOE
UK research-led nutrition app. Personalised scoring after a paid testing kit. Not an allergy tracker as such; it's about gut response and metabolic patterns. Different problem space, worth knowing about.
Which one,
for what.
Honest pointers. Pick by the question you're actually trying to answer.
"Is the Big 14 in this UK pack?"
NutraSafe (us), Spoon Guru, Foodvisor. The first two are UK-built. If you want the allergen line plus a reaction diary in the same place, that's what we wrote NutraSafe for.
"Is this gluten-free?"
Coeliac UK is the authority. NutraSafe will spot wheat, rye, barley and oats in the ingredient list. The Coeliac UK list verifies a product is on their checked list.
"I want to track what I felt after eating"
NutraSafe (us). Five reactions on free, uncapped on Pro. Suspected-triggers analysis on Pro looks across your food and reaction history for patterns you can take to your GP.
"One app for food, additives, reactions, training and fasting"
That's us. One diary, same data. Free covers the basics. Pro at £3.99 a month or £34.99 a year lifts the caps and opens the AI Coach, workouts, fasting and the suspected-triggers view.
One scan,
what you see.
Tesco Chicken Salad Wrap. Common meal-deal pick. Here's what the scan surfaces and what we say about each line.
From the panel on the back of the pack. Logs to your day.
Cereals (wheat), milk, mustard, sulphites. Each shown against the exact ingredient line.
E330 citric acid and E270 lactic acid. Both pH stabilisers. We say what they are and where they came from.
We never say "no allergens in this product". We say "none in the ingredients we have". Cross-contact lives on the pack.
A diary,
not a diagnosis.
Every app on this list is a tracking tool. None of them can diagnose an allergy. If you suspect one, see your GP, who can refer you to an NHS allergy clinic. The diary is what you bring to the appointment.
If you've had anaphylaxis
Carry your adrenaline auto-injector. An app does not replace that. Read every label. The app is a faster pre-check, not a substitute for the on-pack ingredient list before you eat.
Reformulation happens
Manufacturers change recipes without telling shoppers. A barcode we read last month may not match the pack you're holding today. The on-pack label is always the truth.
Natasha's Law fills one gap, not all of them
UK pre-packed for direct sale (PPDS) foods (counter sandwiches, salads) have had to list ingredients with allergens emphasised since October 2021. Restaurants and verbal orders still depend on staff knowledge.
"May contain" is voluntary
A pack can carry "may contain nuts" without any process change. Or carry no warning while running on shared lines. The app cannot fix this. A diary at least helps you spot a pattern.
Frequently
asked.
Real questions from the support inbox and the App Store reviews.
Under UK Food Information Regulations 2014 (the FSA Big 14): celery, cereals containing gluten (wheat, rye, barley, oats), crustaceans, eggs, fish, lupin, milk, molluscs, mustard, peanuts, sesame, soybeans, sulphur dioxide and sulphites (above 10mg/kg or 10mg/litre), and tree nuts (almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, cashews, pecans, Brazil nuts, pistachios, macadamia nuts).
No. We're a tracking tool, not a medical service. Apps like ours help you check labels, log reactions, and keep a record you can take to your GP or registered allergist. If you suspect a food allergy, see your GP, who may refer you to an NHS allergy clinic.
Coverage varies. We built NutraSafe around UK supermarkets: Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda, Aldi, Lidl, Morrisons, Co-op and Waitrose own-brand plus branded. Yuka's catalogue leans French. Fig's leans US. Always read the on-pack label as the source of truth.
The download is free. The free tier covers barcode scanning with a basic allergen warning, up to 25 food logs a day, and up to 5 reaction logs. The full allergen breakdown per ingredient, suspected-triggers analysis and uncapped reaction history are Pro at £3.99 a month or £34.99 a year on iOS.
A food allergy involves the immune system. Tiny amounts of the trigger can cause a reaction; severe reactions can include anaphylaxis. A food intolerance does not involve the immune system; symptoms like bloating typically depend on the amount eaten. See your GP for diagnosis.
Natasha's Law (October 2021) requires a full ingredient list with allergens emphasised on UK pre-packed for direct sale foods. It's a major step. Reading small print under time pressure is still error-prone; "may contain" warnings are voluntary; a reaction diary helps you and your GP spot patterns over time.
No. A tracker shows what's in the ingredient list we have on file; it can't confirm what's physically in the product on the shelf today. Manufacturers reformulate. Always read the on-pack label as the final check.
Try the UK Big 14 scan,
and the reaction diary,
in one app.
Free download. Up to 25 food logs and 5 reactions on the free tier. Pro £3.99 a month or £34.99 a year for suspected-triggers, the AI Coach, workouts and fasting.
iPhone · iOS 17 · Cancel any time