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Intermittent fasting (IF) is a popular weight-loss diet that generally describes a simple concept: You can eat pretty much whatever you want, but only during a specific period of time. But unlike some other diet fads, this one may have some scientific evidence behind it. “When it comes to weight loss, the research on traditional intermittent fasting is compelling,” says Stefani Sassos, M.S., R.D.N., C.D.N., a registered dietitian and deputy nutrition director of the Good Housekeeping Institute. “It's true that fasting can potentially reprogram your metabolism, but the likely reason why fasting may contribute to weight loss is that you’re simply eating fewer calories overall when you're restricting eating to specific time periods.”
According to Sassos, one of the reasons why intermittent fasting is so attractive to many is that it doesn't typically require counting calories or tracking macros, but rather simply setting an eating window that works for you. And there are a lot of IF window variations to choose from, whether you prefer the standard 16:8 schedule, the 5:2 diet or the very strict One Meal a Day (OMAD) plan. “If you do choose to try IF, make sure that the quality of foods you eat in your feeding window are nutritious and provide all of the proper nutrients that your body needs,” advises Sassos.
No matter which IF schedule you might be considering, an intermittent fasting app can help you stay on track. There are a plethora of options for iOS and Android that all offer all kinds of different features, but Sassos says that most IF apps are essentially customized stopwatches with built-in notifications and reminders. Depending on your goals, you may prefer an intermittent fasting app that also offers hydration tracking, healthy recipes or other additions.
Our top picks:
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Best IF App for Beginners
Simple
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Best Free IF App
Sunrise Fasting
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Best IF App for Motivation
Fastic
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You can learn more about how we chose the best intermittent fasting apps of 2022 — including tips for choosing the best one for you — at the end of this guide. If you're interested in downloading more apps to support your health, check out our top picks for the best sleep apps and the best workout apps.
Note: We recommend consulting your healthcare provider before starting any new diet program. We also want to note that weight loss, health and body image are complex subjects — before deciding to go on a diet, we invite you to gain a broader perspective with our exploration into the hazards of diet culture.
Zero is one of the most popular IF apps out there because it has all the timers, journals and tools you need to get started. The app is also filled with helpful articles on topics such as the healthiest beverages to drink during your fast periods and how to get better sleep. Our pros found it easy to use, making it great for IF novices and lifelong fasters. Sassos says she likes that the app offers the opportunity to rate your mood each day, which then generates a fasting "mood graph" that you can review and look for certain patterns based on what and when you're eating.
While the basic app is free, you will be lightly prodded to upgrade to the paid version, Zero Plus, which includes guided fasting with a coach. "[This app] game-ifies intermittent fasting," wrote one online reviewer. "It tells you what your body is supposed to be doing during that time frame of fasting ... I have the free version and still, it is very useful. They do not bait you into buying their product. Real honest and a huge plus for me."
You’ll also get access to a journal function that helps you reflect on your mood and more during fasts, as well as opportunities to track other health markers, like heart rate and sleep.
- Cost: Free to download the app and access basic content; $70/year or $10/month for full access to Zero Plus
- Get it for iOS or Android
Though this app is free to download, but it won't let you do much without upgrading for $40 a year. That said, it does offer a large variety of fasts, including "Easy Start," "Lean Gains," "The Warrior," and OMAD, and has several helpful tools, including a blog with content from leading nutritionists. Its weight tracker is also an easy way to monitor weight-loss progress over time, and we found the app to be well-designed, with a clean aesthetic.
It's one of the only IF apps that allows users to toggle between fasting and eating window durations — both in the calendar overview setting and while looking at user stats. "The fact that it is also a weight tracker ... is an added benefit," one person wrote in an online review. "This app has played a big role in the success I’m having with intermittent fasting."
Just as the name implies, this easy-to-use intermittent fasting app provides simple fasting time reminders and tips throughout the day, making it a great choice for beginners. You can also log your meals in depth, as well as record hydration and activity stats.
Compatible with both Apple's Health app and Fitbit's operating system, you can choose from a variety of goal plans, including weight loss, practicing mindful eating and reducing stress. There's also a premium plan that offers motivational content, personalized insights and more.
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Another extremely popular option with over 30 million downloads, Body Fast's IF app allows you to frequently switch the type of fast you're on, depending on your goals and needs that day or week. It also offers weekly challenges and "trophies" to keep you motivated.
The app's list of fasting options is plentiful (think fasts like Stone Age and Aurora), but you'll have to upgrade to the premium plan to access most of them (you'll also get access to a personalized coach). "I like that this has a few options for your eating schedule, so I’ve been able to adjust when things are hectic rather than sticking to a specific window, and it gives me alerts about where I’m at in my day, " said one online reviewer, who noted that they use the free plan.
By using your location, this fasting app provides an accurate start and end time based on sunrise and sunset in your area. You can also chose from a variety of other fasting options, as well as a custom fast setting where you input your personalized regimen. Users can easily take notes and track their mood in the app, too.
While there is a premium version that removes ads and allows for fasting presets and advanced stats, our pros found that the basic free version offers the best variety of free features among the apps we reviewed (and doesn't aggressively push the premium version like many of the other IF apps do). "Being new to intermittent fasting, I love how this app tracks my daily fasts, gives me a visual on how far I am in my current fast, allows me to customize my fasts and tracks my weights for me," one online reviewer said. "It is very motivating to make it that last hour when you see the percentage you have completed."
- Cost: Free to download and access basic content; $3/month or $27/year for full access
- Get it for iOS
If you're looking for a basic fasting app with no bells and whistles, this is a solid option that includes space to write down your thoughts and any concerns about your progress. In the words of one online reviewer: "It’s a simple and clean fasting app that has all the features I wanted without a bunch of added fluff loaded in to make it appear more useful. I especially love the ability to make notes, as it helps me focus on what keeps me personally motivated." The premium version includes a few extra features, like being able to add progress pictures.
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Known for its easy-to-read graphics, this IF app offers extensive stats, calendars and reminders at a low price — and you can link up with your Apple Watch. "I used to count in my mind the number of hours of fasting," wrote one online reviewer. "Since I have this app, it's not just about tracking fasting hours, it also helps me keeping motivated and thinking how good I have done. It pushes me a little bit for those days when I feel like giving up."
Our pros like that the app features a 10-day snapshot that highlights streaks (a.k.a. how many days in a row you have fasted and met your goals). Also, while this app is free, upgrading to the pro level is just $3 — and that's a one-and-done payment, not subscription-based, like most premium plans. The pro version includes additional features, like notifications, custom reminders, enhanced stats and weight tracking, so you can sync it up with Apple's Health app. You'll also get extended fast hours, data export and more.
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Best IF App for Couples
LIFE Fasting Tracker
8
Best IF App for Couples
LIFE Fasting Tracker
Teamwork is the key feature of this IF app — you can create social circles to share your fasting experience with friends and family, which Sassos says can keep you more accountable. This app also uses visual graphics to show when you're going into the fat-burning phase of your fast, which can be a big motivator for some users.
You can join for free and upgrade to Life+ for special features like habit trackers, enhanced stats and Les Mills fitness videos. "It's really nice to have a visual aid to a fasting regimen," wrote an online reviewer. "I like seeing my cumulative fasting time and how long I've been in ketosis each week. I can also see when my husband is fasting and plan our family meals accordingly or just give him moral support."
If you're looking for a large community of intermittent fasters (20 million to be exact!) to support your journey, Fastic is the app for you. The free app offers basic features such as a fasting timer, water tracker and a step counter, but you'll have to upgrade to the premium version, which starts at $12 a month, to get the most out of this app.
Upgrading gets you access to features like recipes, challenges and more, which can help to keep you motivated on your IF journey. "I love the fasting graphics on here, so that if I feel I’m struggling to reach my goal of a 12- or 16- or 20-hour fast, I can just go into the app and it'll tell me what phase of the fasting period I’m on and what’s happening to my body," one online reviewer noted.
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A basic fasting tracker, Vora will give you a graphic record of all your recent fasts. It also encourages you to post about your fasts on social media. Our pros like that you can also leave notes on your fasting experience to review later.
"I love being able to see the graph of my past fasts, which is motivating — I love being able to set my target for each fast I start, and I also like being able to make notes that I can look back at later," said one online reviewer. "I’ve lost more than 45 pounds in less than four months ... and this app has been a great tool in that journey!" Upgrading to Vora Pro for a $5 flat fee offers you a few additional ways to track progress and measure your stats.
- Cost: Free to download and access basic content; $5 for full access to Vora Pro
- Get it for iOS
How we chose the best intermittent fasting apps
The registered dietitians in the Good Housekeeping Institute Nutrition Lab test and review all types of nutrition, wellness and health apps, including weight loss apps, calorie-counting apps and meditation apps. When researching and evaluating apps, we consider factors like ease of use, consistent quality, cost and whether or not they contain up-to-date and effective information.
When it came to intermittent fasting apps, specifically, our editors and experts scoured online user reviews and downloaded many of the apps themselves in order to experience them first-hand. Overall, we made sure to highlight apps that excelled at providing reliable reminders and motivation to stick with dedicated fasting windows.
How to find the best intermittent fasting app for you
First, you'll want to consider what your goals and needs are. If you're looking to leave notes on your mood and experience, many of these choices, like Fastient and Sunrise, offer that feature. If you like to see visual graphs and reports, options like Vora and Zero may be the best fit for you.
If you're still not quite sure which IF app to download, there isn't much downside to trying a few of these apps to see which one is right for you. "Most apps offer a free trial, so you can give it a road test before committing to the full month or year subscription," Sassos says. "Investing in your health is important, but the price and how it plays into your monthly budget is an equally important factor to consider."
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Why trust Good Housekeeping?
Marisa Cohen is a contributing editor in the Hearst Lifestyle Group’s Health Newsroom, who covers health and nutrition for Good Housekeeping's website and print magazine.
To write this story, she worked with Stefani Sassos, a registered dietitian and deputy director of the Good Housekeeping Institute Nutrition Lab. Having been through her own weight loss journey, Stefani is passionate about sustainable weight management and healthy eating practices. She’s extremely well versed in the current health and wellness app space and leads testing efforts in the category for Good Housekeeping. She advocates for overnight fasting, as it can have tremendous benefits on digestion and sleep, but stresses that when trying any type of intermittent fasting program, the quality of what you eat is extremely important.
Marisa Cohen
Deputy Editor
Marisa Cohen is an editor in the Hearst Lifestyle Group’s Health Newsroom, who has covered health, nutrition, parenting and culture for dozens of magazines and websites over the past two decades.
