No diary to fill in
Say it or photograph the plate. Calories and protein against your target, in one tap.
Honest comparison
Kata vs Lifesum.
Lifesum is the nicest way to count calories, and its meal plans give a beginner something real to follow. It is still a diary that never sees your sleep.
The verdictThe prettiest food diary there is. And everything that happens outside a diary.
First, fairly
Lifesum at a glance.
What it is for
A Swedish nutrition app built around a food diary that is genuinely pleasant to use.
What it costs
There is a free tier for goal setting and basic calorie logging. Premium is offer driven and varies by region: the App Store currently shows twelve month plans at 99.99 and 119.99 USD, with three and six month terms priced higher per month, and shorter promotional trials alongside them.
Where it is strongest
The nicest app in the category: a diary you enjoy opening is a diary you actually keep.
Who it suits
Beginners who want structure handed to them: meal plans, recipes and a weekly Life Score.
The difference
What changes with Kata.
The half a diary misses
Sleep, recovery, supplements, lab values, medication, water, mind and cycle in one system.
One price, nothing held back
Six languages, no useful half behind Premium, and the record stays on your device.
Side by side
Row by row.
A grey mark means possible, but not on its own.
| Capability | Kata | Lifesum |
|---|---|---|
| A food diary that is a pleasure to use | Partlya conversation, not a diary | Yesthe best looking in the store |
| Structured diet and meal plans | Partlya plan that adapts, not a preset | YesPremium |
| Logging without forms or search | Yessay it, it is logged | Partlyphoto and voice, then confirm |
| Reads your sleep and recovery | YesWHOOP and Apple Health | Noactivity sync only |
| Supplements, labs and medication | Yes | No |
| Everything stays on your device | Yesnothing on our servers | Nocloud account |
| One price, everything included | Yesfree during launch | Nothe useful half is Premium |
Why Kata
Three reasons, not thirty.
One system
Food, training, sleep, supplements, labs and mood in a single place.
It decides
Not a dashboard you read: a coach that says what today should look like.
It stays yours
Your logs, chats, photos and the coach's memory live on your device.
Honestly
When Lifesum is the better choice.
If you want structure handed to you, Lifesum is a fine choice: the meal plans, recipes and weekly Life Score give a beginner a track to run on. Kata gives you a coach instead of a plan, and some people want the plan.
In short
What, how and why.
- What
- Kata is a health coach that happens to log your food.
- How
- No diary: you speak or photograph the meal, and everything else lives beside it.
- Why
- Most people abandon a diary. Very few abandon a conversation that answers back.
One coach. Your whole picture.
Free during the launch phase, every function included. Set up in one conversation, in your own words.
Questions
Asked and answered.
Does Kata have a barcode scanner like Lifesum?
No. Kata is built around telling it what you ate, in words or with a photo, rather than scanning packages. If most of your food comes with a barcode, Lifesum does that part better today and we would rather say so.
Can Kata give me a meal plan?
It gives you something closer to a coach than a plan. Kata works from what you actually eat, what your training and sleep look like, and where your weight trend is going. If you want a printed week to follow, Lifesum fits better.
Checked 2026-07Competitor details change. We check these pages regularly and correct them when something moves: if you spot something out of date, tell us and we will fix it.
Lifesum is the trademark of its owner. Kata is independent and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by Lifesum.
Kata is a coach, not a doctor. It supports everyday decisions about food, training, sleep and rhythm; it does not diagnose, treat or replace medical advice.