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juliastinson
juliastinson Posts: 2 Member
in Introduce Yourself
Hello, Im julie, I have been doing my fitness pal since January and I am down 13 pounds, I do not use the premium, should I?

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  • lisakatz2
    lisakatz2 Posts: 218 Member
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    I don't use the premium. A lot of people don't. TBH. I don't even know the difference between free and premium. Free fits my needs.
  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 9,129 Member
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    Welcome, Julie!

    I use the free version to track calories eaten/burned, and for the forums. That's all I need. If that's all you need, free is enough.

    The paid version includes coaching as its primary draw, along with barcode scanning for easier logging. If you feel you would find that helpful, maybe paid is for you.
  • juliastinson
    juliastinson Posts: 2 Member
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    I will stick with free!
  • deon5043
    deon5043 Posts: 1 Member
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    I use the free version also. Ive been using the app since july 2023 and It has everything I need. Cheers
  • mlconstant5
    mlconstant5 Posts: 43 Member
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    MFP advertised a “7 day trial” so I signed up to try it and it ended up charging me the full year instead.
    I think the main difference between the free and premium is in the nutrition section, you can set Macro goals- viewing in a bit more detail protein, fat, and carbohydrates. One other perk with Premium is no ads.

    I didn’t use MFP long enough before I accidentally signed up for a year with Premium to really know the difference between the two versions. It wasn’t until some of my MFP friends vented about the ads they were seeing recently that made me learn the ad-free perk.

    I don’t think I’m utilizing Premium to its fullest but this is the 2 things different that I can figure out.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,221 Member
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    When new people ask, I usually suggest that they use the free version to learn the ropes, since the fundamental mechanics are the same in both, then take a look at the list of premium features to see whether any of those would add enough value for them personally to be worth the cost.

    Since you've successfully used the free version for a while, that's what I'd suggest to you, too. Some of the listed features (IMO) wouldn't have a lot of meaning for someone totally new to MFP. I'm guessing most of them would be understandable to you after these roughly 3-4 months. If you have specific questions about some of them, you can ask here in the Community.

    I used free MFP all through weight loss and the early months of maintenance, then got premium. I like some of the features (finer control of nutritional settings, a little more info about nutrition history are a couple of examples) but there are some I don't use at all. It's nice not to have ads. ;) But I could go back to free MFP without suffering much.

    I think whether it's worth it will depend on a specific person's interests and needs, so there isn't a generic answer IMO.
  • MargaretYakoda
    MargaretYakoda Posts: 2,423 Member
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    I pay for premium because I have had the experience of using an app that I loved, which also had a free and subscription version. Not enough people paid for the subscription and advertising wasn’t enough to pay the app’s internet hosting fees.

    It was called Spark People and there’s a few of us who migrated here after that blow to our weight loss and fitness journey.

    No one is obligated to pay, of course. And if it’s a big chunk out of your budget, there’s no shame in not having premium.
    But someone has to keep the lights on.
    And I’m happy to do my little part.
  • chris_in_cal
    chris_in_cal Posts: 2,192 Member
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    juliastinson wrote: »
    Hello, Im julie, I have been doing my fitness pal since January and I am down 13 pounds, I do not use the premium, should I?

    I've been here for awhile. Originally the UPS scan was available to everyone for free and I used it a lot. Then MFP made it 'premium only.' That was unfortunate.

    I had made peace with not having the label scanner.

    Last month, I decided to try the free 30-days of premium. I gave them my financial info, and set a reminder to check it at 29 days in case I do not want to have the autopay subscription kick in.

    I have to admit, I use and life the UPS label scan tool and used it a lot this last month. I didn't really notice any other benefits. I can make due without the UPS label scan tool and I canceled the "premium" subscription after the 30 day free trial.
  • COGypsy
    COGypsy Posts: 1,174 Member
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    juliastinson wrote: »
    Hello, Im julie, I have been doing my fitness pal since January and I am down 13 pounds, I do not use the premium, should I?

    I think the question is, what benefit do you think you would gain from premium that would be an improvement to you, over the free version?
  • jimdavidson2065
    jimdavidson2065 Posts: 21 Member
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    Nah, stick with free and build a good support network of friends.

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