Photo, voice or barcode: which to use to log your food

The best way to log is the one you use every day. But the methods differ in accuracy, and if you pick the one that suits the situation, logging gets both quicker and more accurate.

Barcode — when there’s a package

The most accurate option: the numbers come from the label instead of being estimated. A yoghurt, bread, a snack bar, a ready meal from the shop — scan the code and say how much you ate.

It has one weak spot: the code says what the product is, but not how much of it you had. Half a pack and a whole pack are different entries, so it’s best to give the weight yourself.

Photo — when the food is on the plate

This is the fastest way, and it suits ordinary home cooking. Kalorika works out what’s in the picture and estimates the portions. It’s an estimate, not a measurement: the camera is bad at seeing oil, sauce and portion size.

A photo gets noticeably more accurate with a caption. Two or three words are enough: “buckwheat 150 g”, “fried in oil”, “two meat patties”.

• Shoot from above so the whole plate is in the frame.
• With complex dishes — soup, a casserole, a dressed salad — it’s best to add a few words.
• If you know the weight, say it: a number you give is always more accurate than a guess.

Voice and text — when taking a photo is awkward

You’ve already eaten, your hands are full, or there’s no plate at all — a handful of nuts, an apple on the way. Say or type it in one sentence: “oatmeal, 60 grams, with milk, and a banana”.

You can correct entries the same way. If a photo was recognised wrongly, there’s no need to delete it and take another — just write: “that was 200 grams, not 100” or “that’s turkey, not chicken”.

“The usual” — when you eat the same thing again

For most people breakfast is nearly the same every day. Logging it from scratch every morning is extra work, and extra work is exactly why people give up on a diary. What you eat often can be repeated in one step, with no photo and no dictating.

Cheat sheet

• You cook at home — a photo with a short caption.
• Something from a package — the barcode and the weight.
• A café or someone’s house — a photo, plus a few words about the oil and the sauces.
• On the go or after the fact — voice or text.
• The same thing every day — a repeat.

What matters more than the method

The accuracy of one entry matters less than whether you have entries for the whole week. A rough estimate of every meal gives you a diary you can learn something from. A perfectly weighed breakfast and an empty evening don’t.