Morsel

Free barcode scanner for counting calories

Short answer

Morsel’s barcode scanner is free with no daily limit and no premium tier, and it will stay that way. Scans resolve against a database of about 400,000 branded products stored inside the app, so they work offline and come back instantly. If a package is missing, you add it once with the barcode attached and every future scan finds it.

Scanning a barcode is the fastest way to log packaged food: no typing, no picking between six near-identical search results, and the serving size comes straight from the label. It is also the feature the biggest trackers moved behind a paywall, which is why “free barcode scanner” is one of the most searched phrases in the category.

Morsel treats the scanner as the front door of the app, not the upsell. Here is exactly how it works and where its limits are.

Morsel portion picker after a barcode scan, showing a branded food with calories, macro pills and serving options

From scan to logged in under three seconds

The scanner reads EAN-13, EAN-8, UPC-A and UPC-E codes — every code you will find on food in North America, Europe and most of the world. The number is looked up in the bundled database on the phone, so there is no network round trip and no spinner.

  1. Tap Scan on Today (or the barcode button on the search screen) and point the camera at the code. A torch toggle helps in a dim pantry.
  2. The product appears with its label serving already selected — “serving (30 g)”, say — and its calories and macros. Change the amount, switch to grams, or pick a different meal.
  3. Tap Log. You are back on Today with the ring updated.

When a barcode is not found

No offline database has every product; new items and regional brands appear every week. A miss in Morsel is never a dead end. The scanner offers “Add this food” with the barcode already attached: type the name and the calories from the label (protein, carbs and fat are optional), save, and it is logged. From then on, scanning that package finds your entry instantly. The scanner also checks your own custom foods, so a product you added months ago comes up just like a bundled one.

Where the barcode data comes from

Branded products come from Open Food Facts, the open, collaborative database of food products, used under the Open Database License. Morsel’s build takes the products with complete calorie and macro data and valid barcodes, ranked by how often they are scanned, and bundles about 400,000 of them. Label values are contributed by people, so occasionally a number is off — when the package in your hand disagrees, trust the package and log a custom food or quick add.

Questions people ask

Is there a limit on how many barcodes I can scan for free?
No. Scanning is unlimited in the free tier, and it will never move behind the unlock.
Does the scanner need an internet connection?
No. The barcode database is inside the app. Airplane mode, a basement or a trail all work the same.
Why does my scan say the product is not in the database?
The bundle holds the most-scanned 400,000 products with complete nutrition data; newer and regional products may be missing. Add it once with the barcode attached and every later scan finds it.

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