Recommended Diabetes Apps

In the past, successfully managing diabetes meant filling notebooks with blood glucose readings and calorie measurements. While people with diabetes still need to keep track of these statistics and other information, doing so has become much simpler over time. These days, one of the most critical tools in your diabetes management journey is your smartphone. Recent research shows that apps designed for people with diabetes can help you lose weight and reduce your average blood sugar levels.

With that in mind, it’s not surprising that there are a mind-boggling number of diabetes apps available for both iPhone and Android devices. If you’re trying to simplify your options for diabetes management apps, keep reading for our recommendations.

What to Look for In Apps for Diabetes

When you’re just starting to explore the world of diabetes apps, an ideal first step can be learning what works with the equipment you already have. All kinds of diabetes devices – such as insulin pumps, glucose meters, and continuous glucose monitors – have companion apps allowing them to connect to your smart device. By downloading these apps, you can unlock your equipment’s full potential.

Beyond that, you’ll want to think about how comfortable you are with modern technology. Some of the best diabetes apps are notable for their large number of features, making them perfect for people who want as much diabetes information as possible. On the other hand, that very depth can make them confusing to people who aren’t particularly tech-savvy.

Are you looking for more personalized guidance? Talking to a certified diabetes care and education specialist might be wise. When you let one of these specialists know what you need from a diabetes app, they can use Danatech (a site that lists knowledgeable reviews of these apps) to help.

Our Number-One Diabetes App

Medical ID

Apple Rating: N/A (pre-stalled on iPhone)
Android Rating: 4.6
Free

In an emergency situation, you need a way to provide medical information to first responders as quickly as possible – especially if you have diabetes. Falling into a diabetic coma will prevent you from responding to any questions emergency personnel may have.

Having a medical ID on your phone is an ideal way to make this information accessible when it’s needed most. iPhones include these profiles as part of their standard Health app, while this app provides similar functionality to Android users. With Medical ID, you can list everything first responders may need to know (from your medical contacts to your blood type and allergies) and make it accessible from your device’s lock screen.

Apps for Tracking Food and Exercise

MyFitnessPal

Apple Rating: 4.7
Android Rating: 4.5
Free (In-App Purchases Available)

Few health apps are more popular than MyFitnessPal, and for good reason. With this app, you’ll find it easier than ever to track what you eat. Along with a database of 14 million food items, it boasts a barcode scanner and a feature called “Meal Scan” (which allows users to use their phone camera to log entire meals automatically).

Unlike some of the diabetes apps on this list, MyFitnessPal isn’t explicitly designed for people with diabetes. Still, this app is a powerful way to track what you eat and how often you work out. For extra features, like setting calorie goals for individual meals and workouts, upgrade to MyFitnessPal Premium.

Fooducate

Apple Rating: 4.7
Android Rating: 4.4
Free (In-App Purchases Available)

Just about every student knows how grades work – an A means you’re doing great, while a D means you need to improve. But what if you could extend this logic to deciding what to eat? That’s the premise behind Fooducate, an app that lets you scan food items to determine if they earned an A, B, C, or D in health benefits.

Fooducate’s database is smaller than MyFitnessPal’s, and it’s less focused on exercise than other apps out there. Still, its central metaphor offers users a simple way to understand how healthy or unhealthy certain foods are. That makes this app perfect for people who are new to diabetes management.

Apps for Tracking Blood Glucose

mySugr

Apple Rating: 4.6
Android Rating: 4.5
Free (In-App Purchases Available)

mySugr isn’t coy about its mission – the app’s motto is “we make diabetes suck less.” Just don’t let its sense of humor and quirky aesthetic fool you. This is a highly effective app for diabetes management that comes with a ton of features.

In the base app, you’ll get A1C estimates, medication and meal tracking, carb intake, and Apple Health integration – among other capabilities. Upgrading to the pro subscription will let you do even more. As a pro user, you can set reminders to check your blood sugar and calculate insulin doses, meal shots, and corrections.

OneTouch Reveal

Apple Rating: 4.8
Android Rating: 4.2
Free

Most of the apps listed here are meant to help anyone with diabetes. That’s not quite the case for OneTouch Reveal, since it’s designed to work with the OneTouch Verio Flex and the OneTouch Verio Reflect blood glucose meters. But if you do use a OneTouch meter, this app is a must-have.

With OneTouch Reveal, you’ll be able to take the data from your compatible glucose meter to the next level. The app can look for patterns in your readings and figure out when you should look out for overly high or low blood sugar levels. You can also share data with your healthcare team in the form of 14-day, 30-day, or 90-day summaries. Best of all, the OneTouch Reveal app is completely free – no upgrades required.

Diabetes Connect

Apple Rating: 4.7
Android Rating: 4.4
Free (In-App Purchases Available)

As we mentioned earlier, not everyone needs or wants the most comprehensive diabetes app on the market. If you aren’t entirely comfortable with smartphones or just don’t feel the need to track every possible diabetes-related statistic, Diabetes Connect may be just what you’re looking for.

Diabetes Connect is a straightforward app designed to help you track your blood glucose, insulin and other medications, and food intake. Intriguingly, this app lets users turn unused or unneeded features off, hiding them to simplify its interface. Along with that, Diabetes Connect syncs data across devices and can create easy-to-read graphs of diabetes stats.

Diabetes Apps for Data Management

Glucose Buddy

Apple Rating: 4.8
Android Rating: 4.0
Free (In-App Purchases Available)

When you really think about it, who doesn’t want a Glucose Buddy? This app certainly lives up to its name, offering all the features you could want from a diabetes app. A comprehensive food database, bar code scanning, and integration with Apple Health and Dexcom are all here.

Glucose Buddy doesn’t do everything for free – you’ll need to pay to use its A1C calculator (and remove ads). But that doesn’t detract from the app’s strengths, making it a true “buddy” for anyone dealing with diabetes.

Diabetes Tracker by MyNetDiary (Apple)/MyNetDiary’s Diabetes and Diet Tracker (Android)

Apple Rating: 4.7
Android Rating: 4.6
$9.99

First of all, don’t worry about the name – these are two different versions of the same app. What’s more important is how impressive this app is. You’ll be able to track any diabetes-related data point you can think of: blood glucose, insulin and medications, exercise (including GPS tracking), meals, and more. You can even log your water intake!

Of course, all that functionality comes with a price. Unlike any other app listed here, MyNetDiary’s offering isn’t free – you’ll need to pay about $10 to get started. On top of that, there’s a subscription for bonuses like fitness tracker/smart scale synchronization. But if you don’t mind paying up, it’s hard to go wrong with this app.

Frequently Asked Questions About Diabetes Apps

Which Diabetes App Is Best?

With so many options available today, it’s impossible to choose one app as the “best diabetes app” for everyone. We listed Medical ID as an app everyone should have since it lets users share essential medical data in critical situations. Beyond that, you’ll need to explore the apps listed here and think about which ones may be well-suited to your own needs.

Is My Diabetes App Free?

Almost every app listed here is free to download. In fact, MyNetDiary’s app is the only one that will require you to take out your credit card right away.

The majority of apps on this list offer extra functionality behind a paywall. For the most part, though, you’ll still be able to take care of the basics without paying extra.

What Is The Best Carb-Counting App for People with Diabetes?

Again, this is a situation where you’ll need to look at what’s available and consider what would be a good fit for you. For example, mySugr offers all kinds of features that can be helpful to people with diabetes – but if you just need the basics, Diabetes Connect may be the better option. Aside from Medical ID, however, most of the apps featured here offer carb-counting tools in some capacity.

Manage Diabetes With These Apps – And ADS

Not every diabetes app is suitable for everyone, but there’s sure to be a diabetes app that’s right for you. Hopefully, this list will help you take the first step when it comes to using technology to track your food intake, glucose levels, and more!

In addition to these apps, why not use your smartphone to simplify other aspects of living with diabetes? When you order insulin, glucose meters, diabetes testing supplies, and other products online from ADS, you’ll benefit from our fast shipping and attention to customer service. The supplies you need are just a tap away!