Recipe apps for iPhone and MacHead to head
Paprika vs Crouton
Paprika ranks #1 and Crouton ranks #2 in our guide to the best recipe apps for iPhone and Mac. Paprika is our pick for most people, and Crouton is the best free option.
PaprikaPick Paprika if you plan meals for the week and want the grocery list built for you.$4.99 onceBest free
CroutonPick Crouton if you want a free recipe box with a step-by-step cooking mode and timers.Free to startWhat decides it
- Paprika costs less over 3 years: $4.99, against $44.97 for Crouton.
- Both run on Mac, iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch.
- Paprika has the higher App Store rating: 4.9 from 54K ratings, against 4.8 for Crouton.
Side by side
Prices are checked every day.
| At a glance | Paprika | Crouton |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $4.99 once on iPhone and iPad, $29.99 once on the Mac | Free. Discover is $1.99 a month or $14.99 a year |
| How you pay | Pay once | Free, with paid upgrades |
| 3 years of use | $4.99 Cheaper | $44.97 Yearly plan |
| Free trial | None listed | Free to start |
| Runs on | Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch | Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch |
| Where to buy | App Store | App Store |
| Rating | 4.9 54K ratings Higher | 4.8 2.9K ratings |
| Features | Family Sharing | iCloud sync, Widgets, Shortcuts, Family Sharing |
| Made by | Hindsight Labs LLC | Crouton LLC |
| Last updated | 16 Jul 2026 | 26 Oct 2026 |
Who should get which
Get Paprika if
You cook from online recipes most weeks and want them, plus the shopping list, in 1 place.
Get Crouton if
You cook from food blogs and cookbooks and want every recipe in 1 place without the ads and life stories.
Skip Paprika if
You rotate the same handful of dinners, and a note in Apple Notes holds those for free.
Skip Crouton if
You cook the same handful of dishes from memory and never look anything up.
Our verdicts
Paprika
If you cook from food blogs a few times a week, Paprika pulls each recipe off the page into your own searchable cookbook and builds a grocery list that combines ingredients and sorts them by aisle. It scales servings, converts units and starts timers from the cook times in the directions. Each platform is a separate purchase, so iPhone plus Mac comes to $34.98, and Mela's free download is a cheaper place to start.
Crouton
Save a recipe from a website or scan a cookbook page, and Crouton keeps the ingredients and steps, synced over iCloud to your iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch. Cooking mode shows 1 step at a time, reveals the amount when you tap an ingredient and starts timers from the step text. All of that is free, unlike Paprika's $29.99 Mac app, and only AI photo import and ingredient swaps need the $14.99-a-year Discover plan.
What each one helps you do
Paprika
- Save any website recipe in 1 tap
- Build a grocery list sorted by aisle
- Scale a recipe for more people
- Plan a week of meals on a calendar
Crouton
- Save a recipe from any website without the clutter
- Scan a recipe straight out of a cookbook
- Plan a week of dinners in minutes
- Turn recipes into a grocery list
Where to get them
Paprika
$4.99 once on iPhone and iPad, $29.99 once on the Mac
-
App Store, iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch$4.99App Store
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Mac App Store$29.99Mac App Store
Crouton
Free. Discover is $1.99 a month or $14.99 a year
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App Store, iPhone, iPad and Apple WatchWith in-app purchasesFree downloadApp Store
Neither one quite right?
The other picks in our guide to the best recipe apps for iPhone and Mac.
Read the full guideAll Paprika alternativesAll Crouton alternatives