For the simplest ingredient search, start with SuperCook's checklist. Choose Cooklist for barcode and pantry tools, Samsung Food for a large recipe catalog, or Umay if you want to take a fridge photo and get ideas for dinner. DishGen and Chef focus on recipes built from the ingredients or ideas you type in.
Last updated October 17, 2026. We make Umay, so we include it and say where other apps do better. How we compared: we reviewed official product pages and US store listings on October 17, 2026, plus the secondary platform sources labeled below; we state listed prices and mark any unclear offer for a current store check.
SuperCook
SuperCook lets you check off ingredients and searches a large index of recipes from the items you have. A filter can surface dishes that are only one missing ingredient away.
- Price: Free.
- Platforms: iPhone, iPad and Android.
- Best for: Finding recipe ideas from a typed or spoken ingredient checklist.
- Limits: The documented filter is about recipes you can nearly make; check the store listing for current shopping-list features.
Samsung Food
Samsung Food pairs a catalog of public recipes with recipe saving, meal planning and a shared shopping list. Its photo feature in the US listing is for converting recipe pages, not for identifying everything in a fridge.
- Price: Free with in-app purchases; Samsung Food+ is listed at $6.99 per month or $59.99 per year in the US store listing.
- Platforms: iOS, iPad, Android and web.
- Best for: Searching a broad recipe catalog and connecting recipes to meal planning and shopping.
- Limits: Some features are in Food+; check the US listing for the current free and paid feature split.
Cooklist
Cooklist connects a pantry with recipes, barcode scans and grocery accounts. It can compare local retailers and build a shopping list from the ingredients missing from selected meals.
- Price: Check the current US App Store listing.
- Platforms: iPhone, iPad and Android.
- Best for: A pantry, barcode scans and grocery planning in one app.
- Limits: The documented setup uses barcode scans or linked grocery accounts; check supported retailer connections before relying on those features.
DishGen
DishGen takes ingredients or a dish idea you type in and returns a recipe. Its store listing describes a free tier and a paid plan.
- Price: Free with in-app purchases; Premium is listed at $7.99 per month or $79.99 per year.
- Platforms: iPhone and iPod touch.
- Best for: Turning a short ingredient list or meal idea into a recipe draft.
- Limits: Check the current listing for supported devices and grocery-list features.
Chef
The US App Store listing describes PantryChef for choosing ingredients and a Snap Ingredients photo input. A weekly meal plan can also produce a consolidated shopping list.
- Price: A $4.99 weekly offer is listed; check the store for the terms of any other offer.
- Platforms: iPhone and iPad.
- Best for: Choosing pantry ingredients or using a photo to start a recipe search.
- Limits: Review the subscription terms and billing period on the store before purchase.
Umay
Umay can start a recipe search from a photo of your fridge or from ingredients you enter. It also includes a meal planner, a shared grocery list, pantry tracking, household features and world recipes.
- Price: $6.99 per month or $39.99 per year, with a one-week trial on the annual plan.
- Platforms: iOS, Android and web.
- Best for: Turning what is already in the fridge into recipe ideas and connecting them to a household meal plan.
- Limits: The free plan includes 5 generated recipes per week and 8 photo scans per month; web does not sell Premium.
Quick picks
- Best ingredient checklist: SuperCook.
- Best pantry and barcode workflow: Cooklist.
- Best large recipe catalog: Samsung Food.
- Best fridge-photo cooking with meal planning: Umay.
- Best for a recipe idea from typed ingredients: DishGen or Chef.
Can these apps identify everything in a fridge photo?
The sources reviewed describe fridge-photo input for Umay. Cooklist documents barcode and pantry tools, while Samsung Food describes photo input for recipe pages. Those are different jobs, so check the feature named in the listing.
Which apps make a shopping list?
Samsung Food links its list to meal planning, Cooklist lists missing ingredients for selected meals, and Umay includes a shared household list. Chef's listing also describes a list generated from its weekly plan.
Is there a free way to search by ingredients?
SuperCook is listed as free, and Samsung Food offers a free tier. Other apps combine free use with paid offers or limits, so check each current US store listing before choosing.
Sources
- SuperCook US App Store listing
- SuperCook Android listing reference
- Samsung Food US App Store listing
- Samsung Food platform reference (secondary)
- Cooklist US App Store listing
- Cooklist app page
- DishGen App Store listing
- Chef US App Store listing
- Umay on the App Store
- Umay on Google Play
- Umay web app
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