How to choose a recipe app: 6 questions before you download

There are many recipe apps, and none of them fits everyone. Instead of ranking them, here are six questions you can ask of any app, before you download it and before you move dozens of recipes into it. In every question that refers to a feature, we also include what the KitchenAppes homepage says about KitchenAppes (checked on 19.10.2026), as an example of how you check. We do not claim it is better than another. The decision is yours.

1. In which language do I read recipes?

If you read in one language but also cook from recipes in other languages, it is worth finding out whether the app shows them and translates them. It is also worth checking the units: are they shown in the form you are used to.

On the KitchenAppes homepage: you can read recipes in Hebrew, English and Russian. If a recipe was written in another language, the app can translate it, and the ingredient units match your language. The page does not state the quality of the translation.

2. How does it work when I am in the middle of cooking?

Open one recipe, preferably one with several steps and several waiting times, and go through it as if you were in the kitchen, with busy hands and some distance from the phone. Does the screen stay on? Do you see one step at a time, or everything in a row? Is there a timer, and if so, do you have to leave the recipe to start it?

On the KitchenAppes homepage: cooking mode keeps the screen on and shows one step at a time, and timers start directly from the step that needs them.

3. What can I do with a recipe I found?

Think about what you actually do: buy ingredients, save it for next time, send it to someone at home. Check that the app covers the actions that matter to you, and that moving between them is easy. For example, if you are planning a shop, can you go straight from the recipe to the list, without copying by hand?

On the KitchenAppes homepage: you can add a recipe's ingredients to the shopping list, save it in your cookbook, or share a link with friends and family.

4. Do I need an account?

Check what you can do without signing up, and what requires an account. Before you enter an email address and save a lot of content, it is worth knowing how you delete the account and what you saved, if you want to leave. If the answer is not written clearly, that is a sign to ask before you start.

On the KitchenAppes homepage: the recipes on the page were published by community members, and you can open them, save them and cook from them without an account. The sentence refers to the recipes on the page, and the page does not go further than that. Anyone who wants to publish a recipe of their own can create an account.

5. What does the app ask of me, and what does it declare?

Here it is worth using the tools the stores themselves offer. According to Apple's developer page, on every app's page in Apple's app store you can learn which kinds of data the app may collect, and whether they are linked to you or used for tracking. Google Play has a section called Data safety, where developers declare what is collected and shared and which security practices, such as encryption, exist, before you install. There you can also see whether there is a way to request deletion of data.

It is important to remember: Google writes that its review process is not meant to verify the accuracy and completeness of the declarations. So this is the developer's declaration.

According to the British organization Which?, in a notice about smart devices from 5.11.2024, it is worth checking permissions before you download an app, refusing access that is not needed even if that limits some features, and going through the data-collection sections of the privacy policy. The recommendations were written about smart-device apps, and we present them as general advice.

6. What do other users say?

Ratings and comments can help you choose a recipe, and you can check whether the app includes them. Do not rely on them alone, and try one or two recipes yourself.

On the KitchenAppes homepage: community members rate and comment on the recipes they try, and that way they help everyone choose a good recipe.

How to decide

Write down for yourself what matters to you among the questions, pick one recipe you know, and try it in two apps. The good choice is the one that fits the way you cook, not the one with the most features. What is not written on an app's page, do not assume: ask, or try it yourself.

Want to see what it looks like? You can start with the community recipes on KitchenAppes, and read more about us.