Arrow vs MacroFactor (2026): which one fits lifters?

Pick MacroFactor if you want a dedicated nutrition app that adjusts your calories each week and Android support, and you're fine logging lifts in a separate app (or not at all). Pick Arrow if you want one iPhone app where your goal, training, Apple Health steps and food all feed the same calorie and macro targets, including a suggested new diet plan when you're trying to gain and progress stalls. If you only count calories and don't lift, MacroFactor is the better fit and Arrow isn't worth paying for.

I make Arrow. Every MacroFactor claim below comes from MacroFactor's own site or store listing, checked November 9, 2026, and the Arrow claims match what we've published. Spot something out of date? Email support@arrowfitnessapp.com.

This page is for lifters choosing between a nutrition-first tracker and an app that tracks workouts and macros together. If you only want a free food diary, MyFitnessPal Free is closer to what you need, and if you only want a free gym log, look at Hevy.

01How do they compare side by side?

MacroFactor sells two separate apps: Nutrition (food and calories) and Workouts (lifting).

Sources for MacroFactor rows: pricing, Workouts overview + integration FAQ, App Store listing for Nutrition.

02How do their calorie adjustments differ?

MacroFactor spells out how it works. Each week it compares the food you logged with your weight trend, estimates how many calories you actually burn and adjusts your calorie and macro targets. MacroFactor calls this "adherence-neutral": a messy week of eating doesn't break the next check-in, and that design is why a lot of lifters still treat it as the nutrition default.

Arrow also updates calories weekly from your trend weight (a smoothed average of your daily weigh-ins), after about 7 complete logged days and 2 weigh-ins at least 7 days apart, and each check-in moves calories by at most 150. Your goal, training and Apple Health steps feed the targets along with your food. The detail is in apps that adjust calories from weight trend.

Both apps only work as well as your logging does.

03Does training change your food targets?

This is where the two apps really differ. MacroFactor's own Workouts FAQ says that at launch there are no shared coaching features or automatic program adjustments between nutrition and training. Body metrics, scale weight, progress photos and some habits sync, but a bench stall in Workouts doesn't rewrite next week's protein target in Nutrition.

Arrow takes the opposite approach, with one log for both. If you're trying to gain and your weight or lifts stop moving, Arrow suggests a new diet plan and you accept or reject it. If you accept, your total calories change. We haven't published how protein or carbs move in every case, and we haven't published what Arrow suggests on a cut (a fat-loss phase), so I won't guess either. The walkthrough for gain goals is in how Arrow changes macros when training stalls.

If you like MacroFactor's nutrition math and already love Hevy or another gym log, keeping two apps makes sense. If you hate matching up two apps every Sunday, having food and training in one app is the reason to switch.

04When should you pick MacroFactor over Arrow?

• If you want a dedicated nutrition coach whose weekly check-ins hold up even when your logging isn't perfect.
• If you need Android today. Arrow's latest features are iPhone only.
• If you want MacroFactor Workouts to pick your next weights and reps automatically based on RIR, as documented on macrofactor.com/workouts, and you're fine keeping nutrition separate.
• If you don't want to pay for a lifting log you won't use. Nutrition alone at $71.99/yr is enough for food-focused users.
• If you want to import programs from fitness coach Jeff Nippard into Workouts. MacroFactor's FAQ says you must already own the program; the files aren't included free (macrofactor.com/workouts).

If MacroFactor does what you need better than Arrow today, pick MacroFactor rather than waiting on our roadmap.

05When should you pick Arrow over MacroFactor?

• If you want one iPhone app for lifts and macros, with new diet plan suggestions when a gain phase stalls that change your calories once you accept them.
• If you already use Apple Health steps and want them counted in the same targets as your food and training.
• If you want weekly recaps from Arrow Coach, the app's built-in coach, that cover both training and food without exporting two histories.
• If you're comparing apps for tracking a recomp (losing fat and gaining muscle at once) or a cut, where strength and food have to be judged together (best body recomposition apps, recomp or cut?).

06Where does Arrow fall short?

• One paid subscription; no free version; 7-day free trial; price shown in the App Store (it can vary).
• The latest features are iPhone only.
• No Apple Watch app is listed.
• There's no photo body-fat tool (GainFrame wins that job).
• We haven't fully published the rules for when Arrow suggests a new diet plan, and it's confirmed for gain goals only.

07Where does MacroFactor fall short, by its own description?

• Nutrition and Workouts are separate purchases unless you buy both together for $89.99/yr.
• There's no automatic coaching link between the two apps at launch, in MacroFactor's own words.
• Nutrition has no permanent free version.

08Which one should you pick?

1. On Android, or only tracking nutrition? MacroFactor.
2. On iPhone and want diet suggestions when a gain phase stalls, in one app? Arrow.
3. Love MacroFactor's food logging but need a gym log? MacroFactor plus Hevy, or the MacroFactor bundle if you want their Workouts app.
4. Still choosing between a recomp and a cut? Read recomp or cut? before you buy either subscription.
5. Comparing MacroFactor to MyFitnessPal instead? See MacroFactor vs MyFitnessPal for lifters.

09FAQ

Is Arrow a MacroFactor alternative?

For lifters who want calorie targets that adjust to their weight and a lifting log in one place, yes. For nutrition-only users on Android, MacroFactor is still the more direct buy.

Does MacroFactor change my macros when my lifts stall?

Not automatically through Workouts at launch, per MacroFactor's integration FAQ. Nutrition check-ins follow your food logs and weight trend.

Does Arrow change my macros when my lifts stall?

If you're trying to gain and your weight or lifts stop moving, it can suggest a new diet plan, and you choose whether to accept it. If you accept, your total calories change. The exact protein and carb changes aren't fully published, and we haven't published what happens on a cut.

Which is cheaper?

MacroFactor Nutrition is $71.99/yr (US), and Nutrition plus Workouts is $89.99/yr. Arrow has one paid subscription, and its price varies and is shown in the App Store, so compare the live store price rather than a number on a blog.

10Sources

Checked November 9, 2026.

• MacroFactor pricing / bundle: macrofactor.com/workouts/price
• MacroFactor Workouts features + integration FAQ (including Jeff Nippard ownership note): macrofactor.com/workouts
• MacroFactor Nutrition capabilities: App Store listing (adaptive coach, database, adherence-neutral check-ins)
• Arrow: App Store · journal pages linked above