MealBoard - Meal Planner Reviews

by DevonRay

Nearly everything is manual. One of the only automated things is the default list of stores, none of which exist near me. I thought I could add any number of the various stores around me, but nothing is automated despite the description stating MealBoard “supports multiple grocery stores” which I guess actually just means “you can type more than one line of text in MealBoard!” I have to type the name of a store (no search), configure all of the aisles in the store, configure the prices of every item I might buy... I don’t get it. It feels like downloading Google Maps only to find out you have to enter all of the step-by-step directions yourself. I would have just casually gone our separate ways but I’m particularly upset that the developer charges a non-refundable $4 just to try MealBoard. I could care less about the $4 honestly, but I highly recommend adding a free trial so others—who immediately realize that this doesn’t solve any substantive problems or pain points—are able to cancel without you pocketing their money. The bar is particularly high for pay-to-download apps, and this one doesn’t come close.

by Evilchicken777

I spent two and a half hours yesterday and got all of three meals input. I figured that there is a learning curve at the beginning, plus time to get it set up, so I gave it another shot today. An hour later and I am frustrated at how unwieldy MealBoard is. It suffers from the same thing a lot of organizing apps suffer from: over complicating things in an effort to give you more. I wanted something I could simply write down what the weeks meals are. I don’t need to put down a recipe for everything. I don’t need a grocery list. I already have an app I like for that, plus putting groceries on automatically from recipes has the problem that it adds staples I keep in stock always, and doesn’t add said staples when they start to run low. The very first recipe site on the list listed on the “imports” I use, and have an account, and MealBoard . When I tried to import my recipes the other app opened, and I lost the import interface button and couldn’t import anything. I spent a lot of time but could not figure out a way except to close the recipe app, go back to MealBoard, individually search each recipe on their import page and import it from the site opened anonymously through their web search. MealBoard has wasted my time. I’ll go back to scribbling the weeks meals on a calendar on the wall. It’s a lot faster, and I need fast.

by DJ Rizzo

I just started using MealBoard and I have high hopes for it being the meal planning / kitchen organizing app I always wanted to have. But there is one big reason why I’m not using it very much: importing/inputting recipes to this app is a huge put off when compared to my current grocery/recipe app: AnyList. AnyList is near perfect at importing recipes and super easy because it ads a share-menu command to Safari allowing 1 -tap entry of on-line recipes. No need to copy and paste URLs. It also does an amazing job of parsing recipe data that is pasted into MealBoard . So it’s super easy to copy an emailed recipe and paste it in. I can also use the Mac version of AnyList to more quickly type in recipes.

But AnyList does a horrible job of creating a grocery list from more than one recipe. It also does not have the ability to enter and keep track of items in the pantry. And right now their devs are adding stuff I really don’t need or want (Alexa integration) instead of improving the functionality of it. That is whyI really want to use MealBoard as my only Grocery/Recipe app. But until getting the recipes into this one is easier I’m still using AnyList everyday and putting this app on the back burner.

by Tjcrook

And I don't do reviews! This is a first—but MealBoard is really amazing. I selected it following research a couple of years ago for my wife thinking it would be "kinda nice." My wife is super organized, loves her recipes, really cares about her meal planning and has a demanding full time career as a an Psychiatric APRN. I do most of the actual grocery shopping. Wow—she really got serious about using this app and it has amazed me how useful it is. Really exceeded my expectations.

She has learned more and more and has a great data base now. We sync with my our iPhones and iPads. I can not imagine going shopping without using MealBoard now. All our married kids now use it. It was really great for them to be able to log in on "moms" account - do a sync- and immediately get all of her data as a beginning base and then they all continued to modify their own apps on their own after that. Now they all swap and share recipes.

When I help out with cooking (not one of my strong points) I'd be lost without this app.

So we always cook and shop with our iphone or iPad as the main control center.

It takes a little learning curve but the effort you put in returns much more benefits. She can plan out cabin trip menus and gathering menus and just everyday menus and shopping lists really fast. I'm very impressed. It's been a blessing for us.

I highly recommend it!! Well worth it!! Keep up the great job.

by Mgunslinger17

I just downloaded MealBoard and have started adding my favorite recipes. First impressions, MealBoard has all the features I am looking for in a meal planner. Calendar, shopping list, recipe box, in addition to pantry tracker and even the ability to customize the stores you shop at and which stores you buy certain ingredients. Importing recipes is easy but does require going in for some quick edits most times. The only thing that I see as being a potential annoyance is that when the same ingredient is entered a little differently now different recipes, it adds both versions to the master list. If they're organized by the same category, it shouldn't be terribly annoying, but if you don't like redundancy, it will probably bug the crap out of you. You can definitely spend hours fine tuning MealBoard to fit your needs which makes it a powerful tool.

by Momma Cook6

I’ve been using this app daily for several years. This is my favorite app on my phone. While it comes with recipes, I entered all my own recipes and it was worth the time spent. I add recipes I want to make for the week, sync with my grocery list, and use the grocery list while shopping, checking off items I put in my cart. Sometimes, I stop at a grocery store without a shopping list prepared and add meals while there onto the meal calendar and sync with my grocery list and I’m all organized. No more forgetting what is in a recipe or forgetting to buy certain items. I can also email the shopping list to another family member to shop for me. If I want to text a shopping list, I just copy it from the email into a text. Each day, I can look at the calendar and see what I had planned to make, and then view the recipe for ingredients and directions. No need to pull out the cook book. This is also handy when I’m cooking on vacation or at someone else’s home. I can also easily edit the recipe to add important tips I discover as I’m preparing it. If I want to share recipes with friends, I can email them right from MealBoard . If I want to print a recipe so my child can make it without looking at my phone, I can do that right from MealBoard as well. I absolutely love MealBoard!

by LgBrackett

Hello! Ive had MealBoard for about a month and so far I love it! It seems to be very thorough and well written. I trusted many of the outstanding reviews on my decision to purchase MealBoard. I do like to hear that there is no monthly fee and the developer stays well connected for suggestions, feedback, follow-up. Sounds like Ray knows customer service, which is often hard to find these days! I have many recipes, but enjoy being able to import MANY others. I still need to learn how/why to write “templates”, but I figure that will come with time as I proceed to explore MealBoard . Thanks to all the great reviews (good and maybe not so good) bc again, I feel this is REAL, LIVE input from REAL people! I’m hoping Ray isn’t going anywhere and hope if we lose him somehow, we will still be able to continue using MealBoard as we purchased, with all the fantastic features! Cheers to Ray!!

by Zaria37

I recently switched from Menu Planner to this app because the developer never seemed to get the barcode scanner to work. I'm getting used to the functionality of MealBoard and it's comparable, if not better. Importing recipes is definitely easier and has more compatible sites. I use Pinterest a lot, so I just copy the URL from the recipe's site and copy it here and auto import fast and easy. Even using the "tool" function to import recipes is efficient (although obviously not better). I look forward to setting up the pantry and freezer in MealBoard to start tracking inventory!

***update*** I would like the developers to consider including an option to mark a pantry item (i.e. corndogs) as a recipe/side dish that can be added to the menu **and reduce inventory** instead of having to create a new recipe to update the pantry or manually updating the pantry for that item....I haven't been able to "quick add" a pantry item to the menu planner.

by Suj-cats

I’ve been using MealBoard for a little over a week, and have been busily entering recipes, doing meal planning, and using the shopping list. Haven't yet approached the pantry inventory, but may with my pantry staples. Love that I can create templates of meal plans for future use, and love that it puts my recipe ingredients on my shopping list. Yes, its work to set up. But once a recipe is entered, I can tap to add it to my calendar, and tap to create a shopping list, and tap at the store to mark the item in my grocery cart (and tap again to add to the pantry if I decide to go that far!). Over time, MealBoard is going to save me time - just with the grocery list alone, not to mention having a plan for meals. Downloading recipes so far has been simple, with minor edits required, and love that all of it is synched between my ipad where I do the entry, and my phone where I do my shopping - not to mention having recipes with me for spur of the moment plans!

by Dec9905

What a fantastic app! I have been using it for about 1 1/2 years now and I don’t know how I lived without it! So worth the nominal app fee. Over the first 6-8 months, I slowly added recipes as I made them but I made it last winter’s project to get them all added...1900+ in total. MealBoard saves time - no lost time trying to decide what is for dinner tonight and quick assembly of your shopping list.

I love being able to access from anywhere: my phone on the go, my iPad in the house, my laptop for recipe entry. My family can even check what is for dinner and add meals they have been craving.

There are very few issues, if any, but on the rare occasion an external website changes and recipes can no longer be imported properly, support is quick to respond to the report and resolve. The only thing I would like to see in MealBoard is the ability to save a favorite meal (main and side combo). There is a template to save a weeks worth of meals but I’d like to be able to drill down a bit further.

by Sharonyo

After looking at several other meal planning apps, I found this one. You do need to load a bunch of recipes when you get started but they have a search feature that gives you access to dozens of recipe sites so you can quickly upload new recipes to MealBoard . I also created my own "recipes" so I can put non recipe type meals on the menu (e.g.: "turkey sandwich" for lunches or "stuffed baked potatoes" for dinners). I email the menu to myself and then print out the menu from my email to post on the fridge. I love the shopping list. I don't have the patience to manage my pantry, but I will just check off all the shopping list items I know I have at home before I go shopping. I also share the menu to my ICal which allows me to see what's for dinner when I'm at work. It would be great if it had a sign in, so that my phone app and my iPad app would be able to sync. Overall, I find MealBoard simple to use and customize and has saved me time and money by reducing over-buying of food.

by Fitwalker913

I have loved using MealBoard ever since my cousin told me about it a few years ago. Our family of four each have it on our phones, linked, so no matter who is shopping, alone or multiple people at once, we can sync as we shop and get everything on our list correctly. The recipe import function was great and has gotten better with some recent updates such as the option to import ingredients as a text list. The “description “ field is a little hit or miss in terms of what is brought over from web pages. The one thing I always add manually to the description is a note of how many servings are in the original recipe, so that I can refer to that if there’s some part of the directions that makes reference to a specific quantity, especially when ingredients are meant to be divided (such as “add 1/3 cup of the flour”). I also routinely edit directions to add alternative instructions for Instant Pot and for Thermomix, two favorite appliances in our kitchen which take a little experience to know how to convert instructions. this app makes it so easy for the whole family to shop and cook as a team! My only wish is that it be developed for other platforms so all my friends and cousins can use it.

by Noname505

I’ve been using MealBoard for almost a year now. Learning its capabilities and how to use MealBoard was a little difficult at first but now that I’ve learned what it can do and with the improvements implemented its really a great app. I recently used the shopping list for the first time and it made shopping for my ingredients so much easier because it tells you how much you need of each item so that you can buy the right amount.

The absolute best part of MealBoard is the ability to import recipes. At first the import feature didn’t seem to work so well or maybe is was the website from which I was trying to import but I just imported about 10 recipes this week and all imported fairly well. You have the ability to make adjustments or corrections to the imported recipe if needed. It will include a link to the original recipe so that you can easily go there if you want to see the original recipe website.

I’m working on my Thanksgiving meal plan and recipes now. It’s definitely worth the price.

by TymoSF

For years, we’ve been using a home-built database app that does much of what MealBoard does. Over time, the custom app has become increasingly difficult to maintain (and we’re letting it go), so this has been a perfect solution! I like being able to enter/import (especially import!!) recipes on the computer, select weekly menus (and cook) from the tablet, then shop from my phone. Everything stays in sync.

Normally we pick out six recipes for the week and then cook them in whatever order we feel like or have time for. Having to assign meals to a certain day takes away that flexibility, and this was a big negative for me at first. Over time we’ve gotten used to dragging and dropping recipes from one day to another and reorganizing as we go. Pretty amazing and easy! The pantry function is a bit confusing, but it’s more of a bonus than a requirement.

After trying several apps, I’m glad I found this one. Very happy with it, and the whole family has access to the evening’s dinner plans and shopping list. Best of all: one-time purchase with no ridiculous subscription plans!

by Grace1market

Love Love LOVE!!!!!! MealBoard! It is revolutionizing my meal planning! I especially love that I can import my favorite healthy recipes in off my favorite websites. Saves me so much time. Of course I also like that I can add my own or old family recipes. Populates my a grocery list, that's me add the recipes to my weekly meal plan, then it remove the groceries items from the pantry when I make a recipe. Just can't get over how much I seriously Love MealBoard!

1. It would help if we could share recipes on Pinterest to brag to our friends about what a great app this is. It's also free advertising for MealBoard.
2. Additionally, when you go to move items from your shopping list to the pantry you have to click on a trashcan icon. This confused me for a while and I thought that MealBoard did not move shopping list items to the pantry. I stopped using MealBoard for a long time until I discovered the move to pantry option I was searching for was in the trashcan... It would be less confusing if you change the trash can icon or make two separate icons for deletion (trash can) and for groceries being moved to the pantry (maybe a door). Just a suggestion :) Thank you for creating this awesome app!

by KpSeattle

The best thing about MealBoard is the ability to smoothly, seamlessly import recipes. I have been frustrated by Pepper Plate which had limited success at importing recipes. this app seems to be able to correctly pull in any recipe accurately from pretty much anywhere. If I find a recipe on the web that I want to save, I simply copy the link. When I open this app and tap on “import Recipe” it automatically grabs the link from my clipboard and pulls in that recipe like magic. The only exception I have found is NYT recipes. I suspect the NYT blocks it on their end because they want you to use their app.
The organization and search are very good. I can customize categories and edit recipes as needed. The only improvement I would hope for is a minor one - the ability to re-order the ingredients list on an imported recipe.
I orginally downloaded it to do meal planning to help shake up our same old routine and make sure i was using up some ingredients that were otherwise going to waste. It is great for that but I love it for the import feature.
Overall, I would highly recommend MealBoard to anyone looking for a way to keep track of recipes and plan meals.

by Wfoster42

I cannot sing the praises of this app to manage recipes, menus, and grocery lists enough. It’s refreshing to buy an app outright and not have to pay a monthly fee or tolerate ads. Ray has made an incredibly robust and user-friendly app that allows me to easily import and write recipes; maintain a grocery and pantry inventory; create menus; and generate shopping lists from the menu plus current inventory levels. The interface looks clean and is simple to use.

Additionally, I recently had an issue I created by installing MealBoard on my iPad (formerly only on my iPhone) and failing to sign in before I entered a LOT of recipes and new inventory items. As such I wasn’t able to maintain this work and also assign it to my actual account once I realized what I had done. Ray had this resolved for me in a day and I didn’t lose any work. In addition to the work he’s already done to build this fantastic app, his commitment to maintaining and improving it for his customers is what we should hope to experience from all sellers/companies but in most instances that just isn’t the case. I highly and whole-heartedly recommend MealBoard. Happy cooking!

by Happyhay20

The cost of MealBoard is easily made back by how much money I’ve saved not having to throw food away! Not only does it let you figure out exactly how much you need for your weekly recipes before going shopping- you can also add & sort by expiration dates to the pantry. I feel like this feature is so critical, at the start of the week I can sort by expiration date and choose recipes to make sure I use everything before it goes bad. As a single student on a tight budget this is a must have! I would love to see some improvement to the scheduling portion of MealBoard . 1. Bulk add from pantry to a meal Ex- If I’m going to have a variety of veggies with a dip for lunch, this really doesn’t justify making a recipe but it gets tedious to add each item individually. 2. Add a take out meal to the calendar. I’d like to be able to have a write-in option for a meal rather than being required to put in a recipe or pantry item. Ex- I know I’m getting take-out or going to an event with dinner I’d love to be able to write that in on the calendar to visually see my meals for the week.

Would also love to see integration with grocery store apps in the future to help clip coupons!

by J4nnin4tor

I absolutely love MealBoard. It is so very customizable and I’ve been importing / entering recipes for two days straight now. About 20 years ago I tried a meal planning software called MasterCook. It was great for its time, but it was so unwieldy that I soon gave up. Because of that poor experience I have avoided this type of app until now. I use it on my iPad, which means I have a beautifully laid out recipe card to follow. I love that it generates a customizable shopping list that I can send directly to my printer. I’m sure that if I were more organized I would find the pantry portion something I couldn’t live without.... but I’m not there yet. Plus, I’m 67 and if I want something from the store I simply send my husband. For some reason he enjoys getting out of the house! The other thing I just love is that for recipes that I key in myself MealBoard lets me browse and find whatever picture I want to use. And I found some really, really nice pictures. Makes me look like a star! And, last but not least, to be able to back everything up to the cloud so I don’t lose everything the next time I drop my iPad in the pool..... perfect. So, thank you. I almost never ever pay fir an app... but this one is worth every penny.

by JoiSLC

I’ve been using MealBoard for at least 5 years now. So many useful features like being able to import recipes from many food sites. The best thing for us is planning the entire week of meals. It compiles all of the ingredients onto a shopping list so you don’t have to. If you’re dieting or trying to eat healthy, half of the battle is food prep and organization. The shopping list categorized the items into the grocery store sections so you’re not zigzagging around when shopping. It has so many other features I don’t use like store preference or item pricing for budgeting. I would highly recommend MealBoard. In fact, you’re wasting your time time if you don’t at least keep your normal grocery list on it. You always have your phone, so you always have your list. You should keep all your recipes here. Then when you’re at the store and have an epiphany to make something that night you hadn’t planned, there’s all the ingredients on your phone. Get it if you want to make your cooking life simpler.

by MieshM1

For most of the reviewers who are unhappy... it seems either they do not understand how to use MealBoard or they are expecting it to be ready to use. Once you learn how to use MealBoard and spend a little time importing your favorite recipes... the whole meal planning process can be done in moments including a shopping list. Every recipe you add builds your library and you simply reuse them for even faster planning next time. Each time I think MealBoard cannot get much better... an update comes and makes it even better. I do not know how they are able to make such thoughtful improvements and do so flawlessly. I LOVE MealBoard. It helps organize every aspect of my meal planning from my recipes, pantry inventory and grocery list based on those planned meals. A dreaded chore becomes organized and fun. I am still learning things that MealBoard does that I have not yet used. My only complaint is the scaled amounts are often odd measures that I would need to convert but I imagine that some recipes would make it difficult to scale. this app is worth every penny and will save you both time and money! Thank you this app!

by Funky Little Chair

Oh my gosh I love MealBoard so much. After really struggling for ages with the never ending task of meal planning and grocery shopping I finally went looking for an app and this one really really fit the bill. Key for me is that it integrates well with the recipe sites we use most (allrecipes, taste of home) so there isn’t a whole bunch of manual editing and importing. I do manually import a couple family recipes per month, but it’s not a huge task, just have to do it once and there ya go.
I’ve been setting up a week long menu at the beginning of each month and then saving it as a template. Then it’s easy to just load it and make edits to individual days. Very easy to drag and drop meals around. And I like that I can add prices and stores to each items to see what the grocery total is looking like as I go.
I haven’t made much use yet of the pantry tools to track what we have at home, but once I have a meal plan loaded and it populates a grocery list, it’s super easy to go through the cupboards and delete out anything we have on hand. Maybe someday I’ll figure out the tracking systems but eh - probably not. Pretty darn happy with all the attributes I’m currently using - they’re saving me a ton of time and misery.