Which app is the better choice for what
Pick PandaChef if …
You want to plan your own recipes, not a catalog
One account should cover the whole household, with cooking days per person
Your assistant in ChatGPT or Claude should reach your recipes, plan, pantry and list
A company based in Germany with its database in the EU matters to you
Pick Samsung Food if …
You want to plan from a large recipe catalog with nutrition facts
You have a Samsung kitchen with SmartThings
You need an iPhone app from the App Store
You want groceries delivered through a retailer
Feature by feature
| Feature | PandaChef | Samsung Food |
|---|---|---|
| Recipe catalogSamsung Food ahead | None. The collection is the recipes you bring yourself | 240,000 public recipes, 124,000 of them with step-by-step guidance |
| Importing your own recipesEven | Links, PDFs, photos, screenshots, cookbook pages and text; YouTube and TikTok by link (text only, on YouTube with the linked recipe), Instagram by link in the Android app, otherwise as shared text or a screenshot | Links from any website, photos of cookbook pages, scans and handwritten recipes |
| Recipe from a photo of the dishPandaChef ahead | Yes. Photograph the plate and get a recipe with ingredients and steps, marked as an estimate | Not offered. On Galaxy devices, Vision AI estimates calories from a photo of the food |
| Nutrition factsSamsung Food ahead | Taken from the source, or added by AI on request | Listed for 218,500 recipes |
| AI plans the weekPandaChef ahead | From your own recipes | In the Food+ plan, from Samsung's catalog |
| HouseholdPandaChef ahead | Shared collection, plan and list; cooking days assigned to people; one Premium covers everyone | Shopping lists can be shared with the family |
| PantryPandaChef ahead | With expiry dates, filled from a photo of your fridge, recipe ideas from it | In the Food+ plan, with items added from a photo |
| Shopping listEven | Added up across the whole plan, with export to Bring! | Added up, with delivery through 23 retailers in 4 regions, most of them in the US |
| Cooking modeEven | Step by step, screen stays on, timers, voice control and read-aloud | Smart Cooking Mode in Food+, sends the settings to Samsung ovens through SmartThings |
| PlatformsSamsung Food ahead | Android app on Google Play and the web, built for phones. The iOS app is in progress | Native apps for iOS and Android, plus the web |
| Free planEven | 9 recipes with no time limit and no payment details; the full meal plan and shopping list | Core features free; the AI meal plan and the pantry need Food+ |
| Premium priceEven | Premium for €4.99 a month including VAT, cancel at the end of any month; one account covers the whole household | Food+ $6.99 a month or $59.99 a year in the US (at the time of checking) |
| AI assistant connectionPandaChef ahead | MCP server with over 50 tools for Claude, ChatGPT and others | Its AI features live inside the Samsung Food app; no connection to ChatGPT or Claude is listed |
| Company and where the data livesPandaChef ahead | A small team in Germany; database and servers in the EU | Samsung; the data lives with Samsung |
Information about Samsung Food comes from public sources, checked on October 29, 2026. Features and prices change, so if in doubt, check with the vendor: Samsung Food.
Where Samsung Food is better
These points speak for Samsung Food today.
The catalog is huge and comes with nutrition facts
240,000 public recipes, nutrition facts for 218,500 of them. If you stand in front of the fridge in the evening with no idea, you will find something in Samsung Food. PandaChef knows only the recipes you bring, and its nutrition facts depend on the source or on an AI estimate you ask for.
Samsung Food talks to the kitchen
Through SmartThings, Samsung Food connects to Samsung ovens and fridges, the Smart Cooking Mode walks you through a recipe and can send the settings to the oven, and groceries can be delivered through 23 retailers. PandaChef connects to no appliances and offers no delivery. The list goes to Bring! by export.
Samsung Food is in both stores, with a large community
Samsung Food has native apps for iOS and Android, runs on the web, and names 4.5 million members in its communities. PandaChef's only native app so far is the Android one on Google Play. The iOS app is in progress and not yet published.
Where PandaChef is better
You plan with your own recipes
PandaChef pulls recipes in from the web, from cookbooks, from screenshots or from typed text and makes a searchable collection of them. When the AI plans the week, it plans from that collection, not from someone else's catalog.
A household with cooking days, on one subscription
Sam cooks on Tuesday and Alex on Thursday. Everyone in the household sees the same recipes, the same plan and the same list, and only the person who set up the household needs Premium. Samsung Food shares shopping lists but hands out no cooking days.
The pantry works in any browser
A pantry with expiry dates, filled from a photo of your fridge, with recipe ideas from it: PandaChef offers that on any device with a browser. In Samsung Food the pantry is part of the Food+ plan, and some of its photo features run only on Galaxy devices.
The assistant runs in ChatGPT and Claude
Through the built-in MCP server, an assistant such as Claude or ChatGPT searches your recipes, fills the meal plan and writes the shopping list, right in your account. Samsung Food's assistant stays inside the Samsung Food app.
A company in Germany, a database in the EU
PandaChef comes from a small team in Germany. The database and servers are in the EU; for AI features, payments and statistics we work with providers that also process data in the USA, and the details are in the privacy policy. Samsung Food belongs to Samsung, and that is where its data lives. Whether that matters is your call.
Frequently asked questions
Can I move my recipes from Samsung Food to PandaChef?
There is no direct import. Recipes that are online come over by link. Everything else goes through a photo or a screenshot of the recipe view, or through pasted text. The AI reads both, but you do it one recipe at a time.
Does PandaChef have a recipe catalog too?
No. PandaChef works with the recipes you bring yourself. Suggestions come from your pantry: what is there decides what the app suggests. If you want inspiration from a large catalog, Samsung Food is the better fit.
Does PandaChef work with SmartThings or other kitchen appliances?
No. PandaChef connects to no ovens, fridges, scales or thermometers. The cooking mode runs in the browser and in the Android app, with timers from the steps, voice control and read-aloud.
How much does PandaChef cost?
The free plan keeps 9 recipes with no time limit and no payment details. The meal plan and the shopping list are fully included. Premium costs €4.99 a month including VAT, removes the recipe limit and adds the household. You can cancel at the end of any month.
Is PandaChef on the App Store or Google Play?
On Google Play, yes: that is where the Android app is. Not on the App Store yet; the iOS app is in progress. Until then PandaChef runs in the browser on an iPhone and is built for phones. If an app from the App Store matters to you, Samsung Food is the better choice today.