What happened to Mealime?
Mealime was discontinued on October 21, 2026. Its owner, Albertsons Companies, moved the recipes and meal-planning tools into Meals Hub, a free feature in the Albertsons Companies grocery apps and websites. Pro subscribers were not charged again before the shutdown.
Your Mealime account does not transfer. According to the closing notice, preferences and settings have to be set up again in Meals Hub, and all personal data is deleted when the app shuts down. The notice describes no export for saved recipes, meal plans or grocery lists.
Option 1: Import Mealime recipes by link
Mealime's recipe pages are still available at mealime.com/recipes (checked October 27, 2026). Open a recipe you cooked, copy the address and paste it into PandaChef under Add recipe, then Paste a link.
We tested this with three Mealime recipes on October 27, 2026. Title, servings, ingredients, steps and photo were imported for all three. Nutrition facts were not included, but PandaChef can estimate them with AI from the recipe view.
Act soon: there is no guarantee the recipe pages will stay online now that the app is closed
Mealime's web pages list pantry staples such as salt, oil or mayonnaise without amounts. These ingredients are imported with an amount of 1, so adjust them before saving
The link to the original page is stored with each recipe
Option 2: Convert screenshots into recipes
If you saved screenshots of recipes or grocery lists while Mealime was still running, upload them to PandaChef. Text recognition turns each screenshot into an editable recipe with a separate ingredient list and steps, so it becomes searchable.
This works for recipes from other sources as well, such as an Instagram caption, a note on your phone or a recipe sent in a message.
Option 3: Photograph printed recipes
For printed recipes, cookbook pages or cards with your own notes, take a photo. Lay the page flat and shoot it straight from above in even light. Recipes that run over several pages can be imported with up to five photos at once.
Mealime alternatives compared
Mealime was a meal planner built on its own recipe catalogue. The alternatives fall into two groups: apps that supply recipes, and apps that organize the recipes you collect. Meals Hub and Samsung Food belong to the first group, Plan to Eat, Paprika and PandaChef to the second.
Prices for the other apps are in US dollars, as published by each vendor during our research in October 2026. They may have changed since.
| App | Strengths | Platforms | Price | Limitations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PandaChef | Recipes from links, photos and screenshots in one collection; weekly meal planner; one shopping list for the whole week; the only recipe app in our comparison with an assistant in ChatGPT and Claude | Web, Android (Google Play); iPhone app not yet in the App Store | Free for up to 9 recipes; Premium €4.99 a month including VAT | No built-in recipe catalogue. Developed in Germany, so prices are in euros and the shopping list exports to Bring! |
| Meals Hub | Mealime's recipes and meal plans from the same team, now free | Albertsons Companies grocery apps and websites | Free | Part of a grocery store app; Mealime accounts, preferences and saved plans do not transfer |
| Samsung Food | Broad feature set: recipes from any website, a large public recipe catalogue, AI meal plans | iOS, Android, web | Core features free; Food+ $6.99 a month or $59.99 a year | Pantry and many AI features require Food+, some only work on Galaxy devices |
| Plan to Eat | Personal recipe book with calendar and shopping list, one account for the whole family; import from Instagram and TikTok | iOS, Android, web | 14-day trial without payment details, then $5.95 a month or $49 a year | No free plan, no pantry |
| Paprika 3 | Established recipe manager: works offline, one-time purchase, pantry with expiry dates | iOS, Android, Mac, Windows; no web app | One-time purchase per platform, e.g. $4.99 on iOS, $29.99 on Mac or Windows | No free plan, no AI features, no import from social media |
Which Mealime alternative is right for you?
You liked Mealime's recipes and shop at an Albertsons Companies store: Meals Hub offers the same recipes from the same team at no cost
You want a large catalogue of new recipes and AI-generated meal plans: Samsung Food
You plan with recipes you collect yourself and are fine paying from the start: Plan to Eat
You prefer a one-time purchase and offline access: Paprika 3
You want your own recipe collection, a free plan without a time limit and meal planning through ChatGPT or Claude: PandaChef
Frequently asked questions
Is Mealime shutting down?
Yes. Mealime was discontinued on October 21, 2026. Its recipes and meal-planning tools moved to Meals Hub in the Albertsons Companies grocery apps and websites.
Can I export my Mealime recipes and meal plans?
The closing notice does not describe an export. Account settings do not transfer to Meals Hub, and all personal data is deleted when the app shuts down. As long as Mealime's recipe pages are online, you can import them by link into another app. Screenshots and photos cover the rest.
What is the best free alternative to Mealime?
Meals Hub is free and has Mealime's recipes, but it runs inside a grocery store app. Samsung Food offers free core features and a large recipe catalogue. PandaChef is free for up to 9 of your own recipes, including the meal planner and shopping list, with no time limit and no payment details.
Can I import Mealime recipes into PandaChef?
Yes. Paste the link of a Mealime recipe page into PandaChef. In our test on October 27, 2026, title, servings, ingredients, steps and photo were imported for three out of three recipes, nutrition facts were not. On the free plan, each import uses one of the 10 AI requests included with a free account.
Does PandaChef have its own recipes like Mealime?
No. PandaChef organizes the recipes you bring in from websites, photos and screenshots. For new ideas, you can photograph a dish and have a recipe written for it, or ask the assistant in ChatGPT or Claude to add a recipe to your collection.