Alcohol tracker apps fall into three groups, and each one answers a different question. Journals like DrinkControl and MyDrinkaware count what you drank this week; programs like Reframe, Sunnyside and Try Dry help you cut back or take a break; real-time apps tell you how you're doing tonight and when you'll be back to zero. Full disclosure: we make AlcoBalance, one of the real-time apps, so read what we say about it with that in mind.
None of the three types is better than the others. They just do different jobs.
Three kinds of drinking apps
A journal answers "how much did I drink?" You log drinks, usually after the fact, and get weekly totals, limits, dry days and charts. Five of the ten apps here are journals.
A program answers "how do I drink less, or stop for a while?" Logging is part of it, but the real product is a course, a coach or a challenge like Dry January.
A real-time app answers "what's happening to me right now, and when will it wear off?" It works during the evening, not over the month. We found two, and one needs a breathalyzer.
Quick comparison
| App | Platforms | Price | Shows time to zero / BAC | Main job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DrinkControl | iOS, Android | Free + Premium ($3.99/mo, $11.99/yr) | Not mentioned in listing | Long-term journal |
| MyDrinkaware | iOS, Android | Free | Not mentioned in listing | Journal, units and goals |
| Less | iOS | Free | Not mentioned in listing | Simple journal (last updated 2021) |
| BoozeBuddy | iOS | Free | Not mentioned in listing | Simple journal |
| Alcogram | iOS, Android | Free + Premium ($0.99/mo, $5.99/yr) | Not mentioned in listing | Daily check-in, sober days |
| Reframe | iOS, Android | 7-day trial, then subscription | Not mentioned in listing | 160-day program, coaching |
| Sunnyside | iOS | Membership ($99.99 or $299.00) | Not mentioned in listing | Moderation plan, live coaches |
| Try Dry | iOS, Android | Free, no ads | Not mentioned in listing | Dry January, cutting back |
| AlcoBalance | iOS, Android | Free + optional Premium, no ads | Time to zero on both; BAC curve on Android | Tonight in real time |
| BACtrack | iOS | Free app, needs a BACtrack breathalyzer | BAC and time to 0.00, from breath readings | Breathalyzer companion |
Ratings and prices from the App Store and Google Play, checked October 28, 2026.
Journals: counting what you drank
DrinkControl
DrinkControl is the veteran here, around for roughly 15 years, and the numbers show it: 4.77 on the US App Store from 4,358 ratings, 4.47 on Google Play from 316. You log glasses, cans or bottles, and it converts them into standard units and grams of pure alcohol. A calendar keeps the history, and charts cover calories and money spent. You can set low-risk limits, mark dry days, keep a streak and sync with Apple Health, and the data stays on your device. The core app is free. Premium adds widgets, reminders, deeper stats, CSV export and backups, from $3.99 a month, $11.99 a year or $24.99 for lifetime access, per the listing. If you want years of honest numbers about your drinking, this is the one to beat. The listing doesn't mention BAC or a sober-time estimate.
MyDrinkaware
MyDrinkaware comes from The Drinkaware Trust in the UK and costs nothing. It compares this week with previous ones, shows the units and calories in your drinks, warns about binge risk and helps you plan drink-free days. It also links your drinking to how well you sleep. Ratings: 4.35 on the UK App Store (7,135) and 4.50 on Google Play (4,190). English only.
Less
Less keeps it simple. One tap logs a drink, a widget sits on your home screen, and the app suggests a weekly limit you can change. You get weekly and monthly views, a calendar, 7- and 28-day rolling averages, and rough figures for money and calories. It's free and rated 4.33 from 965 ratings; we only found it on iOS. The catch: the last App Store update was September 10, 2021. Five years is a long time for an iPhone app.
BoozeBuddy
BoozeBuddy ranked second on Google for "best alcohol tracker app" when we checked. You log beer, wine, cocktails, shots or your own drinks, and it tracks standard units, patterns and, if you want, spending. Each entry can carry a place and a note, and data stays on the device. Free, iOS, 4.93 from 60 ratings. A high score, but from a small base.
Alcogram
Alcogram flips the usual routine. Instead of you opening the app, it sends a notification once a day and asks whether you drank yesterday. Sober days get marked on a calendar, stats show pure ethanol, spending, top drinks and days of the week, and there are challenges for taking a break. It's free; Premium removes ads and adds custom drinks for $0.99 a month or $5.99 a year in the App Store listing. On Google Play it has 4.69 from 8,127 ratings. The iOS version is young, with two ratings so far (3.00). It's available in 36 languages, more than any other app here.
Programs: help to cut back or take a break
Reframe
Reframe has by far the most ratings: 4.73 from 45,339 on the App Store and 4.55 from 6,004 on Google Play. Its core is a 160-day education program, with progress tracking, a private community, meditations and games. The top tier, Thrive Coaching, adds 1:1 coaching and live calls. After a 7-day free trial it's a subscription. Annual options in the App Store listing run from $59.99 to $119.99. It's built for cutting back or quitting entirely, for people who want a structured course, not a counter.
Sunnyside
Sunnyside says plainly that it's about moderation, not sobriety. It starts with a quiz about your habits and goals, then sets a weekly drinking plan, and you log drinks in the app or by text message. Daily motivation and lessons, a chat with live coaches, a community and a dashboard for sleep, money and nutrition make up the rest. The listing shows a membership at $99.99 and a premium membership at $299.00 but doesn't say for what period. We only found it on iOS, rated 4.76 from 2,324 ratings.
Try Dry
Try Dry is the Dry January app from Alcohol Change UK, a charity. In its own words: "Totally free. No upfront costs. No hidden costs. No ads." You track units, calories and money saved, set goals, collect badges and get a daily reminder. There's also a free email coaching program, a risk test and missions for planned drinking. Ratings are high on both stores: 4.82 (2,963) on the App Store and 4.70 (4,346) on Google Play. English only.
Real-time: tonight, and when you're back to zero
This group doesn't look back over the month. It's about tonight.
AlcoBalance
AlcoBalance is ours. You log drinks as the evening goes, and the app estimates when you'll be back to 0.0, on iOS and Android. On iPhone the app shows time to zero; the BAC curve is Android-only. It keeps the usual journal features too: stats, limits, patterns and goals, without judgment. Free, with an optional Premium, and no ads. It's new, and the App Store has no ratings for it yet, so there's no score to show you. Our view: sobriety isn't the goal, your rhythm is.
BACtrack
BACtrack does the real-time job with hardware. The free app pairs over Bluetooth with a BACtrack breathalyzer (Mobile, C6 or C8) and shows an estimated BAC from each reading. Its ZeroLine feature estimates when you'll be back to 0.00. Readings are saved and can sync to Apple Health; BACtrack+ is listed at $39.99. Rated 4.17 from 1,469 App Store ratings. It logs readings, not drinks, so it won't replace a weekly journal.
How to choose
- If you want to know how much you drink over weeks and months, pick a journal. DrinkControl for depth; MyDrinkaware or BoozeBuddy if it has to be free and simple.
- If you want a course and real people to talk to, pick a program: Reframe or Sunnyside, both paid.
- Planning a month off? Try Dry.
- If you'd rather the app asked you than the other way around, Alcogram's daily check-in does that.
- If your question is about tonight, and what time you'll be back to zero, pick a real-time app. AlcoBalance works from the drinks you log. BACtrack works from breath readings, if you own the device.
How we compared
We started from Google results for "best alcohol tracker app" (US) and "alkohol tracker app" (Germany) and added a few well-known names. Pure sobriety day counters we left out; they do a different job. Ratings, prices, features and update dates come from the App Store and Google Play listings, checked on October 28, 2026: US App Store, except MyDrinkaware, which we checked in the UK store. If a feature isn't in the listing, we say so.
We didn't use each app for weeks. This compares what the apps say they do. App Store listings show every in-app purchase, old ones included, so a price above may not be today's plan.
Nobody paid to be included. And again: we make AlcoBalance.
FAQ
Is there an app that tells you when you'll be sober?
Yes. Two apps here do it: AlcoBalance estimates when you'll be back to zero from the drinks you log, on iPhone and Android, and BACtrack's ZeroLine does it from breathalyzer readings. The other eight App Store listings don't mention it. Both are estimates. Don't use any app to decide whether to drive.
Are BAC apps accurate?
They give estimates, not measurements. Apps that work from logged drinks use a formula, most often the classic Widmark formula: the alcohol you drank, your body weight and sex, and an average rate at which the body clears alcohol. Real people vary around that average, and food, pace and your own body all move the result. You can see how such an estimate works in our free BAC calculator.
What's the best free alcohol tracker?
Try Dry, if you want something fully free with no ads and high ratings on both stores. MyDrinkaware and BoozeBuddy are free journals; Less is free but hasn't been updated since 2021. DrinkControl, Alcogram and AlcoBalance are free with an optional paid tier.
Which app helps you drink less?
The programs are built for that: Reframe and Sunnyside with courses and coaches, Try Dry for free with goals and email coaching. Journals like DrinkControl and MyDrinkaware help in a quieter way, by showing you the numbers and letting you set limits.
