Julian Poyourow’s RecipeSage is one of the good guys in recipe apps. It’s free, funded by donations, ad-free and open source (AGPL-3.0), with shared shopping lists and meal plans.
The difference is where your recipes live. RecipeSage runs in your web browser, with an account on their cloud or a Docker server you run yourself, and has no iOS or desktop app. Gratin’s apps save recipes on your device.
Gratin vs RecipeSage at a glance
Figures come from each app’s public pricing and help pages. Trademarks belong to their owners. RecipeSage website ↗
RecipeSage is free and runs on donations, and Gratin is free too if you run your own sync server. Our $12/year or $39 one-time fee is only for having us host sync for you.
See Gratin’s pricing and the 5-year Pay-once guarantee →What RecipeSage does well, and what gets in the way
What RecipeSage does well
- Free, ad-free and open source under AGPL-3.0
- Shared shopping lists, meal plans, and room for several people to use it together
- You can run it on your own server, and exporting your data is easy
What gets in the way
- The hosted service runs on one person’s server
- As a web app it feels less polished, and there’s no iPhone app
- Some extras need a donation, and running your own server takes technical setup
Why people switch from RecipeSage to Gratin
Apps for every device
Gratin has apps for Mac, Windows, iOS and Android. Your library is saved on your device, not in a browser cache.
No account, and sync is encrypted
Hosted RecipeSage needs an account and stores your recipes unencrypted on its server. Gratin needs no account, and sync encrypts everything before it leaves your device.
Amounts in each step, and Cooklang
Amounts sit inside each step and scale with servings. Gratin also imports and exports Cooklang.
AI on your device, plus Claude and ChatGPT
Tag and tidy recipes on your device, or connect Claude or ChatGPT with Hosted sync.
Bottom line
RecipeSage is the best free open-source recipe web app. If you’d rather have apps that keep your recipes on your device, try Gratin.
Questions about RecipeSage and Gratin
Can I run Gratin’s sync myself, like I can with RecipeSage?
Yes, and it’s less work than running a whole web app. The Gratin app runs on your devices, and you point it at your own sync server and photo storage.
Does Gratin export to standard formats?
Yes. Settings → Data → Export All Recipes saves your whole library with photos as Schema.org JSON-LD, and single recipes export as Cooklang.
What does Gratin cost?
The app is free. Hosted sync is optional and costs $12/year or $39 once for the life of Gratin 1, or nothing if you run your own sync server.