Guide · App features
How to choose a bowel tracker app
Eight questions to ask before you install a bowel movement or poop tracker app, from privacy and the Bristol scale to export, cost and what it records.
In short: the right bowel tracker app is one you will actually use and whose data handling you are comfortable with. Before installing, check that it uses the Bristol stool scale, records what you need, works on your phone, tells you clearly where your data goes, and lets you get your records out if you will need them. This page gives you the questions, not a ranking.
We make Gut Elements, so we are not neutral. That is why this is a checklist you can apply to any app, including ours, rather than a “best apps” list.
Eight questions to ask
1. Does it use the Bristol stool scale?
The Bristol stool chart is a widely used seven-type scale. An app built around it gives you records that are easy to compare over time and easy for a doctor to read.
2. Does it record what you actually need?
Some apps only record stool type and time; others add food, symptoms, medication or photos. More fields are not automatically better: if you only need a bowel record, a simple app is quicker to keep up. If your doctor asked for a food or symptom diary, choose an app or form that has those fields.
3. How fast is one entry?
You will log many times a day or week. If saving an entry takes more than a few seconds, the habit tends to fade. Try logging a test entry before you rely on an app.
4. Where does your data go?
On Google Play, open the app’s page and look at the Data safety section, then tap See details. It shows what the developer says the app collects and shares. Source: Google Play Help, checked October 18, 2026. Also check whether the app needs an account and whether your logs are stored on your phone or online.
5. Can you get your records out?
If you might need to show a doctor or switch apps, check for export, printing or backup. Without them, your records may be stuck in the app or lost if you change phones.
6. What does it cost, and are there ads?
Look for subscriptions, one-time purchases and ads, and whether core logging is free.
7. Does it work on your phone?
Check Android or iPhone availability, and whether it needs a recent version of the operating system.
8. Does it promise more than a record can deliver?
A bowel diary describes what you observed. Be cautious of any app that claims to diagnose a condition from your entries; that is a job for a qualified healthcare professional.
How Gut Elements answers these
| Question | Gut Elements today |
|---|---|
| Bristol stool scale | Yes, all seven types with drawings |
| What it records | Stool type, date and time. No food, symptom, medication or photo fields |
| Speed | A few seconds: tap a type and save |
| Data | Logs stay on your phone; no account. Optional anonymous usage stats only if you allow them |
| Export or backup | Not yet. Uninstalling or changing phones removes your logs |
| Cost | Free, with light ads that never appear on the logging screen; a one-time purchase removes them |
| Platform | Android 8.0 and later; no iPhone version |
| Diagnosis | None. It is a personal record |
If you need food or symptom tracking, export or an iPhone app today, another app will suit you better. If you want a fast, private bowel record on Android, Gut Elements is built for that. Paper works too: try our free printable bowel diary.
For the basics of keeping a record, read how to track bowel movements.
Piyush Sachdeva is the founder of Gut Elements and the accountable editor of this guide. Diagnosed with celiac disease at 13, he has spent most of his life learning how much his days depend on his gut, and built Gut Elements as the simple, private bowel tracker he wanted. He is not a doctor or dietitian; he shares his own experience, not medical advice.