Living clean is easier when you have the right tools. Whether you're scanning barcodes at the grocery store, checking who really owns a brand, or finding restaurants that don't cook with seed oils, there's an app for that.

We've tested and reviewed the best apps and tools in the clean living space, organized by what they do best.

Seed Oil Apps

These apps focus specifically on helping you avoid seed oils in food and restaurants.

Seed Oil Scout

The go-to app for finding restaurants that use natural fats instead of seed oils. Seed Oil Scout is community-driven, meaning users report which restaurants use beef tallow, avocado oil, butter, or other natural fats versus industrial seed oils.

  • Platform: iOS and Android
  • Focus: Restaurants and dining out (primary), packaged food scanning (secondary)
  • Key features: Restaurant map with oil sourcing data, automated restaurant inquiry emails, barcode scanner for packaged products, community-contributed reports
  • Pricing: 7-day free trial, then ~$25/year
  • Website: seedoilscout.com

If you eat out frequently and want to avoid seed oils, this is the most useful app in the category. Coverage depends on community contributions, so major cities have better data than rural areas.

Seedy

A product discovery app focused exclusively on seed-oil-free grocery products. Browse 25,000+ products by brand, store, or category.

  • Platform: iOS
  • Focus: Seed-oil-free packaged food
  • Key features: Product browsing by brand and store, shopping lists, favorites
  • Pricing: Free with in-app purchases
  • Website: seedyapp.com

Happy Oils

A simple barcode scanner that detects seed oils (canola, sunflower, safflower, and others) in packaged grocery products, with suggestions for seed-oil-free alternatives.

  • Platform: iOS and Android
  • Focus: Seed oils in grocery products
  • Key features: Barcode scanning, seed-oil-free alternative suggestions, favorites
  • Pricing: Free with limited scans, $2.99/month for unlimited
  • Website: happyoilsapp.com

Seed Oil Free Alliance

Not an app, but a third-party certification program. Products undergo independent lab testing to earn a "Seed Oil Free Certified" seal. Their website has a searchable directory of certified products, restaurants, and wholesalers.

  • Type: Website and certification program
  • Focus: Seed oil-free certification and product discovery
  • Key features: Lab-tested certification, searchable product finder, advisory panel led by Dr. Andrew Weil
  • Pricing: Free to consumers
  • Website: seedoilfreecertified.com

Food Ingredient Scanners

These apps let you scan barcodes to analyze ingredients across a broader range of concerns than just seed oils.

Buy'r (by Ian Carroll)

Created by Ian Carroll, the content creator known for viral grocery store videos exposing corporate ownership of food brands. Buy'r combines corporate ownership transparency with ingredient scanning. Scan a barcode to see who actually owns the brand, get ingredient breakdowns, and see ultra-processed food flags.

  • Platform: iOS and Android
  • Focus: Corporate ownership transparency and ingredient analysis
  • Key features: Brand family trees showing parent company ownership, ingredient filters with preset "logic packs," pantry tracking, receipt scanning, community reviews
  • Pricing: Free tier (basic scans). Premium: $5/month or $50/year
  • Website: buyrapp.com

Buy'r hit #1 on the App Store in its first week. If corporate ownership matters to you (and it should), this is the most relevant app for understanding who's really behind the brands you buy.

Yuka

The largest player in this space globally with 76+ million users. Scans barcodes for both food and cosmetic products, rating health impact with a color-coded system.

  • Platform: iOS and Android
  • Focus: Food and cosmetics
  • Key features: 4M food products and 2M cosmetic products in database, 100% independent scoring (no brand influence), additive evaluation, healthier alternative suggestions
  • Pricing: Free with limited scans, premium subscription for unlimited
  • Website: yuka.io

Yuka originated in France, so its European product database is stronger than its US coverage. Still, it's the most established app in this category.

Trash Panda

Flags potentially risky ingredients and hidden additives, backed by scientific research citations. Good for understanding why an ingredient is flagged, not just that it is.

  • Platform: iOS and Android
  • Focus: Food ingredients and additives
  • Key features: Barcode scanning and photo capture of ingredient lists, links to scientific research, cleaner alternatives, curated shopping lists by grocery store
  • Pricing: Free for 5 scans/month, premium subscription for unlimited
  • Website: trashpandaapp.com

Processed App

Uses the NOVA classification system to categorize foods as Ultra-Processed, Processed, Minimally Processed, or Whole Food. Useful if your primary goal is reducing ultra-processed food intake.

  • Platform: iOS and Android
  • Focus: Ultra-processed food identification
  • Key features: 8M+ barcodes, ingredient photo scanning, food diary with tracking, pet food scanning ("Paw Mode")
  • Pricing: Free tier with premium subscription
  • Website: processedapp.com

Fig (Food Is Good)

Designed for people with specific dietary needs, allergies, and intolerances. Supports 2,800+ dietary options including seed oil-free, low FODMAP, low histamine, and alpha-gal.

  • Platform: iOS and Android
  • Focus: Dietary restrictions and food intolerances
  • Key features: Multi-person profiles (scan once for the whole family), product discovery at 100+ grocery stores, shopping lists
  • Pricing: Free (5 scans/month). Premium: $3.33/month (annual)
  • Website: foodisgood.com

Clean Beauty & Personal Care

These apps focus on cosmetics, skincare, and personal care products.

Think Dirty

The original clean beauty scanner, operating since 2012. Rates products on a "Dirty Meter" from 0 (clean) to 10 (toxic) based on ingredient analysis.

  • Platform: iOS and Android
  • Focus: Skincare, personal care, cosmetics, household, baby, and pet products
  • Key features: 2.6M+ products in database, color-coded ingredient ratings, personalized allergen preferences, carcinogen alerts
  • Pricing: Free to download with trial, then subscription (~$2.19/week or $4.39/month)
  • Website: thinkdirtyapp.com

EWG Healthy Living / Skin Deep

Backed by the Environmental Working Group, a major nonprofit. Cross-references 60+ toxicity and regulatory databases. Covers personal care (Skin Deep database), food, sunscreen, and cleaning products.

  • Platform: iOS and Android, plus website databases
  • Focus: Personal care, food, cleaning products, sunscreen
  • Key features: Nonprofit-backed, EWG Verified seal program, science-based ratings, Guide to Healthy Cleaning database
  • Pricing: Free, premium features available
  • Website: ewg.org/apps

The app is less polished than newer competitors, but EWG's database depth and independence are unmatched.

Clearya

A free browser extension that automatically alerts you to toxic ingredients while shopping online. Works on Amazon, Target, Sephora, iHerb, and Walmart.

  • Platform: Chrome/Edge browser extension and mobile app
  • Focus: Beauty, personal care, baby care, cleaning products
  • Key features: Automatic alerts for ingredients linked to cancer, infertility, and hormone disruption, EU-banned chemical flags, color-coded system
  • Pricing: Completely free (funded by donations)
  • Website: clearya.com

The browser extension is genuinely useful because it works passively while you shop online, without requiring you to manually scan anything.

INCI Beauty

A cosmetic ingredient analysis app that rates products on a 0-20 scale. Provides detailed ingredient-by-ingredient breakdowns with regulatory information from the EU, US, and Canada.

  • Platform: iOS, Android, and website
  • Focus: Cosmetics and personal care
  • Pricing: Free
  • Website: incibeauty.com

Research & Investigation Sites

These aren't apps, but they're valuable resources for researching products.

Mamavation

Independent product investigation site that sends popular consumer products to EPA-certified labs for actual testing, then publishes rankings. Covers food, beauty, baby products, home goods, cookware, and more.

  • Type: Website
  • Focus: All consumer products
  • Key features: Real lab testing (not just ingredient list analysis) for PFAS, phthalates, heavy metals, and pesticides
  • Pricing: Free to read
  • Website: mamavation.com

Mamavation's lab-tested approach sets it apart from apps that only analyze ingredient lists. If an ingredient list says one thing but the lab results say another, Mamavation will find it.

GetWellBe Non-Toxic Product Database

A curated database of 2,000+ non-toxic products cross-referenced against 10+ third-party rating organizations including EWG, Think Dirty, and MadeSafe.

  • Type: Website (paid)
  • Focus: Personal care, baby/child, home, food, sleep, natural medicine
  • Pricing: Paid membership
  • Website: getwellbe.com

How We're Different

Clean Lifestyle Directory isn't an app. It's a free, open directory of vetted clean brands organized by category, with full ownership transparency and no pay-to-play listings.

Most scanning apps tell you what's wrong with a product. We focus on helping you discover brands that are doing it right, and understanding who actually owns them. Every brand in our directory is independently researched for ingredient transparency, sustainable sourcing, and authentic ownership.

Browse the full directory or explore our corporate ownership database to see who really owns your favorite "clean" brands.