Report updated Apr 7, 2026
Ratio
v2.0.7Home cooks and culinary enthusiasts who want to move beyond following static recipes to understand the fundamental science and relationships behind cooking.
What Is Ratio?
Launched Dec 15, 2009
Updated Mar 2026
What users think iIndependent intel reports to help builders create better apps or enhance existing ones. Still in beta, accuracy and relevancy get better every day. For informational purposes only.
What does it look like?
What are the key features?
Automatically calculates ingredient amounts based on culinary ratios rather than fixed recipes.
Provides instructions and techniques for 32 critical culinary ratios including doughs, batters, and sauces.
Seamlessly converts between ounces and grams to accommodate different measurement preferences.
Allows users to save their own custom recipes and notes created from basic ratios.
Quickly share cooking progress and results via Facebook and Twitter.
What do users think? iIndependent intel reports to help builders create better apps or enhance existing ones. Still in beta, accuracy and relevancy get better every day. For informational purposes only.
“Recent user voice shows a frustrated sentiment. Users appreciate valuable concept and useful reference, but report lack of customization and poor value for price.”
What Users Love
I love the idea of ratios in cooking and knowing the proper ratio for what you're making is empowering.
This is an excellent cheat sheet. Works very well.
Great for on the fly cooking.
Pain Points
Without the ability to save a custom ratio or recipe... this app has little value.
The first thing I wanted to do was to make a ratio for coffee, but 'coffee' isn't an ingredient and you can't add custom ingredients.
Too minimal for a $5 app. I regret this purchase.
Complete waste of money. Don't bother with this app.
The custom ratios all reset to 1:1:1 and 20 as a unit.
Changing more than one item (e.g. quantity and units) results in a crash.
High confidence · 55 reviews available
How is it ranked?
| Chart | Rank | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Paid | #78 | ▼5 |
What are the pros and cons?
Pros
- Strong brand authority (Michael Ruhlman/Alton Brown)
- Unique logic-based culinary approach
- High-quality instructional content
- First-mover advantage in ratio-based digital tools
Cons
- Product stagnation (no iOS updates since 2017)
- Inability to add custom ingredients or ratios
- Frequent technical crashes and calculation bugs
- High price relative to modern competitors
What is the market outlook?
Growth Opportunities
- Modernize UI/UX for current mobile OS standards
- Introduce custom ratio builder (top user request)
- Pivot to freemium/subscription model for new content
- Integrate with smart kitchen scales
Market Threats
- Modern recipe managers adding scaling features
- Free web-based ratio calculators
- Negative review momentum impacting new downloads
- Loss of brand relevance due to technical neglect
Who competes with Ratio?
The Nemesis
Why it's a threat
Contenders
Mela - Recipe Manager
Silvio Rizzi
A modern, highly-rated recipe extractor and manager that handles ingredient scaling with a clean, minimalist interface.
A modern, highly-rated recipe extractor and manager that handles ingredient scaling with a clean, minimalist interface.
AnyList: Grocery Shopping List
★4.9 (77K)Purple Cover, Inc.
While a list manager, its recipe scaling and storage features are a primary alternative for home cooks moving away from physical books.
While a list manager, its recipe scaling and storage features are a primary alternative for home cooks moving away from physical books.
Peers
The dominant premium recipe ecosystem that users often try to 'escape' from using tools like Ratio.
Editor-Curated Collections
Pestle: Recipe Manager
Will Bishop
Focuses on digitizing and scaling recipes from any source, bridging the gap between static recipes and digital tools.
Focuses on digitizing and scaling recipes from any source, bridging the gap between static recipes and digital tools.
Copy Me That recipe manager
★4.7 (1K)Copy Me That
A robust recipe manager focused on the 'store your own recipes' feature of Ratio.
A robust recipe manager focused on the 'store your own recipes' feature of Ratio.
New Kids on the Block
A fast-growing, modern recipe manager that emphasizes simplicity and clean UI for the next generation of home cooks.
AI & OCR Recipe Scanning
Deglaze: Cooking, Simplified
Deglazed LLC
A newer entrant focusing on streamlining the cooking process through better digital organization.
A newer entrant focusing on streamlining the cooking process through better digital organization.
What are the key takeaways?
Ratio is a frustrating food & drink app that is a paid app. With a 4.7/5 rating from 80 reviews, it frustrates many users from users. Users particularly appreciate valuable concept, though lack of customization remains a common concern.
Best for: Home cooks and culinary enthusiasts who want to move beyond following static recipes to understand the fundamental science and relationships behind cooking.
How much does it cost?
Model: paid
The app utilizes a traditional one-time purchase model, positioning itself as a premium digital cookbook tool. However, this price point is increasingly criticized by users given the lack of recent updates and technical bugs.
iOS Version
2.0.7
Android Version
1.0.27
Release Date
Dec 15, 2009
iOS Price
$4.99
Android Price
Free
Developer
Ruhlman Enterprises, Inc.