Bobby Approved alternative
A Bobby Approved alternative that shows its working
Luminelle scores packaged food 0-100 from its nutrition, its additives and how processed it is, links each additive level to the regulator or study behind it, and reads skincare with the same care.
Out now on iPhone and Android. Free to download, free to scan.
What Luminelle actually is
Four scans, one timeline
Food and skincare in one app, with your cycle phase noted on every scan.
Product scan
Score every label
Barcode or a photo of the ingredient list. Every product is scored against EU CosIng, California AB 2762/2771/496, Prop 65 and ECHA, and every flag links to the regulator entry behind it.
Food scan
A food score, calories and macros
A food barcode gets a 0-100 score from its Nutri-Score, its additives and how processed it is, with the source behind each additive level. A plate photo names the dish, estimates calories and macros, and adds them to your daily intake.
Cycle tracking
Phase noted on every scan
Log your period; Luminelle estimates your phase and next period from the dates you give it. Every scan and selfie carries the phase you were in, so patterns can surface over weeks.
AI skin observations
A daily selfie, week over week
Up to five plain-language observations per selfie across forehead, under-eye, nose, cheeks and jaw, saved next to your products, meals and cycle. Observed without judgement.
Not a diagnostic, not a diet app, not a brand attack.
Why people look
What Luminelle does differently
Bobby Approved gives one answer: a product passes its ten rules or it does not. People who look for an alternative usually want one of three things - to see why, to have a say in which rules apply, or an app they can download outside the US and Canada.
A score, not a verdict. Bobby Approved passes or fails a product. Luminelle gives it a number out of 100 and shows the three parts behind it: nutrition, additives and how processed it is.
A source for every flag. Each additive level names the regulator opinion or the study it rests on, with a link. You can check the reasoning instead of trusting the number.
Preferences are not findings. Seed oils, flavourings and added sugar are things you can ask Luminelle to point out. They never move the score: no regulator restricts seed oils, and the American Heart Association recommends them over saturated fat.
More than food. The same app scores skincare against EU and California rules, counts calories and macros from a photo of your plate, and notes your cycle phase on every scan.
The food method, with every weight and source, is at /methodology/food.
Who it's for
Who Luminelle is, and isn't, for
Switch to Luminelle if…
- You want a score with its reasons, not only a yes or a no
- You want the regulator or study behind an additive, linked
- You don't want a seed oil or a "natural" flavour to fail a product on its own
- You want skincare, meals and your cycle in the same app
- You are outside the US and Canada
Stay with Bobby Approved if…
- You want one answer per product, in the aisle
- You follow FlavCity and shop by the same rules
- You want to browse products by US store
Both can live on the same phone. Bobby Approved tells you whether a product passes its rules; Luminelle shows you what is in it and why that counts.
How to switch
Getting started with Luminelle
There is nothing to migrate. No history moves between the two apps.
- Download Luminelle and create a free account.
- Scan a few things from your kitchen. Barcode scans are unlimited on the free tier.
- Open a result and read what is behind the score: nutrition, additives and processing, each additive with its source.
- In Settings, choose what you want pointed out - seed oils, added sugar, allergens, a diet. These are notes; they never change a score.
- Scan something from your bathroom shelf too.
- Keep Bobby Approved if you like it. The two do not conflict.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
- How is Luminelle different from Bobby Approved?
- Bobby Approved passes or fails a food against its own ten rules. Luminelle gives a 0-100 score from nutrition, additives and processing, names the regulator or study behind each additive level, and treats seed oils and flavourings as preferences you can switch on, not as failures. It also scans skincare.
- Is there a Bobby Approved alternative for the UK?
- On 5 October 2026 Bobby Approved was not listed on the UK App Store. Luminelle, Yuka and Ivy were. Luminelle scans food and skincare; Ivy is food only; Yuka scans both.
- Does Luminelle scan food?
- Yes. A food barcode gets a 0-100 score built from its Nutri-Score, its additives and how processed it is, with the regulator or study behind each additive level. A plate photo gives you the dish, calories and macros, added to your daily intake; a plate is not scored.
- Is Luminelle free?
- Barcode scans are free and unlimited, with an account. Photo-based scans (a plate, a food label, an ingredient list) are limited to five a day on the free tier. Luminelle Pro removes that limit and adds Patterns, Shelf Check and Ask Luminelle.
- Does Luminelle suggest alternatives like Bobby Approved?
- Yes. Under a food or a skincare product it lists products of the same kind that score higher by the same method. For food they are products sold in your country, each at least ten points higher.
One scan tells you what's in it. A month tells you what it does.
Free to start. Food and skincare scored, with a source behind every flag.
Out now on iPhone and Android.