Two apps. Both promise to tell you whether a supplement is worth taking. Both let you scan barcodes. Both have some version of a scoring system. So which one should actually live on your phone?
I've been going back and forth between Suppi and SuppCo for months now—scanning the same products, comparing scores, testing edge cases. The short version: they solve different problems, and one of them solves the more important problem better. But the long version has some nuance worth digging into.
Here's the honest breakdown, category by category.
| Feature | Suppi | SuppCo |
|---|---|---|
| Database size | 200,000+ | 50,000+ |
| Barcode scanning | Yes (native, fast) | Yes |
| Clinical evidence | 500+ peer-reviewed studies | Moderate (proprietary scoring) |
| Safety scoring | Ingredient-form + transparency | Brand-level TrustScore |
| AI features | AI coaching + personalized recs | None |
| Interaction checker | Yes | No |
| Brand-level analysis | Integrated in scoring | Dedicated TrustScore system |
| Community features | No | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | Yes |
| Android | No (coming soon) | Yes |
| Price | Free (optional Premium) | Free / $39–$59/yr Pro |
Numbers don't tell the full story, though. Let's get into what these differences actually mean when you're standing in a store with a bottle in your hand.
This one isn't even close. Suppi's database covers over 200,000 products. SuppCo's sits at around 50,000.
That's a 4x difference, and it shows up in practice. I've scanned dozens of products that Suppi found instantly and SuppCo returned nothing for. Niche brands, newer launches, international products—the gaps in SuppCo's database tend to cluster exactly where you need a scanner most, because those are the products you can't evaluate on brand reputation alone.
To be fair, SuppCo's 50,000 products do cover the major brands well. If you're scanning mainstream products from Garden of Life, NOW Foods, or Thorne, you'll probably find what you're looking for. But the moment you venture into smaller brands or specialty formulations, the coverage drops off fast.
Suppi's database has also been growing at a noticeably faster clip. They've been adding products aggressively through 2025 and into 2026, while SuppCo's growth has been steadier but slower.
Both apps handle barcode scanning, and both get the basic job done. You point your camera at a supplement bottle, it recognizes the barcode, it pulls up a result. Standard stuff in 2026.
The difference is in what happens after the scan. Suppi's scanner feels snappier—likely because it's a native iOS app rather than a web wrapper. The product page loads almost instantly, and you're looking at ingredient breakdowns within a second or two.
SuppCo's scanner works, but there's typically a brief loading pause after a successful scan. Not deal-breaking, but noticeable when you're scanning multiple products in a row. Where SuppCo runs into more trouble is text-based search. I've had cases where searching a product by name returned nothing, but scanning the physical barcode found it. That kind of inconsistency erodes trust.
Neither app is bad at scanning. But Suppi is faster, and its larger database means fewer dead ends.
This is where the philosophical gap between these two apps becomes stark.
Suppi grounds its analysis in over 500 peer-reviewed clinical studies. When the app tells you that a particular form of magnesium has strong evidence for sleep support, it's drawing on specific research from journals indexed on PubMed. You can trace the reasoning. You can verify it. The evidence trail is visible.
SuppCo takes a different approach. Its scoring relies on a proprietary algorithm—the TrustScore system—that weighs factors like third-party testing, ingredient quality, and brand reputation. The scoring isn't bad, necessarily. But the methodology isn't transparent. You get a number, and you're asked to trust it without seeing how it was derived.
For casual users who just want a quick gut check, SuppCo's approach might be fine. A number between 0 and 100 is simple, easy to act on, and doesn't require you to care about study methodology. But if you're someone who wants to understand why a product scores the way it does—or if you've ever been burned by marketing claims that turned out to be empty—Suppi's evidence-based approach is significantly more useful.
The difference matters most for ingredients where the science is nuanced. Take ashwagandha: there are multiple extract types (KSM-66, Sensoril, generic root powder), and the clinical evidence varies dramatically by form. Suppi distinguishes between these. SuppCo largely doesn't.
Both apps produce some version of a safety or quality score. The way they get there is completely different.
Suppi evaluates at the ingredient-form level. It doesn't just check whether a product contains vitamin D—it looks at whether it's D3 or D2, what the dosage is relative to clinical ranges, whether the form has good bioavailability data, and whether any ingredients in the formula have known interaction risks. On top of that, Suppi generates a transparency score based on whether the brand discloses third-party testing, uses proprietary blends (a red flag), and provides clear labeling.
SuppCo's TrustScore operates at the brand level. It evaluates manufacturers across 29 attributes and assigns scores to over 33,000 brands. This is genuinely useful—brand reputation matters, and knowing that a manufacturer has a history of accurate labeling and clean third-party testing results is valuable information. I don't want to dismiss this. It's a real contribution that SuppCo makes.
But here's the thing: brand-level analysis and product-level analysis answer different questions. A great brand can still make a mediocre product. A well-reputed manufacturer might produce one supplement with excellent formulation and another with underdosed ingredients or suboptimal forms. Brand trust is a useful heuristic, not a substitute for ingredient-level scrutiny.
Suppi answers the harder question. SuppCo answers the easier one. Both are worth asking, but if you can only pick one, the ingredient-level analysis gives you more actionable information.
SuppCo has no AI features. You scan, you read, you decide on your own. That's the entire workflow.
Suppi's AI coaching is the single biggest differentiator between these two apps, and it's not close. You can ask it specific questions about your supplement stack: timing, dosage, combinations, whether a particular product makes sense for your goals. The responses aren't generic wellness platitudes—they account for what's actually in your cabinet.
Example from my own testing: I asked about potential conflicts between a zinc supplement and my daily iron. Instead of a boilerplate "consult your doctor" (though it does recommend that too), the AI explained the competitive absorption issue between zinc and iron, suggested a 2-hour separation window, and cited the mechanism. That's the kind of practical guidance that usually requires a conversation with a nutritionist.
Is AI coaching a must-have for everyone? Probably not. If you take one or two simple supplements and already know what you're doing, you won't need it daily. But for anyone building a multi-product stack, trying new ingredients, or just starting their supplement journey, it's enormously helpful. And the fact that SuppCo hasn't built anything like it in 2026 is increasingly hard to justify.
Suppi's core feature set—including AI coaching, interaction checking, the full 200K+ database, and barcode scanning—is free. There's an optional Premium tier for power users, but the free version doesn't feel artificially limited. You get the good stuff without paying.
SuppCo has a free tier, but it's noticeably restricted. Full TrustScore breakdowns, unlimited scans, and access to protocols require SuppCo Pro, which runs $39 to $59 per year depending on the plan.
This makes the value calculus pretty lopsided. Suppi gives away more functionality than SuppCo charges for. Unless you specifically need the features where SuppCo excels—brand-level research, protocols, Android support—it's hard to justify the Pro subscription when a more capable free alternative exists.
Here's SuppCo's clearest, most defensible win: it runs on Android.
Suppi is iOS-only as of February 2026. If you're an Android user, this entire comparison is basically academic. SuppCo is your best option in the supplement scanner category right now, and it's a solid one. The brand-level analysis is genuinely useful, the database covers major products, and the app works reliably on Android.
Suppi has indicated Android is on their roadmap, but no firm date has been announced. Until that changes, SuppCo owns the Android market for supplement scanning by default. And being the only real option on a platform used by roughly half of U.S. smartphone owners is not a small advantage.
For iOS users, though, the platform argument disappears, and the feature comparison tilts heavily toward Suppi.
I want to be clear about this: SuppCo isn't a bad app. It does some things that Suppi doesn't, and those things have real value.
These are legitimate strengths. If brand reputation research is your primary use case, SuppCo might actually be the better pick. The problem is that most people buying supplement scanners want product-level analysis first, and that's where Suppi pulls ahead decisively.
For most people on iOS who want a supplement scanner that tells them whether a specific product is worth buying, Suppi is the better app. Bigger database, deeper clinical grounding, ingredient-form analysis, AI coaching, interaction checking, transparency scoring, and a more generous free tier. The feature gap is wide and widening.
SuppCo is the better choice in two specific scenarios: you're on Android (where it's currently the only serious option), or your primary interest is brand-level research rather than product-level analysis. In those cases, SuppCo delivers real value.
The smartest approach, honestly, is to use both. Scan your products in Suppi for the ingredient-level breakdown, then check the brand in SuppCo for the manufacturer-level perspective. They complement each other well. But if you're only going to install one app, Suppi covers more of what matters.
The supplement industry is a $60 billion market where most products have never been independently verified. Scanner apps aren't a luxury anymore—they're a basic tool for anyone spending money on supplements. — Suppi Research Team
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