Pluck: A More Complete Preplo Alternative
Preplo won the RevenueCat Shipyard 2026 contest by turning cooking videos into recipes, and it's on the App Store for iPhone. It reads YouTube transcripts and TikTok or Instagram descriptions, and adds diet toggles, a grocery list with price estimates, cook mode and streaks. Its last update was version 1.0.3 in March 2026. Pluck does the same core job and reads more of the video, covers blogs, Facebook and photos, runs on Android, and adds an AI cooking assistant.
Feature comparison
| Feature | Pluck | Preplo |
|---|---|---|
| Instagram recipes | Yes (Reels, video posts, carousels) | Yes (Reels, from the description) |
| TikTok recipes | Yes (watches & listens) | Yes (from the description) |
| YouTube recipes | Yes (watches & listens) | Yes (from the transcript) |
| Facebook recipes | Yes (videos, Reels) | No |
| Food blog recipes | Yes (any URL) | No |
| Photo / image extraction | AI vision (cookbooks, handwriting, screenshots) | No |
| What it reads from a video | Frames, on-screen text, audio and caption | Transcript (YouTube) or description |
| AI cooking assistant | Yes, in cook mode (paid plans) | No |
| Recipe customization | AI assistant (ask anything, apply to recipe) | Preset diet toggles |
| Cook mode | Yes (step timers, ingredients per step) | Yes |
| Meal planning | Yes (weekly; Fill my week on Plus and Pro) | No (announced, not released) |
| Grocery list | Yes (merged, sorted by aisle, shared with up to 5 people) | Yes (with price estimates) |
| Cooking log and streaks | Cooking log (times cooked, last cooked); no streaks | Weekly streaks (paid plans) |
| Privacy posture | GDPR/CCPA, analytics off by default | GDPR privacy policy; Apple's App Store privacy label lists usage data used to track you and data used for third-party advertising |
| Platforms | iOS and Android | iPhone (Android announced as coming) |
| App languages | 6 languages | English only |
| Last update | Actively developed | v1.0.3, March 2026 |
| Extraction limits | 3/mo free, up to 200/mo on Pro | 1 free; unlimited on paid plans |
| Price | Free tier + paid plans from $2.99/mo | $9.99/mo, $49.99/yr or $129.99 lifetime |
Where Preplo falls short
Three video apps, nothing else
Preplo extracts from YouTube, TikTok and Instagram links. It can't take Facebook videos, food blogs or other web pages.
No photo or image extraction
Preplo can't read photos: no cookbook pages, handwritten family recipes, or screenshots from a group chat. Pluck's AI vision handles all of these.
Text in, recipe out
Preplo works from the YouTube transcript or the TikTok and Instagram description. When ingredients are only shown on screen, or the description is thin, they're missed. Pluck also watches the frames and reads on-screen text.
No update since March 2026
Preplo's last App Store update was version 1.0.3 on 26 March 2026, and Android is still listed as coming.
What Pluck does differently
Reads the whole video
Pluck combines the video frames, on-screen text, the narration and the caption. Recipes that are spoken aloud, flashed on screen or only demonstrated still come through.
Extract from anywhere, not just 3 apps
Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, any food blog, Instagram and TikTok photo carousels, and photos of cookbook pages or handwritten recipes.
AI cooking assistant built in
Ask about substitutions, scaling or technique from the step you're on in cook mode, and apply the answer to your saved recipe.
Plan the week, then shop
Put recipes on a weekly meal plan, or on Plus and Pro let Fill my week plan it from your recipe box. Build one grocery list for the week, merged and sorted by aisle, and share it with up to 5 people.
Frequently asked questions
Is Preplo the same as Pluck?
They share the core idea (turning cooking videos into recipes). Pluck reads frames and on-screen text as well as audio, also handles blogs, Facebook and photos, has a meal plan and an AI cooking assistant, and runs on Android.
Preplo won a hackathon contest - doesn't that mean it's good?
Preplo won the RevenueCat Shipyard 2026 Creator Contest, which is real validation of the idea, and launched on the App Store in March 2026 with cook mode, a priced grocery list and cooking streaks. It hasn't been updated since version 1.0.3 that month. Pluck goes broader on sources, reads more of each video, runs on Android, and adds an AI cooking assistant.
Is Preplo cheaper than Pluck?
Not to start. Preplo's free tier is a single extraction; after that it's $9.99/month, $49.99/year or $129.99 lifetime. Pluck's free plan has 3 extractions a month and 10 saved recipes, and paid plans start at $2.99/month (Light). Preplo's paid plans include unlimited extractions, which suits very heavy users; Pluck tops out at 200 a month on Pro.
Does Preplo have an AI cooking assistant?
No. Preplo has preset diet toggles (make it vegan, spicier, and so on). Pluck's AI cooking assistant answers open questions about the recipe you're making: substitutions, scaling, unit conversion and technique.
Can Preplo extract recipes from photos or cookbooks?
No. Preplo works with YouTube, TikTok and Instagram links only. Pluck extracts recipes from photos of cookbook pages, handwritten recipe cards and screenshots.
Which app has better recipe extraction accuracy?
We haven't published a head-to-head test. What we can say is what each reads: Preplo uses the YouTube transcript or the TikTok and Instagram description; Pluck uses frames, on-screen text, audio and caption together. On videos where the recipe is shown but not written or said, that difference matters.
Read our detailed comparison of Pluck vs Preplo.
Related reading: Best Recipe Apps 2026, Pluck vs Pestle, Pluck vs Flavorish, and Pluck vs ReciMe.
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