Weight Watchers (WW) Review (2024): Is It Right for Me?

Maintaining a healthy weight is important for lowering your risk of chronic disease and lengthening your lifespan. ^[1]Fontana L, Hu F. Aging Cell. March 2014. Optimal Body Weight for Health and Longevity: Bridging Basic, Clinical, and Population Research. Found on the internet at https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/acel.12207 And if you’ve tried losing weight any time in the past 50 years, you’ve probably heard of WW (formerly known as Weight Watchers). The New York-based company grew out of a small group of friends led by Jean Nidetch who met weekly to support one another in reaching their weight loss goals.

Roughly 5 million people worldwide are WW members, and the program has helped many more lose weight since its beginning. In our poll of weight loss program customers, more people had tried WW than any other program. ^[2]Weight Loss Programs Survey. 300 respondents. Conducted using Pollfish. Launched October 2023.

The company has gone through a number of changes in the past several decades, with the current format offering a simple food tracking system, in-person and online group sessions, and an app to help you record everything.

But is WW the right weight loss program for you? Read our review to learn about the features, costs, and drawbacks of WW before you sign up.

Pros and cons of Weight Watchers

Most affordable

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App for tracking food intake, activity, and weight

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Daily lessons, health coaching, and motivational tips

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Focus on healthy foods, increasing physical activity, and creating health habits

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14-day free trial

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What is Weight Watchers?

WW is a weight loss program that uses a combination of simplified food tracking and support from coaches and other members to help people lose weight. The company claims you can lose 1–2 pounds per week on the program, which is a safe rate of weight loss according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). ^[3]Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Losing weight. June 15, 2023. Found on the internet at https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/losing_weight/index.html

But our review of a study that analyzed weight loss among WW members for 12 months revealed a slower rate of just 0.2 pounds per week (or 9.7 pounds throughout a year). ^[4]Tate D, et al. JAMA Network Open. August 2022. Efficacy of a Commercial Weight Management Program Compared With a Do-It-Yourself Approach. Found on the internet at https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2795182 This is quite a bit lower than the weight loss advertised on the WW site. But keep in mind even a small weight loss can be beneficial for health, as long as it’s coupled with healthy habits. ^[3]Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Losing weight. June 15, 2023. Found on the internet at https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/losing_weight/index.html

WW doesn’t promote a specific diet, but rather, the program offers education and support for behavioral changes that can help you lose weight. And you don’t have to buy specific foods, making it a good option for people on a budget or those with special dietary needs.

We tried out the program to uncover the pros and cons, with a particular emphasis on whether this would be a safe weight loss option for older adults.

Our Weight Watchers experience

Our testers signed up as WW members for two weeks. During that time, we tried everything: tracking food, activity, and sleep on the website and app; attending workshops and a KickStart session; joining online communities; taste-testing WW food and recipes; reading educational content on the website; contacting customer service for help by phone and chat; and, finally, canceling our membership.

By the end, we had mixed feelings about our time with WW. We liked the motivational weekly workshops with coaches and other members. Discussions focused on problem-solving, encouraging one another to reach goals, and celebrating successes. What we felt was lacking in these sessions, though, was education on healthy eating and exercise. We found a lot of cheerleading and not enough teaching.

For people who are new to weight loss and healthy eating, learning about the importance of food choices, physical activity, sleep, and stress management for reaching a healthy weight is critical.

Research shows we lose muscle mass naturally as we age, but regular physical activity can help maintain or build muscle for faster metabolism and protection of joints. ^[5]National Institute on Aging. How Can Strength Training Build Healthier Bodies As We Age? June 30, 2022. Found on the internet at https://www.nia.nih.gov/news/how-can-strength-training-build-healthier-bodies-we-age But WW specifically says its program is meant to result in weight loss without exercise, a statement that doesn’t adhere to CDC guidelines for physical activity for older adults. ^[6]Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). How much physical activity do older adults need? April 13, 2023. Found on the internet at https://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/basics/older_adults/index.htm

Also, diet plays a bigger role in body weight with advanced age, so learning all you can about healthy food choices, portions, and cooking methods becomes increasingly important. ^[7]National Institute on Aging. Maintaining a Healthy Weight. April 7, 2022. Found on the internet at https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/healthy-eating-nutrition-and-diet/maintaining-healthy-weight We would like to see more of a focus on education for WW members.

WW features

Features of the WW program include:

• Weekly workshops offered in-person and online where you can find a workshop near you and attend as many times a week as you would like, at no extra charge
• 24/7 health coaching through the app or website
• WW app that provides the ability to: track your food intake, sleep, and activity each day; search for recipes; look up the Points values of meals at restaurants; buy WW foods and other products; join online WW communities; and attend weekly workshops

WW app

The WW app provides a number of functions, such as:

• Tracking food intake, sleep, and activity
• Finding menu items in an extensive list of restaurants
• Finding recipes to make at home
• Joining online WW communities
• Accessing 24/7 coaching
• Getting help from customer support
• Buying WW products
• Canceling your membership

You’ll be assigned a daily points budget based on your answers to an intake quiz when you sign up for the program. As you log food into the app throughout the day, points will be subtracted. When you run out of points, you can either stop eating that day or eat ZeroPoints foods, which are like “free” foods, according to WW.

Our Reviews Team found the app and website easy to use, for the most part. But one tester noted that the WW app requires more steps to enter each food into your daily log than other food tracking apps.

Also, unlike other programs that use calories and other nutrient parameters to track your intake, WW uses a separate point system it has developed. WW points don’t correlate directly to calories or the nutritional value of foods, so it’s impossible to tell exactly how many calories or nutrients you’re eating each day.

As mentioned above, ZeroPoint foods don’t have points assigned to them. We’ve listed these foods in the table below.

Table 1, WW ZeroPoints foods

You don’t have to track ZeroPoints foods unless you’re on the diabetes-tailored program, in which case you’ll need to track corn, popcorn, fruit, cottage cheese, and yogurt due to their impact on blood sugar.

The ZeroPoints approach gives people encouragement to make healthy eating choices, but it also results in key nutrient-dense foods not being accounted for in your daily food log. They get lost because you’re not tracking them, and thus not focusing on them. We feel that this deserves mention for older adults in particular, who need to focus on a healthy, nutrient-dense diet for sustained good health and prevention of chronic disease and infections, in addition to maintenance of a healthy weight.

The other issue with ZeroPoints foods is that it’s possible to eat more calories than you need, even with these food choices, which may keep you from losing weight.

Along with using the app for points tracking, we also entered sleep and activity. We found that to be an easier process than tracking points for food intake.

WW workshops

Workshops are held weekly, both online and in-person at studios across the country. You can attend as many as you’d like. In-person workshops include a weigh-in before the meeting starts. They include teaching from coaches, interaction with other members, and tips for maintaining your progress or getting back on track.

How to sign up for Weight Watchers

You can start a WW membership from the website by following these steps:

1. Choose between the Core plan or Premium plan. See Table 2 below to learn more about the features of each plan. Briefly, the Premium plan offers workshops and weekly behavioral change tips that aren’t included in the Core plan. WW also offers a 30-day free trial, so you can try it out before committing to a longer membership.
2. After choosing a plan, you’ll be asked to complete a short quiz. It asks questions about your age, gender, current height and weight, activity level, and whether you have diabetes.
3. Based on your answers, the WW system calculates a daily points budget. By tracking your food on the website or in the app, it subtracts points throughout the day. The idea is to stay under your daily points to lose weight.
4. Download the WW app on your phone. WW is one program that can be used without an app (you’ll track points on the website instead), but we found the app much easier to use for tracking purposes.

Cancellation policy

One advantage of WW is you can cancel at any time with no fee. Other programs like Noom require you to subscribe for a certain number of months, which can be a problem if you decide the program isn’t for you before that time period is up.

How much does Weight Watchers cost?

Weight Watchers offers three types of plans, based on features and level of support.

Table 2, WW plans and pricing

As referenced above, WW offers a diabetes-tailored program that allows you to combine the WW program with a Libre blood glucose monitor to keep track of your blood sugar in the WW app.

Weight loss medication option

WW offers a program through Sequence, a company acquired by WW in April 2023 that provides telehealth appointments with physicians and prescription GLP-1 agonists (type 2 diabetes drugs such as Wegovy and Saxenda) for weight loss, to use along with the WW Core program.

It’s important to consult with your doctor or other health care provider before beginning any weight loss program. They may want to do a physical exam and bloodwork before you make changes to your diet or exercise regimen. If you’re considering weight loss medication, it’s crucial to see a health care provider in person rather than relying on a virtual platform like the one WW provides.

Customer reviews

WW has a Better Business Bureau (BBB) customer rating of just 1.02 out of 5 stars based on 87 reviews. And its Trustpilot rating is about the same, at 1.6 out of 5 stars from 117 customer reviews.

Common complaints include trying to cancel a WW membership but getting charged for months afterward, which is a complaint we’ve also seen with other weight loss programs. Some customers have also ordered products that didn’t arrive, but they were still charged for the items.

Legal filings

In 2022, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed and settled an action with the platform. ^[8]Federal Trade Commission. FTC Takes Action Against Company Formerly Known as Weight Watchers for Illegally Collecting Kids’ Sensitive Health Data. March 4, 2022. Found on the internet at https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2022/03/ftc-takes-action-against-company-formerly-known-weight-watchers-illegally-collecting-kids-sensitive The FTC alleged that WW marketed a weight loss platform for children and gathered their personal information without parental permission. As part of the settlement, WW had to delete the information illegally obtained from users under age 13 and pay a $1.5 million fine.

How we research and evaluate weight loss platforms

Based on our expert consultations, research, and testing, we determined the following factors to be important for our readers when signing up for a weight loss platform:

• Education in nutrition and weight management
• Accountability through progress tracking
• Recommendations and tips for physical activity
• Access to clinical support
• Availability of mental health resources
• Ease of use of the app or website

We had all of our reviews medically reviewed by an expert in the field to ensure the information is appropriate for NCOA readers’ needs.

Bottom line

WW is a well-established weight loss company that’s not without its strong points. The encouraging community of members, regular workshops, 24/7 coaching, and simple approach to food tracking are all advantages.

But the lack of education when it comes to nutrition and learning about why and how the foods you eat affect your weight, along with the fact that you can’t follow the points system outside the WW program, causes us to recommend other programs like the Noom rather than WW for a weight loss solution, which would allow you to learn healthy habits that you can sustain for the rest of your life.

Have questions about this review? Email us at reviewsteam@ncoa.org.

Sources

1. Fontana L, Hu F. Optimal Body Weight for Health and Longevity: Bridging Basic, Clinical, and Population Research. Aging Cell. March 2014. Found on the internet at https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/acel.12207
2. Weight Loss Programs Survey. 300 respondents. Conducted using Pollfish. Launched October 2023.
3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Losing Weight. June 15, 2023. Found on the internet at https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/losing_weight/index.html
4. Tate D, et al. Efficacy of a Commercial Weight Management Program Compared With a Do-It-Yourself Approach. JAMA Network Open. August 2022. Found on the internet at https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2795182
5. National Institute on Aging. How Can Strength Training Build Healthier Bodies As We Age? June 30, 2022. Found on the internet at https://www.nia.nih.gov/news/how-can-strength-training-build-healthier-bodies-we-age
6. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). How Much Physical Activity Do Older Adults Need? April 13, 2023. Found on the internet at https://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/basics/older_adults/index.htm
7. National Institute on Aging. Maintaining a Healthy Weight. April 7, 2022. Found on the internet at https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/healthy-eating-nutrition-and-diet/maintaining-healthy-weight
8. Federal Trade Commission. FTC Takes Action Against Company Formerly Known as Weight Watchers for Illegally Collecting Kids’ Sensitive Health Data. March 4, 2022. Found on the internet at https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2022/03/ftc-takes-action-against-company-formerly-known-weight-watchers-illegally-collecting-kids-sensitive