Nutrisystem vs Weight Watchers

Nutrisystem vs Weight Watchers: Which One Do You Prefer?

With so many weight loss programs available today proper evaluation is required to find one that is right for you. The best weight loss programs promote the consumption of fewer calories than the body burns to lose weight. This means that if your body burns an average of 2,000 calories a day, your weight loss program should promote the consumption of fewer than 2,000 calories per day. It’s mostly about the diet and watching what you eat.

The Nutrisystem and Weight Watchers diets are two of the best weight loss programs that follow this golden mantra. How do they compare? Which one is best for you? Let’s shed some light on the Weight Watchers vs Nutrisystem debate.

Nutrisystem vs Weight Watchers

An overview: The Nutrisystem Diet 

This is 28 days (1 month) of prepacked meals i.e. breakfast, lunch, dinner, etc. that are a combination of low-glycemic carbohydrates, lean protein and plenty of fiber. The food is delivered to the dieters by mail. There are separate diets for men and women. How does it work to lose weight? The caloric consumption for women is capped at 1200 and for men at 1500. Dieters are advised to consume only the food they receive but are free to supplement with fresh produce to achieve the Nutrisystem promise of losing weight fast and easily.

Nutrisystem Pros  

  1. Simplicity and convenience 

Nutrisystem eliminates the need for meal planning and cooking since the food is delivered in pre-packaged containers which can be heated in the microwave. There are diverse meal programs for diabetics, vegetarians, seniors, etc. There are also meal plans for males and females.

  1. Support 

The diet plan comes with free weight loss counseling as well as access to a variety of online articles and tools e.g. chat rooms and bulletin boards among others for moral support.


Nutrisystem Cons 

  1. A bit expensive 

Dieters need to part with at least $300 a month for the meals.

  1. Great for short-term weight loss. 

Dieters are not educated on how to prepare healthy meals and are not equipped to continue eating healthy once they accomplish their goal.

Weight Watchers 

This diet is based on a “SmartPoints” system. Dieters can eat whatever they want as long as they stay within their daily target of “SmartPoints” that is set up for them based on their body and goals. Each food in the Weight Watchers diet is awarded certain “SmartPoints” value. Nutritional foods have less “SmartPoints” than junk food. The value is based on a complex mathematical equation trademarked by the diet creators. You can eat whatever you like. Provided you don’t go over your “SmartPoints” allowance you should lose weight.

Weight Watchers Pros

  1. Freedom 

You can eat any food you like including ice cream, fries, burgers and even alcohol provided you remain within the “SmartPoints” limits.

  1. Education 

Dieters learn how to prepare their own meals enabling them to sustain the good eating habits they learn even after their time with the program.

  1. Holistic Approach

Weight Watchers has a holistic approach to weight loss. It tackles both the nutrition and the exercise aspect of it.

  1. Support 

Weight Watchers offers online moral support for dieters as well as optional weekly in-person meetings.

  1. Cheap 

New members pay an initial $20 fee and then choose one of the available packages. The highest package costs around $70 per month.

Weight watchers diet pros cons

Weight Watchers Cons 

  1. Counting “SmartPoints” can be tedious. 

Not all people are fans of counting calories or points when losing weight. Having to keep track of everything you eat can be intimidating for some dieters.

  1. Too much freedom. This might lead to over-indulgence. 

Some people who join Weight Watchers do not lose weight at all because they continue eating the same junk food that lead made them overweight in the first place. Of course, the program assigns high points to junk food in order to steer dieters toward healthier choices.

The Verdict 

Although both diets are effective in weight loss, Weight Watchers is supreme for enabling the dieters to adopt better eating habits and enabling them to sustain their weight loss Iong-term. Also, more dieters stayed with Weight Watchers longer than Nutrisystem and lost more weight on this program. Whichever program you choose, you are guaranteed success.

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3 comments

  1. Thanks for advice but healthy eating is more expensive than unhealthy but its always eise to watch whatvwe eat

  2. Thank you for this article I’ve been struggling with my weight since my first pregnancy

  3. I was did weight watchers for a while and it really helped me with making healthier choices and I lost some weight too.

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