alternatives

Published by Floriva · Updated 2026-04-02 · How Floriva checks its guides

Natural Cycles Alternative: Local-First Tracking

Natural Cycles has FDA clearance and no documented data scandals, but stores your data server-side. These alternatives keep everything on your device.

Natural Cycles is the only FDA De Novo-cleared contraceptive app and has no documented data-selling history. But it costs $12.99/mo, requires a subscription to use at all, and stores your data server-side. If you want period tracking without a cloud component, Floriva, Euki, or Drip keep data on your device.

Natural Cycles Occupies a Specific Niche

Natural Cycles is not a typical period tracker. It received FDA De Novo clearance in 2018 as a contraceptive method, the first app to receive this designation. The FDA review covered the efficacy of the basal body temperature method for preventing pregnancy, not the privacy architecture of the app.

For users who want a scientifically validated fertility awareness method, Natural Cycles has a meaningful distinction from calendar-based trackers. For users who primarily want to track their cycle and avoid a cloud component, the FDA clearance is not the relevant consideration.

Where Natural Cycles Stands on Privacy

Natural Cycles had no documented enforcement actions or known data-selling history prior to December 2024. The company is headquartered in Sweden, which means it operates under GDPR. These were cited as genuine advantages compared to Flo's track record.

That changed on December 4, 2024, when a class action was filed: S.A., et al. v. NaturalCycles USA Corp., Case No. 3:25-cv-10421-WHO, N.D. Cal. The lawsuit alleges Natural Cycles embedded hidden tracking technologies from Mixpanel, AddShoppers, Google, and TikTok that captured reproductive and sexual health data in real time. The complaint argues these data flows occurred despite the app charging $12.99/month (up to $16.99 for some plans) and marketing itself as privacy-protective.

The architecture is still server-based. Your temperature readings, cycle data, and fertility predictions are stored on Natural Cycles' servers. A court order issued in Sweden, the US, or another jurisdiction with a mutual legal assistance treaty could compel production of that data.

Natural Cycles' medical device status creates additional regulatory oversight, but that oversight concerns contraceptive efficacy, not privacy. Being a regulated medical device does not make your data less subpoenable. The plaintiffs in the class action make this point explicitly: the FDA clearance creates a false sense of regulatory protection around data practices that the FDA never reviewed. The litigation is ongoing as of April 2026.

The Cost Problem

At $12.99/mo (as of original publication; check current rates at naturalcycles.com), Natural Cycles is the most expensive mainstream period tracker. There is no free tier. You pay from day one. For users leaving Flo after the FTC settlement who are evaluating alternatives, the cost difference is notable: Natural Cycles is priced well above most subscription period trackers, and still stores data server-side.

If you are not using Natural Cycles specifically for its FDA-cleared contraceptive method, the price is hard to justify against alternatives with stronger privacy architecture at lower cost.

The FDA Data Retention Requirement

FDA-cleared medical devices have specific data retention requirements tied to the clinical evidence base. The regulatory oversight that gives Natural Cycles its clearance also requires that data be retained to support the ongoing validity of that clearance. This is not incidental to the product. It is structural. If you want Natural Cycles to function as a contraceptive method, the data collection is part of that use case.

What On-Device Trackers Cannot Do

On-device trackers are not substitutes for Natural Cycles' FDA-cleared contraceptive method. The efficacy data that supports Natural Cycles as contraception is specific to that app's algorithm and the consistent basal body temperature protocol it enforces. If you are relying on Natural Cycles for contraception, switching to a different app means switching your contraceptive method. That is a medical decision, not a software decision.

For users who use Natural Cycles as a cycle tracker rather than as their primary contraception, the substitution is straightforward.

Comparing Costs

Floriva is a paid app with no free tier, with on-device storage and no mandatory account. Natural Cycles costs $12.99/mo with server-side storage and a mandatory subscription. Users not specifically using Natural Cycles for contraception should evaluate whether the cost is justified by the features they actually use.