Try Dry alternatives if you want the diary, not the campaign
Try Dry is the official Dry January app from Alcohol Change UK. Stay on it if badges, missions and a free UK charity log are the job. Four other options if they are not, including us last.
Stay on Try Dry if badges, Dry January and a free UK app are the job. Look elsewhere if you refuse an account, if a drink should not sit next to a dry streak, or if the unit you count is not a UK unit.
What Try Dry does well
The Dry January app from Alcohol Change UK, usable all year. You log dry, drank, or drank as planned. It tracks units, calories and money against a baseline, awards badges (84 added in 2025), runs missions, and keeps dry streaks. Entirely free, no ads. You must create an account. Built around UK units and the 14-unit week. Price, checked 2026-09-13: Free. No ads. Funded by Alcohol Change UK. We are not affiliated with Alcohol Change UK. Dry January and Try Dry are their marks.
Each day you mark dry, drank, or drank as planned. That third option is the reason it is not a recovery counter. The charity page lists units, calories and money saved, a units calendar, sleep, energy, mood and craving scores, notes, a drinking-risk quiz, and current plus best dry streaks. Version 1.8.19, dated 1 September 2026 on the GB App Store, added a Sober October challenge and a fix for the drank-as-planned toggle.
Official page: Try Dry on Alcohol Change UK. Listing: TRY DRY on the App Store.
Why people look for a Try Dry alternative
You need an account. Best For You said so on 3 February 2026. A Drink Less Method review dated 11 December 2025 said the same: the app will not run without one. The help centre walks through passwords, reset mail and being logged out after inactivity, because the log lives on their servers.
The other reason is the frame. Badges, missions and dry streaks are listed as features, not extras. A GB App Store review dated 2 September 2026 described the dry-streak count flipping to 0 on a dry day. That is a support issue. It is also what the product is built around.
UK units and the 14-unit week are the arithmetic. A French interface exists. The unit is still the UK unit. If you wanted a verre-standard week of 10 g, or an on-device log with no login, you downloaded the wrong charity app. That is not a slight. It is a different job.
Four alternatives
Modraly is not first. The first three are free UK tools, then a unit diary, then us.
NHS Drink Free Days
Pledge drink-free days. England.
You pledge at least three drink-free days a week and tick those days. You do not log what you drink on the other days. No account. Progress lives on the device; the NHS privacy policy still lists device, IP and analytics. Free. England-focused. It is a pledge tool, not a unit diary.
Use it if the only job is more dry days in England, for free, without a login. Use a diary if you need the drinks themselves.
MyDrinkaware
Free UK charity tracker with a WHO check
Drinkaware, a UK charity. Logs units, calories, spend and drink-free days, with sleep and energy, plus the Drinking Check (WHO-developed). Personalised goals and reminders. Free, no paywall. UK storefronts only. You register with an email. English, UK units, UK guidance.
The strongest free UK option, and the only one here with a validated self-assessment. Start here if the question is whether your drinking is a problem, not what it adds up to.
DrinkControl
Drinking diary, the closest thing to Modraly
Tracks drinks as units, calories and spend, against moderate/low-risk guidelines. Marks dry days and streaks. Data stays on the device. Premium (widgets, longer charts, reminders, CSV, custom drinks) is a subscription or a lifetime unlock. On iPhone since 2011; back on Android. English only.
If you want streaks and an Android version of a unit diary, start here. It is the most direct alternative to Modraly.
Modraly
Units, spend, calories vs your country guideline
Counts units, spend and calories, and puts the week next to the official line for your country. No account, no Modraly server, no ads, no data collection on free or Premium. The month calendar is fully visible; stats and history stop at 15 days unless you pay. Three favourites on free. Widgets, custom ranges, CSV, custom icons and unlimited history are Premium. An App Clip can log a drink without installing; that log is discarded when you install. Not a coach, not a streak, not Android.
Pick it if you still drink and want the number, on Apple hardware, without a login. Pick something else if you want a programme, a streak, Android, or a full free history.
Try Dry vs the four
| Try Dry | NHS Drink Free Days | MyDrinkaware | DrinkControl | Modraly | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Job | Dry January, badges, planned drinking | Pledged dry days in England | Units plus a WHO check | Unit diary, with streaks | Units vs your country's line |
| Account | Yes | No | Yes, email | No | No |
| Streaks / badges | Yes: dry streaks, badges, missions | Milestones on pledged days | Drink-free days and goals | Yes, dry/sober days | No |
| Price (2026-09-13) | Free. No ads. Funded by Alcohol Change UK. | Free | Free. UK App Store and Play only. | Free + Premium. GB listings: £3.99/month or £11.99/year. US: $3.49 / $10.99. Lifetime SKUs too. | Free to log. Premium £5.99/month or £39.99/year (UK); 6,99 € / 49,99 € (FR). 7-day trial on annual only. |
| Platforms | iPhone, iPad, Android | iPhone, Android | iPhone, Android | iPhone, Android | iPhone, iPad, App Clip |
Prices move. Check each listing the day you pay. None of this is medical advice. Dry January is a mark of Alcohol Change UK.
Free to download. Logging is unlimited. No streaks.
Common questions
What is the best Try Dry alternative?
Stay on Try Dry if badges, Dry January and a free UK charity app are the job. NHS Drink Free Days if you only want pledged dry days in England, with no account. MyDrinkaware if you want a WHO-developed check. DrinkControl if you want a unit diary on Android. Modraly if you want units against your country line, no streak, no account, on iPhone and iPad.
Does Try Dry require an account?
Yes. Best For You (3 February 2026) and a Drink Less Method review (11 December 2025) both say you cannot use it without creating an account. The Alcohol Change UK help centre treats login, password reset and server-side data as the normal path.
Is Try Dry free?
Yes. The UK App Store listing on 13 September 2026 says totally free, no ads, funded by Alcohol Change UK. That is the honest comparison: Modraly is free to log, with 15 days of stats and 3 favourites. Try Dry has no paywall.
Try Dry vs Modraly: which one?
Try Dry if you want Dry January, badges, missions, Android, and a free log with an account. Modraly if you want units, spend and calories next to your country guideline, with no streak and no login. They are not substitutes. Modraly is not affiliated with Alcohol Change UK or Dry January.