The Oil Watch app
A live map of restaurants rated by the oils their kitchens use. Free on iPhone.
Oil Watch is a free iPhone app that maps restaurants by the cooking oils they use. It covers 1,748 verified restaurants (699 rated Seed Oil Free) across 95 US cities, with the deepest coverage in New York City (254 verified). The map, search and every Oil Audit are free; OilWatch Pro adds filters, saved spots and proximity alerts.
Free for everyone
Live map
Verified restaurants around you, each rated Seed Oil Free, Mostly Clean or Use Caution.
Oil Audit
What the kitchen uses for frying, cooking fats, dressings, bread and sauces, with the source behind each answer.
Search
Look up any restaurant by name, whether or not it's on the map yet.
Oil Reference Guide
Which oils count as clean and which are seed oils, compared on linoleic acid, heat stability and processing.
OilWatch Pro
$4.99/month or $39.99/year, billed through the App Store.
Advanced map filters
Filter by rating, verified-clean oils, price and distance.
Saved spots
Keep every restaurant you trust in one list.
Proximity alerts
Get a heads-up when you're near a spot you saved.
Points for contributors
Know what a kitchen cooks with? Add the restaurant or update its Oil Audit in the app. You earn 100 points when a new spot is approved and 50 when an update is approved.
Lifetime points set your tier: Scout, then Watcher, then Sentinel. Spendable points buy avatar colors, profile badges and gift cards in the rewards shop, and spending them never lowers your tier.
Not on iPhone?
Every rated restaurant also has a page on this site. Browse restaurants by city, check a chain's oil audit, or read what counts as a seed oil.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Oil Watch free?
Yes. The app is free to download, and the map, search and every restaurant's Oil Audit are free with no account. OilWatch Pro is an optional subscription for advanced filters, saved spots and proximity alerts.
How much is OilWatch Pro?
OilWatch Pro costs $4.99/month or $39.99/year in the US, billed through the App Store. You can manage or cancel it in your Apple ID subscription settings.
Is there an Oil Watch app for Android?
Not yet. Oil Watch is available for iPhone (iOS 15.1 or later). On other devices you can still browse city, chain and restaurant pages here on oilwatch.app.
Do I need an account?
No account is needed to browse the map or read an Oil Audit. You need one to save spots, submit or update a restaurant, and earn Points.
How does Oil Watch rate a restaurant?
Each restaurant gets an Oil Audit covering fryer oil, cooking fats, dressings, bread, sauces. Those answers produce one of four ratings: Seed Oil Free, Mostly Clean, Use Caution or Contains Seed Oils. Every submission is reviewed by the Oil Watch team before it appears, and each answer shows its source and the date it was confirmed.
Where does Oil Watch have restaurants?
Oil Watch covers 1,748 verified restaurants (699 rated Seed Oil Free) across the US. New York City has the deepest coverage, with 254 verified restaurants (162 rated Seed Oil Free).