MasterCook had reached a critical point where it could no longer sustain its operations. The servers were about to be shut down, and long-time users were at risk of losing access to their recipes and cloud data.
Rather than let that happen, Cook’n stepped in to preserve the MasterCook legacy. Cook’n acquired MasterCook’s assets, kept the servers online, and ensured continued service for every user. In short, Cook’n saved MasterCook and its loyal community.
This merger ensures MasterCook’s legacy will live on through Cook’n, providing stability, innovation, and ongoing support for years to come.
Is Cook'n better than MasterCook?
MasterCook was a great product in its time and helped countless home cooks organize their recipes for decades. But technology has come a long way since MasterCook was first developed.
Cook’n builds on that foundation with modern technology—offering automatic cloud backup, seamless sync between devices, powerful mobile apps, AI-powered tools, and a vibrant online community. It’s faster, easier to use, and actively developed and supported.
In short, Cook’n is everything MasterCook was… and much more.
What about my paid subscription to MasterCook? Can I transfer my paid MasterCook membership over to Cook'n?
Yes! Cook’n will honor all active MasterCook subscriptions and upgrade them to Cook’n memberships.
When you transfer your membership for a $10 transfer fee, you’ll receive a Cook’n Standard or Premium Membership valued at up to $150 per year — giving you access to better apps, more features, and a reliable modern cloud service that actually works.
Because the original MasterCook offers varied and were sometimes unclear, Cook’n has established a generous and fair policy to ensure everyone receives full value for what they paid.
All transferred memberships include up to two years of upgraded Cook’n service (through 2027) — often worth far more than the original MasterCook subscription.
Why is there a $10 fee to transfer my paid MasterCook membership over to Cook'n?
Great question! The $10 transfer fee simply helps cover our administrative and processing costs as we move accounts from MasterCook’s old system to Cook’n’s new one. This includes things like securely migrating your membership data, re-establishing billing through our system, and ensuring your subscription benefits continue without interruption.
The good news is that once your membership is transferred, you’ll continue to receive all your paid benefits — plus enjoy Cook’n’s faster, more modern platform with lots of new features and active support going forward.
We’ve done our best to keep the fee as low as possible while providing a smooth, supported transition for every MasterCook customer.
What if I just want to keep using the MasterCook app on Windows only?
If you’re currently using the MasterCook desktop app, it will continue to work for now. However, please keep in mind that it’s an older 32-bit program, and future Windows updates may eventually cause it to stop functioning. When that happens, you may lose access to your recipes or be unable to export them.
Support for the legacy MasterCook app will also be ending soon, so technical help will no longer be available once issues arise. For that reason, we strongly recommend transferring your recipes to Cook’n.
Cook’n is modern, actively supported, and designed to make the transition from MasterCook smooth and simple. Many long-time MasterCook users have already made the switch—and are thrilled with the results:
"So far, so good, it appears to be a very good program and my transition of files from MasterCook was flawless and really easy." - Mike L.
"FYI - I always thought Mastercook was the best and never really looked for anything else. With this offer and getting to know Cook'n this weekend, wow, was I ever wrong!" - James Harper
"I am a longtime Mastercook user and it filled my needs for years, so I never looked around at any other products. With the move to Cook’n, I am loving this product! I am working through learning the differences in the two, and am pleased that Cook’n is realtively easy to learn, yet powerful. I love the ability to import/capture from the web, as I am always on the lookout to try new recipes." - James
"I am making my way around the program, but so far I really like it!" - Liz Kolodney
"One thing I have never managed with Mastercook was to have multiple recipes open at once so I can switch between them. The tabs in Cook'n are cool!" - Pam Z
Will I be able to continue to sync with MasterCook.com and/or use the mobile apps?
No. The MasterCook.com servers are going offline soon. You can transition to Cook’n though. Please see the separate FAQs that give you detailed instructions. See this web page too: Welcome MasterCook Users!
Cook’n has a reliable syncing system across multiple devices and stores your content on all devices. The MasterCook mobile apps simply accessed your online account.
To get the latest version of Cook'n (Version 15), sign up for an Annual Membership.
Unlike MasterCook, where users had to purchase both an annual membership and separate upgrades, Cook’n subscribers automatically receive every update and major upgrade at no extra cost. Simply sign up for an Annual Cook'n Membership, and you’ll always have the latest version—no need to ever buy upgrades again (Note: Cook'n Version 16 will be released in December! Annual members will get it free!)
You will not be able to use the online cloud features, however, since your content is stored on your device, you will still have access to your recipes. When you renew, you can sync with your Cook’n account again.
Does Cook’n have a recipe clipper like MasterCook.com?
Does Cook’n have the same export options as MasterCook?
Cook'n has more export options than MasterCook. In MasterCook you can export as text or as MasterCook format. In Cook’n you can export as text or as Cook’n format or HTML, PDF, or Word.
How does Cook’n import recipe categories from MasterCook?
As you may know, in MasterCook categories are part of a cookbook and not global. MasterCook does not have chapters. Cook’n has both chapters and categories. Chapters are specific to a cookbook in Cook’n. Categories are global in Cook’n, so when you select to view a category, you will see recipes in that category across all your cookbooks. (In MasterCook you used the Search feature to find recipes across several cookbooks with the same category name.)
If you're looking for even more detail...
In MasterCook, recipes can belong to multiple Categories, and those Categories act as both folders and tags. In Cook’n, however, we follow the structure of a traditional printed cookbook:
• Cookbooks are the books on your shelf.
• Chapters are the sections inside (like “Appetizers,” “Soups,” “Main Dishes,” etc.).
• Categories are tags — similar to the index in the back of a printed cookbook — allowing a recipe to appear under multiple headings when you search.
When Cook’n imports from MasterCook, it needs to convert that data into this “printed cookbook” model. So:
• If a recipe in MasterCook belongs to one Category, Cook’n treats that Category name as the Chapter name.
• If a recipe belongs to multiple Categories, Cook’n uses the first Category to determine the Chapter, and then assigns the rest as Cook’n Categories (tags) so they still appear when you search or browse by Category.
That’s why it may seem like only one Category is “shown” per recipe — the rest are still there, just in Cook’n’s Categories section rather than as Chapters.
Some have mentioned wanting to “reserve Chapters as multiple Cookbooks within a single Master Cookbook.” That’s a great idea — and actually very close to how Cook’n naturally works! You can create one large Cookbook and then use Chapters to represent your sub-cookbooks. For example, a single “Master Cookbook” could have Chapters like “Family Recipes,” “Holiday Favorites,” or “Baking.”
We’re exploring ways to give users more flexibility during import (such as an option to group all recipes into one Chapter or to preserve the MasterCook structure more literally). Your feedback helps us shape that roadmap — thank you!
How do I see the number of recipes in a cookbook?
Click on a cookbook listed in the upper left pane of Cook’n. The lower left pane shows a tab called Recipes with the number of recipes in parentheses with the recipe titles listed below that.
What’s the difference between the ingredient data field and the brand data field?
Sometimes you want to use a specific brand of a product, so enter "dinner roll" in the ingredient field and "Rhodes Dinner Rolls" in the brand data field. Cook'n isn't going to show both “1 package dinner roll Rhodes Dinner Rolls” since it is redundant. It's similar if you have a recipe for milk and want to specify a particular type such as whole milk or 2%, etc. because it affects the nutritional analysis as well as what appears in the shopping list. In MasterCook, there is a "purchase as" field in the Ingredient database, and that is what appears in the shopping list. When browsing recipes that are included with Cook'n the brand field is most often empty. Before you input a specific brand, you need to make sure you entered the ingredient data field first…then you can select or enter a Brand.
Where is the recipe data stored on the computer for Cook’n?
The recipe data is stored in your computer’s Documents folder. On most computers, that is located in the \Documents\Cook'n12\workspace\data folder. You can use the Backup command from the File menu to backup your data. You can use the preferences to specify where the automatic backup files go. If you want to backup individual cookbooks, right click on a cookbook and use the export option.
If you have any additional questions, please send an email to support@dvo.com.
