Best Meal Delivery Service: Home Chef vs Hello Fresh vs Blue Apron, etc.

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Basics	Visit WebsiteRead Review
Organic	Visit WebsiteRead Review
Cheapest	Visit WebsiteRead Review
Dieting	Visit WebsiteRead Review
Families	Visit WebsiteRead Review

Tired of serving your family out-of-the-box meals every evening? Frozen lasagna and mac ‘n cheese can get old after awhile and is definitely not the healthiest choice. But often there’s just not enough time to have fresh and healthy meals prepared on a regular basis. That’s where a meal delivery service come in, to provide easy-to-prepare, healthy dishes for all kinds of tastes.

All of the meal delivery services we’ve reviewed are committed to providing locally sourced ingredients to benefit our U.S.-based economies and ecosystems. And all of these services use pre-measured (often hard to find or rarely used) ingredients and seasonings to reduce food waste.

Article Overview

How Do They Work?
COVID-19 Update
Best Meal Delivery Companies
What Are My Other Options? (For Dog Too!)
How Do Meal Kits Impact The Environment?
Can You Recycle Them? (Video)
Are They Worth The Price?

How Do Meal Delivery Services Work?

Fresh meals delivered to your home sounds too good to be true, right? While there is some work to be done on your part with most home delivery meals, you will save time on shopping and meal planning.

Typically you choose the number and types of meals and recipes you want each week; then all the pre-measured ingredients are delivered to your doorstep in a temperature controlled box with ice packs to prevent spoilage. Then you follow the detailed instructions (also delivered in the box) to do the preparation and cooking.

The average cost of feeding healthy meals for a family of four runs $146 to $289 per week. But these figures don’t take into account the time you’ll spend planning, searching, shopping and prepping for meals, nor does it account for gasoline costs for running up and down the road.

Although you’re not getting fully prepared meals delivered to your home, you’re still saving a ton of time that you’d otherwise be spending searching for a variety of recipes, putting ingredient lists together and grocery shopping. Some recipes also call for exotic spices, sauces, or hard to find vegetables. They provide these less common ingredients, so you don’t have to search for them or keep each on hand, taking up valuable shelf space in your pantry.

Measuring out all the ingredients can also take time (not to mention can be wasteful because you have too much of an ingredient you don’t use). Meal delivery services can be seem more expensive than buying all the ingredients on your own, but the time it saves may be worth it for busy people who wish to eat home-cooked meals.

COVID-19 Update

With much of the country cooking at home right now, demand for these services has hit an all-time high. So, we are starting to see delivery delays (by a few days), ingredient substitutions and a reduction in menu availability. If you sign up, you will need to be flexible as these programs are operating a little differently during these trying times than they usually do.

All food service companies are taking extra precautions to protect workers from the coronavirus. Further, there is no scientific evidence to support that the virus can be passed by food and no cases have been traced to food as of April 2020.

What Can You Expect From Healthy Meal Delivery Services?

All the boxes we reviewed have the following:

Calories Per Meal: Each meal typically runs from 500-700 calories.
Meal Prep Time: Most services estimate prep time at around 30 minutes.
Delivery & Packaging: All services we reviewed use refrigerated boxes that can last for hours on your doorstep and most packaging is recyclable or compostable.
Subscription Terms: None of the following services require a long-term subscription. You can skip weeks, as long as you meet their cut-off deadline. And you can cancel service at any time.

Note: Don’t sign up and expect to get your meals right away. Most companies require you to pick your menus seven days in advance, so they have enough produce to source and pack (without it going to waste). So, depending on what delivery day of the week you choose, you might end up waiting a week or two to get your first delivery.

What Is The Best Meal Delivery Service?

The best food delivery service really depends on your needs, your palate and your budget. We provide recommendations for each category that will help you fill up your plate with convenience and deliciousness!

Basics | Organic | Cheapest | Dieting | Families

Basics: Hello Fresh Review

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Hello Fresh, an extremely popular meal delivery service, is a great choice for a couple or family who prefers more basic comfort food. Meal portions tend to be more generous than competitors, and it includes more nutritional information on the recipe cards than most.

Hello Fresh is also a good option for vegetarians as you can choose its Classic or Veggie boxes each week. Customers who like spicy food, or more experimenting, should look elsewhere.

Sample Recipes

Pan-Seared Steak with Cipollini Onions, Roasted New Potatoes and Tomato Pan-Sauce
Sole en Papillote with Mushrooms, Croutons, and Brown-Butter Caper Sauce
Autumn Risotto with Butternut Squash, Sage and Pepitas

Pros	Cons
Moderately priced compared to competition Vegetarians have their own meal plan to choose from (with slightly better pricing) Sourced ingredients from local farmers, butchers and more Wine plans and family plan available	Fewer weekly meal choices (5 for classic; 3 for veggie) Recipes can be pretty basic in terms of flavor Some consumer complaints that the free meals promo is misleading Shipping costs extra

Prices

Meat & Veggie Menu starts at $8.99 per serving for 3 meals for 2 people
Veggie Menu starts at $8.99 per serving for 3 meals for 2 people
Family Menu starts at $8.99 per serving for 3 meals for 2 people
+ $7.99 for shipping

Coupon Code

Our link above applies discounts if available

Read Our In-Depth HelloFresh Review

Organic Meals: Green Chef Review

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Green Chef stands out for catering to organic eaters who eat more unique diets including vegan, gluten-free, keto and paleo. However, it also has power plant, pescatarian and omnivore options too.

All of its ingredients are responsibly sourced, and Green Chef uses recycled (and biodegradable) jute to pad its box contents (which you can compost) instead of wasteful bubble wrap. The items are color coded and placed into a meal-specific paper bag so you can easily identify what you need when it’s time to cook.

Our Personal Review

Green Chef is used consistently by several members of our team because it offers a good variety of special dietary options.

With two vegans, two pescatarians and two gluten-free eaters on our team, this service makes it easy to select your dietary type and forget about it, with appropriate, varied and delicious meals every week.

Sample Meals

Curried Pork Chops with Quinoa, Raisins & Almonds and Garlic-Chard Naan
Italian Grilled Cheese with Balsamic Tomato Jam, Broccoli Slaw and Spinach Pistou
Maple-Roasted Tempeh with Potatoes, Carrot, Braised Apple, Cabbage and Aioli

Pros

Cons

Eco-Friendly packaging (with compostable jute)
Vegetarian, vegan, paleo, keto, heart healthy and gluten-free options
Large variety of healthy, unique recipes
Ingredients do not contain any synthetic pesticides, GMOs, artificial ingredients, hormones or antibiotics, and are 95% certified organic
Option to change meal plan (vegetarian, paleo, etc.) from week to week, based on recipes offered
Each meal’s ingredients arrive pre-sorted in paper bags along with easy to follow instructions and photos
USDA-Certified Organic

Sauces and condiments are pre-made (and thus less easy to recreate)
Expensive
Meals are pre-selected based on your dietary needs (but you can login to choose 3 from the 5 options for several diets)
Shipping costs extra

Prices

The pricing is based on the type of meal you select and the number of meals and servings you choose per week. Shipping is an extra charge and varies depending on the amount of food ordered.

Keto $14.99/serving (low-carb, no dairy or gluten)
Paleo $14.99/serving
Balanced Living (omnivore or pescatarian) $11.99/serving
Plant-Powered (vegetarian and vegan) $11.99/serving
Family Carnivore (meat and seafood with veggies) $12.99/serving
Family Omnivore (meat, seafood and vegetarian) $12.99/serving
+ shipping (price varies)

Coupon

Our link above applies discounts if available

Cheapest: Dinnerly Review

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Dinnerly aims to be the most affordable meal service with aggressively low prices per plate (only $4.99, which is almost half that of other subscriptions). It has lowered the cost to consumers by limiting the menu with no menu choice — you only get three super simple recipes with fewer ingredients per dish and digital recipe cards (which cuts down on waste too).

Because there isn’t the option to select your recipes, this isn’t the best choice for picky eaters, but it’s perfect for younger chefs on a budget or if you are looking to get a taste for meal delivery services.

Sample Meals

Chicken Broccoli Pan Roast with Creamy Mustard Sauce
Grass-Fed Cheeseburger with Macaroni Salad
Vegetarian Fried Rice with Edamame

Pros	Cons
Least expensive meals per plate Skip any week at any time Digital cards and less packaging waste than other boxes Backed by Marley Spoon’s team of chefs (including Martha Stewart) Phone and email support	Fewest options to choose from and not dietary restriction-friendly Shipping costs extra Only 3 recipes per week offered (2 or 4 person plans)

Prices

2 person box starts at $4.69 per serving for 5 meals a week
Family box (4 people) starts at $4.44 per serving for 5 meals a week
+ $8.99 shipping per box

Coupon

Our link above applies discounts if available

Dieting: Diet-to-Go Review

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Diet-to-Go helps you stay on track with your dieting goals. Your choices include: (a) meals for either 5 or 7 days per week, and (b) 2 or 3 meals per day. Unlike others in this article, Diet-to-Go offers breakfast, lunch and dinner with sides.

You select from their weekly meal options, and they’re delivered to your door. No prep or cooking is necessary. All you have to do is heat it up, so there’s no excuse to not stay on track with this diet since it comes ready to heat and eat.

There are four meal plans to choose from:

Balance is the most popular and doesn’t include red meat or pork to help with weight loss and control your caloric intake
Balance-D is for those who have type 2 diabetes or are on the cusp of it
Keto-Carb30 is for those on the keto diet and restricts fruit, yogurt and bread
Vegetarian is for, you guessed it, vegetarians

You can also opt for no seafood or specify the types of seafood you prefer.

Sample Meals

Balance: coconut parfait, turkey meatloaf, Italian chicken
Balance-D: cinnamon walnut cereal, aztec quinoa salad, blackened salmon
Keto-Carb30: scrambled eggs, chicken fontina, roasted half of chicken
Vegetarian: ratatouille omelet, mushroom ravioli, black bean chili

Pros	Cons
Can get all of your meals for the week No prep or cooking Vegetarian and keto options Option to change meal plan Can skip weeks or cancel anytime	Expensive No family meals Doesn’t cater to vegan or gluten-free diets Shipping costs extra

Prices

Pricing varies based on the plan you select, the number of days you want meals and the number of meals you want each day. Below are some pricing examples.

Balance, original, women’s calories, 7 days per week, 3 meals per day: $8.57 per meal
Balance-D, 7 days per week, 3 meals per day: $8.57 per serving
Keto-Carb30, original, 7 days per week, 3 meals per day: $9.74 per meal
Vegetarian, 7 days per week, 3 meals per day: $8.57 per meal
+ $9.99 per delivery (or free delivery and local pick up at some locations)

Families: Blue Apron Review

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Want to get the kids involved? Cooking can be fun for the whole family and Blue Apron is a great choice for families. They stand out as the best value for the quality and variety of meals you get each week compared to all the other services we reviewed. Blue Apron is one of few services that offers entire family meals delivered.

Blue Apron never repeats its recipes during the year and offers specialty products that are hard to find elsewhere. It sources its ingredients from family-run farms and businesses.

Blue Apron also offers a monthly wine delivery program with six bottles paired for your upcoming meals. At $65.99 per month (includes shipping but tax will be added), the wine delivery program is a great deal. As of August 2019, Blue Apron has partnered up with the popular meatless brand Beyond Burger™ to offer plant-based burger patties as part of their Signature plan.