Cheapest Meal Delivery Services

Starts at $4.99 per Serving: Dinnerly

Key Specs

• Starting Price: $4.99 per serving
• Delivery Area: 48 states
• Products Arrive: Fresh

Why You Should Try It

Dinnerly has worked to make meal delivery accessible for most households, focusing on affordable kits that provide real value while not compromising on flavor. Dinnerly achieves this by limiting packaging, curtailing its marketing, and being mindful of the ingredients it sources. Overall, our tests found this service's affordability and variety to be a winning combo.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Affordable
• Almost 50 different meals to choose from
• Easy to pause and restart deliveries

Cons

• No printed recipe cards
• No family-friendly meal plans

Dinnerly was founded with the goal of providing cost-effective meal delivery to households. The company may use simple ingredients to keep costs down, but don't mistake simple for bland: Dinnerly offers a nice variety of meals like beef and cheese quesadillas and veggie drunken noodles. Dinnerly doesn't offer specialized meal plans, which may be a drawback for those with specific dietary needs, but instead chooses to emphasize ease, flavor, and cost.

Pricing and Plans

• Can choose between two and four servings
• Choose three to six meals per week
• Pricing starts at $4.99 per meal

Meals We Tried

• BBQ cheeseburger with sautéed onions and smashed potatoes
• Low-cal veggie drunken noodles with broccoli, peppers, and cilantro
• Grass-fed ground beef and cheddar quesadillas with corn
• Caramel chicken stir-fry with snow peas and jasmine rice

Starts at $4.99 per Serving: EveryPlate

Key Specs

• Starting Price: $4.99 per serving
• Delivery Area: Most U.S. states (have to use tool to verify)
• Products Arrive: Fresh

Why You Should Try It

EveryPlate focuses on keeping costs low for its fresh meal kits by rotating through a smaller selection of recipes each week; recipes take just a few steps to make and have fewer ingredients than some other meal kits. If you are interested in trying a meal kit, it's a low-cost option with enough variety that you can probably find a few meals your family likes.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Affordable
• Easy-to-make meals
• Recipe cards provided for easy instructions

Cons

• Customer service is via messenger
• Not a lot of transparency on sustainability

EveryPlate is a meal delivery company that focuses primarily on keeping costs down. To sign up, start by choosing either two or four servings and the number of meals you want per week, then select from a small list of recipes. Some preferences like family-friendly are allowed, but there are fewer filters than other plans.

Pricing and Plans

• Can choose between two and four servings
• Select three to five meals per week
• Pricing starts at $4.99 per meal

Meals We Tried

• Crispy Caesar chicken
• Steak frites
• Blackened shrimp salad
• Hotel butter barramundi

Starts at $6.79 per Serving: Daily Harvest

Key Specs

• Starting Price: $6.79 per serving
• Delivery Area: 48 states
• Products Arrive: Frozen

Why You Should Try It

By hyper-focusing on healthy dishes from a few categories including smoothies, grain bowls, and soups, Daily Harvest is among the best prepared meal services that still keeps costs within reason. If you're looking for fast lunches or healthy snacks, having a Daily Harvest weekly subscription may be for you. Meals are chef-crafted with the goal of making sure you get enough fruits and vegetables in your diet.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Nice mix of recipes
• Minimal prep required
• Healthy dishes with loads of fruits and vegetables

Cons

• No fresh meals
• No meat

Daily Harvest wants you to get enough fruits and vegetables in your diet without the hassle of meal planning or a trip to the store. The company's team of dieticians and chefs craft a variety of meals from smoothies to grain bowls that can be delivered straight to your door. Since the meals are intended as single servings, you have the opportunity to sample a variety of dishes.

Pricing and Plans

• Select a single or recurring box.
• Choose between nine, 14, and 24 items
• Pricing varies depending on the number of items and selected items

Meals We Tried

• Mint and cacao smoothie
• Mango papaya smoothie
• Hazelnut and chocolate bites
• Tomatillo and pepper flatbread
• Portobello and pesto flatbread
• Sweet potato and wild rice hash
• Brussels sprouts and tahini harvest bowl
• Spinach and shiitake grits
• Tomato and zucchini minestrone soup

Starts at $6.99 per Serving: Home Chef

Key Specs

• Starting Price: $6.99 per serving
• Delivery Area: 48 states
• Products Arrive: Fresh

Why You Should Try It

Home Chef has a novel onboarding process with a tool to allow you to customize certain elements of the meals and make it yours. While it ranked in the middle of the road in some areas from our testers, that shouldn't discourage you from trying it if you find the selection appealing.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Customize It! Tool
• Lots of extras you can add on to order
• Printed cards with photos for easy cooking

Cons

• Little information on nutrition
• Must enter credit card info to select meals

Home Chef is a meal kit delivery service that offers fresh ingredients shipped to your door on a weekly basis. The company offers a decent amount of flexibility in choosing recipes and also has add-ons to choose from. Home Chef prioritizes flavor and keeping costs down and doesn't offer as much information as other companies on nutrition or sustainability. Our testers did like the meals though, especially the family-friendly options.

Pricing and Plans

• Pick from preferences like meats, vegetarian, and/or calorie/carb focused
• Choose between two and eight servings
• Pricing varies based on meals and add-ons but starts at $6.99 per serving

Meals We Tried

• Crispy sweet chili shrimp rice bowl
• Creamy tomato and steak penne
• Gnocchi and red pepper cream
• Moo shu pork lettuce cups

Starts at $6.99 per Serving: Revive Superfoods

Key Specs

• Starting Price: $6.99 per serving
• Delivery Area: U.S. and Canada
• Products Arrive: Frozen

Why You Should Try It

Revive Superfoods focuses on delivering perfectly portioned frozen smoothies to your door in a variety of flavors. If you are looking to eat healthier, it might be a nice way to stock your freezer with options. The company is dedicated to sustainability and has a nice mix of smoothies, soups, and bowls to choose from.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Frozen meals allow for longer storage
• Individual portions
• Can choose individual meals for lots of variety

Cons

• No full entrees with proteins

Revive Superfoods is a Canada-based food delivery service that delivers individual servings of frozen smoothies, soups, and bowls to your door. Recipes are chef- and nutritionist-designed, and the service uses interesting flavors and ingredients to keep meals exciting.

Pricing and Plans

• Choose from a box of nine, 12, or 24 items
• Pick from a variety of smoothies, soups, or bowls
• Pricing starts at $6.99 per serving

Meals We Tried

• Hazy cocoa smoothie
• Pink dragon smoothie
• Acai twist smoothie
• Lentil and sundried tomato supermeal
• Chickpea and pomegranate supermeal
• Guajillo tortilla soup
• Artisan bean and tomato soup

Starts at $7.99 per Serving: HelloFresh

Key Specs

• Starting Price: $7.99 per serving
• Delivery Area: 48 states
• Products Arrive: Fresh

Why You Should Try It

If you enjoy cooking and want sustainable options, HelloFresh is a great choice. Out of the economical meal kits we tested, HelloFresh was the most focused on sustainable packaging, giving customers multiple options and instructions for recycling. Plus, the meal kits got rave reviews from our testers.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Smart packaging and instructions for recycling
• Weekly rotating menus
• Printed recipe cards with photos for easy cooking

Cons

• No pre-prepared meals
• Higher cost per meal than some other meal delivery services

HelloFresh is one of the original services in the meal delivery space. The creators wanted to provide meal kits with healthy, eco-friendly options that didn't skimp on flavor. The meals are chef-crafted and arrive at your door fresh and ready to cook.

Pricing and Plans

• Select from preferences like Meats, Family-Friendly, or Pescatarian.
• Choose between two and four servings and two to six meals per week.
• Pricing varies, but six meals and four servings start at $7.99 per serving.

Meals We Tried

• Crispy buffalo-spiced chicken
• BBQ cheddar burgers
• Tex-Mex pork with mango salsa
• Pork sausage rigatoni rosa

Starts at $7.99 per Serving: Blue Apron

Key Specs

• Starting Price: $7.99 per serving
• Delivery Area: 48 states
• Products Arrive: Fresh meal kits, frozen prepared meals

Why You Should Try It

Blue Apron ranked highly in all of our metrics and provided consistently tasty meals. Specifically, testers loved the options in the meal kits and how well the completed meals turned out. Compared to other meal service companies, Blue Apron also offers both meal kits and prepared meals, which are a great choice for cooks who are crunched for time.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Weekly rotating meal choices
• Easy to pause or resume orders
• Offers both meal kits and prepared meals
• Helpful support options

Cons

• Meal kits contain a lot of packaging
• $7.99 per serving is higher than some services on this list

Blue Apron is one of the foremost meal delivery services on the market, offering a wide range of both prepared meals and kits that are rotated on a weekly basis. With easy-to-use subscription options and an expert support network in case you have issues with your order, Blue Apron is a great option for customers on a budget.

Pricing and Plans

• Choose between two and four servings.
• Pick two, three, or four meals per week.
• Select from a variety of meal kits like Chef's Choice, Wellness, or Family-Friendly.

Meals We Tried

Meal Kits

• Togarashi shrimp and vegetable fried rice
• Space Ranger chicken enchiladas
• One-pan white bean and poblano shakshuka
• Baked meatballs and romesco mayo

Heat and Eat

• Sweet and spicy beef bowl with rice, peppers, and edamame
• Chicken alfredo pasta with peas

Starts at $7.99 per Serving: Mom's Meals

Key Specs

• Starting Price: $7.99 per serving
• Delivery Area: 50 states
• Products Arrive: Frozen

Why You Should Try It

If you have dietary concerns, Mom's Meals is a fantastic option, providing meals that can be paid for by Medicaid or Medicare (depending on your plan). Or, if you're concerned about making sure someone you love is getting healthy meals, Mom's Meals might be a good choice.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Wide variety of dietary accommodations offered
• Mix of recipes from a variety of cuisines
• Customers can select their meals

Cons

• No recurring orders
• No fresh food

Mom's Meals focuses on bridging the gap between caregivers and meal-providers by delivering healthy diet-focused meals to people with specific dietary needs. While the meals are designed for those who have dietary issues or the elderly, anyone can order from their menu. You can select meals from a variety of delicious options, and while the company does not offer fresh meal kits, the prepared meals are perfect if you know someone in need of fast and healthy meal options.

Pricing and Plans

• $7.99 per meal
• Choose individual meals from lists
• Re-order when needed

Meals We Tried

• Curry vegetables with pineapple and brown rice, string cheese, and vanilla pudding
• Cheeseburger and seasoned mixed vegetables, whole wheat bun, and orange
• Chicken and stir fry vegetables with teriyaki sauce, white rice, and applesauce
• Sweet and sour chicken with stir fry vegetables and white rice, grape juice, and ginger spice cookie
• BBQ chicken with potato medley, seasoned green beans and applesauce
• Beef goulash over whole wheat pasta, seasoned carrots, and orange
• Salisbury steak with mushroom gravy, potatoes, seasoned vegetables, whole wheat dinner roll, and gelatin
• Mushroom risotto and seasoned peas and carrots, whole wheat roll and grape juice
• Korean style BBQ meatballs with white rice, seasoned broccoli, and ginger spice cookie
• Creamy macaroni and cheese and seasoned vegetables, mandarin orange cup, and blueberry applesauce