Subscribing to a meal kit delivery service can be incredibly helpful — over the course of the last decade, I’ve used them on and off for various reasons. I found them incredibly helpful when I was a novice in the kitchen and needed a little push to really learn how to cook properly. Most recently, I used several different services in the months after I gave birth to my first child, when I had zero bandwidth for meal planning and grocery shopping.
Whether you’re in the postpartum period, have a medical condition that limits your mobility, are short on time and need to simplify your cooking routine, want to pick up new skills and recipes or are simply curious, there’s a meal kit for you.
Below, I’ve rounded up a list of all the meal kit delivery services I’ve tried and their various pros and cons. Most of them give you the ability to choose between meal kits and ready-made meals, while others like CookUnity and Sakara only include ready-made meals. Each has its own unique benefits and is a fabulous way to eat fresh, high-quality food without having to schlep to the store.
Purple Carrot has been a staple in my home this past year, thanks to its creative recipes, fresh produce and quick-and-easy meals. All of its offerings are plant-based, but they're so nourishing and tasty that omnivores will love them just as much as those with vegan and vegetarian diets. Not a single recipe failed us, which is pretty rare in the meal kit world.
You can also order individual groceries as well as ready-made meals from Purple Carrot, which offers a nice variety. I did find that the quality of the ready-made meals didn't quite live up to that of the meal prep kits, but they were handy in a pinch.
This plan serves dietary preferences including high protein, gluten-free, low-calorie and lower sodium options.
I recently tried Hungryroot for the first time and was surprised (and impressed) by the wide range of different meals and foods available. Not only do they deliver traditional meal kit-type dinners, but you can also include snacks, individual ingredients and even tasty treats like chickpea chocolate chip cookies and black bean brownie batter (that I devoured with gusto).
It's like someone did the work of planning your meals, snacks and stocking your pantry and then dropped off the offerings at your doorstep. All the ingredients are super fresh, healthy and delicious. I loved being able to enjoy Hungryroot's recipes, ready-to-eat meals and groceries, and it saved me the effort of having to run out and pick up supplemental items to get me through the week.
Hungryroot provides meals that cater to omnivores (eating meat and seafood in most meals), pescatarian, vegan, flexitarian (eating meat and seafood for only some meals) and vegetarian. The company also offers the most customization for allergies (with 12 different selections you can opt out of including shellfish, nut, dairy and caffeine)
CookUnity elevates ready-made meals to the next level by partnering with talented professional chefs who craft delicious dishes in small, handmade batches. This ensures a high level of quality and attention to detail not commonly found in most meal kits. I can safely say that CookUnity kept my wife and I alive and fed for the majority of the postpartum period thanks to its absolutely delicious, zero-effort meals.
I didn't think I'd like a ready-made meal service, but I could easily eat it for the rest of my life. You can choose between four and 16 meals per week, across all dietary needs and just about every cuisine you could imagine. The price point is on the higher end, but that makes sense given the quality of the ingredients and the meals themselves. I absolutely love CookUnity and recommend it to anyone about to have a baby or for those times when you just don't have it in you to cook but don't want to eat junky takeout.
CookUnity offers the largest variety of diet preference options. See them below:
I've used HelloFresh meal kits on and off for a few years now, and found its meals to be easy-to-make, tasty and convenient. One of the things I love about HelloFresh is that their high-quality proteins and seasonal veggies are, for lack of a better word, super fresh. It's in the name for a reason! Their steak dishes are just as scintillating as the plant-based options, which is not an easy feat. I love the variety in meals and cuisines and that you can also order ready-made meals for those extra lazy days.
Not only can you pick a plan based on your food preferences, like pescatarian, omnivore or vegetarian, but you can also customize your kit to include kid-friendly meals, health-conscious dinners or quick-and-easy recipes that will help you save time during extra busy evenings. This hugely popular service has something for everyone and is worth a try if you're just getting started in the meal kit world.
Note: Hello Fresh also offers its Hero Discount for medical providers, nurses, hospital employees, teachers, first responders, the military and veterans. You get 55% off your first box plus 15% off your remaining boxes for 51 weeks. You just have to verify your ID!
Blue Apron is one of the OG meal kit delivery services. It's been around since 2012 and quickly grew in popularity, helping to spawn an entire industry of copycats. It's the kit that I used when I first moved to NYC in 2013 and decided that being unable to properly feed myself was no longer cute. I loved the variance in meal choices and it exposed me to flavors and cuisines I hadn't previously tried while also giving me the basic building blocks of cooking. The portions were just the right size so each meal was satisfying while the recipes were easy to follow while still having interesting flavor profiles. I did find that over time the quality of the ingredients went down slightly, but it's a great option for anyone starting out their food kit journey or who wants to expand their recipe repertoire.
There are a wide variety of different meal plans, food preferences and cuisines to pick from. It's also one of the more affordable services out there, depending on which plan you pick. Blue Apron was made famous by its meal kits, but they now also have ready-made meals as well.
Bonus: Unlike some of the other meal plans, Blue Apron actually lets you buy meals piecemeal to try things out without a subscription.
There's a good chance you've seen Sakara's healthful meals scattered across various influencers' social media pages. This delivery service considers itself a wellness program more than a regular meal kit. All dishes are fresh, vegan and made with nutritional goals in mind.
Sakara offers two nutrition programs, the Signature Nutrition Program and the Level II: Detox. The Signature Nutrition Program is a traditional ready-to-eat meal kit that is customized based on your own preferences, while the Level II: Detox is just that — a cleanse-type kit that includes five days worth of foods, tonics, drinks and supplements to kickstart your health regime.
I tried the Level II: Detox and found that the meals were super tasty, even though after a few days it all started to feel a bit repetitive. It's definitely a refreshing take on the meal kit and the regime was easy to follow. If you want an ultra-healthy option, this is it. (But it'll cost you, as it's the most expensive of all the options on this list).
Marley Spoon is Martha Stewart's meal kit service, with recipes based on her favorite meals and expertise in the kitchen. I tried a box a few years back and found it to be on par with most other kits, if a bit uninspired. The recipes themselves are easy to follow, with hints of global culinary influence, but are made accessible for all kitchens.
I love that it has various price point options to choose from and that the recipes are rotated out seasonally, so you're always eating fresh, in-season foods.
Marley Spoon also services various dietary needs and preferences, including low-calorie, gluten-free, dairy-free, vegetarian and vegan options.