Best Prepared Meal Delivery Services of 2021

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Our Top Picks

Best Overall: Freshly
Best on a Budget: Diet-To-Go
Best for Weight Loss: BistroMD
Best for Plant-Based: Veestro
Best for Variety: RealEats
Best for High Protein: Trifecta Clean Plan
Best for Organic Meals: Fresh n’ Lean

Prepared meal delivery services make eating well at home extremely easy and convenient. Most meals are ready to eat in under 10 minutes and require minimal preparation and cleanup. Meals arrive chilled or frozen with simple, straightforward reheating instructions. Folks with health conditions, people over the age of 60, and people with certain fitness goals can especially benefit from using these services because they simply make their lives easier.

These days, there is a prepared meal delivery service for almost every need. Whether you want to lose weight, follow a plant-based diet, or eat organic meals, you’re bound to find something to suit your lifestyle.

Our Top Picks

Best Overall: Freshly

Why We Chose It: Freshly delivers a wide variety of nutritious, prepared meals suitable for many dietary needs at an affordable price.

Key Specs

Lowest Price per Serving: $8.49
Number of Diets Served: 2
Number of Recipes: 48

Pros & Cons

Pros

Wide variety of menu options
Nutrient-dense and low-sugar meals
Affordable
Good for dietary restrictions

Cons

Not organic
Only dinner offered
No free shipping

Overview

Freshly offers high-quality, nutrient-dense meals that are ready to eat after reheating for about 3 minutes. Many of the company's dinner entrees are approachable, familiar recipes that are loaded with vegetables. Freshly ensures each meal contains vegetables, and uses them in unexpected ways like in sauces or mixed with ground meat.

Freshly’s food philosophy further helps inform its balanced recipes. It aims to use less added sugar, fewer processed foods, and more nutrients in its meals. Customers with dietary restrictions can set personal filters when ordering, including gluten-free, dairy-free, and carb-conscious. Plus, you have access to a free Freshly app, which makes it more convenient to set dietary filters, change your meals, and more.

In addition, most of the packaging in the shipped meals is recyclable or reusable.

Pricing and Plans

Meals from Freshly range from $8.49 to $11.49 each. The cost per meal decreases the more meals per week you order. Shipping varies but is usually between $8 and $12 per delivery.

Deliveries are once per week to most areas in the contiguous U.S. You can select a meal plan to receive four, six, eight, 10, or 12 meals per week. Each meal is a single serving.

Freshly only offers dinners at the moment, and they are delivered chilled and ready to heat in their packaging.

Best on a Budget: Diet-To-Go

Why We Chose It: Diet-To-Go offers affordable prepared breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and snacks for a variety of dietary needs and preferences.

Key Specs

Lowest Price per Serving: $8.50
Number of Diets Served: 4
Number of Recipes: 300

Pros & Cons

Pros

Affordable
Customizations available

Cons

No free shipping
Not exclusively organic

Overview

Meals from Diet-To-Go hover around an affordable $8.50 per meal. With four menu plans to choose from, most customers will find meals suitable for their needs and goals. Each menu plan features nutritionally balanced, heart-healthy meals.

Meal plans average around 1,200 calories per day and include breakfast, lunch, and dinner. You also have the option of just ordering lunches and dinners. Examples of meals include harissa salmon, egg quesadilla, and shrimp alfredo.

Diet-To-Go has a five-week rotating menu and offers some customization for off-menu meals or meals from previous weeks. In addition to its standard Balance menu plan, you can opt for calorie-controlled keto, vegetarian, or diabetes carb-controlled meals.

Pricing and Plans

Meals start at $8.50 each if you order the maximum amount of meals and increase from there. Shipping costs $19.98.

You’ll receive a delivery once per week with your chilled meals. Customers can have all three meals delivered or just lunch and dinner, with the option of a five- or seven-day meal plan.

The meal plans Diet-to-Go offers are:

Balance
Balance Diabetes
Keto-Carb30
Vegetarian

Best for Weight Loss: BistroMD

Why We Chose It: Designed by a doctor and backed by science, BistroMD offers a prepared meal delivery service to support sustainable weight loss without fad dieting.

Key Specs

Lowest Price per Serving: $9.49
Number of Diets Served: 5
Number of Recipes: 150+

Pros & Cons

Pros

Doctor-designed for sustainable weight loss
Access to registered dietitians
Variety of programs for medical and dietary needs

Cons

Small portions
Meals come frozen
Not exclusively organic foods

Overview

BistoMD was started by Dr. Cederquist, a board-certified bariatric specialist with over 20 years of weight loss experience. The BistroMD program gives you access to nutritionally balanced, calorie-controlled prepared meals delivered to your door. Meals are prepared fresh before they're frozen and shipped to you in dry ice.

The meals you receive on BistroMD’s standard plan provide 1,100 to 1,400 calories per day and consist of 40 to 50 percent lean protein, 20 to 25 percent healthy fats, and 30 to 25 percent fiber-rich carbohydrates. A reduced- or low-calorie diet can help reduce blood pressure and blood cholesterol.

BistroMD offers weight loss programs for specific needs like diabetes, gluten-free, and heart-healthy. It has a staff of registered dietitians who help plan the nutritionally balanced meals and to whom you have access for nutrition consultations. Each program has over 100 different meals to pick from.

Pricing and Plans

Prices start at $9.49 per meal when you order the highest amount of meals per week (20, including breakfasts, lunches, and dinners). Shipping is free for new customers and then costs $19.95.

Deliveries are made once weekly. You can choose from four different plans:

Full program: Seven days of breakfasts, lunches, and dinners
Full program: Five days of breakfasts, lunches, and dinners
Lunches and dinners: Seven days
Lunches and dinners: Five days

BistroMD offers five different programs for specific needs:

Standard program: One for men and one for women
Gluten-Free
Heart Healthy
Diabetic

Best for Plant-Based: Veestro

Why We Chose It: Veestro is a completely plant-based vegan prepared meal delivery service with many unique and inspired meal options to choose from.

Key Specs

Lowest Price per Serving: $9.90 per meal
Number of Diets Served: 5
Number of Recipes: 53

Pros & Cons

Pros

Completely plant-based vegan meals
Majority of ingredients are organic
Wide selection of meals

Cons

No rotating menu
Ships frozen

Overview

Veestro is a completely plant-based vegan prepared meal delivery service with a wide variety of meal options. Its menu offers plant-based comfort meals such as lasagna, as well as more inspired international dishes like jackfruit pozole.

A majority of Veestro's entrees are packed with fresh vegetables like kale, eggplant, and mushrooms. Some of its meals utilize meat alternatives like Impossible meat and a soy-based chick’n. You can order entrees that are suitable for lunch and dinner, as well as a smaller selection of plant-based breakfasts.

Veestro’s mission is to make it simple to eat more plants every day. Eating a plant-based diet can have several health benefits, including weight loss/weight management, and reduced risk of chronic diseases including heart disease, and diabetes. This eating habit can even help reduce the risk of cancer.

The Veestro website allows customers to filter based on dietary restrictions like soy-free, gluten-free, and nut-free. It also offers a weight loss menu in which you get three meals per day for five or seven days of the week. Calories on the weight loss plan are approximately 1,200 per day.

Pricing and Plans

Price per serving ranges from $9.90 to $11.70, depending on how many meals you order. Free shipping comes when you opt in to weekly auto-deliveries and costs $9.99 if you do a one-time order.

Meals are prepared and then flash-frozen before delivery. Veestro uses nearly 100 percent organic ingredients for all of its meals.

Veestro works off an a la carte model, in which you can select from three plans:

10 meals
20 meals
30 meals

You can select a combination of lunch/dinner entrees and breakfasts. There are over 60 entrees to choose from with a wide variety of flavors and cuisines.

Best for Variety: RealEats

Why We Chose It: Customers can order prepared meals from RealEats to suit nearly any time of day.

Key Specs

Lowest Price per Serving: $10.99
Number of Diets Served: 5
Number of Recipes: 24

Pros & Cons

Pros

Wide variety of meals for throughout the day
Utilizes locally grown food
Free delivery

Cons

Difficult to filter for dietary restrictions
Does not deliver nationwide
Not all organic ingredients

Overview

RealEats is a prepared meal delivery service based in Geneva, New York. A large portion of its food is sourced from independent farmers and local suppliers. It offers a wide variety of meals to choose from, like entrees, soups, chilis, breakfasts, side dishes, and more. You can order other add-ons including snacks, fresh greens, and smoothies.

Three new menu items are featured each week, with a larger body of meal options that rotate less frequently. RealEats focuses on in-season foods whenever possible. Examples of meals include Baja chicken tacos and honey soy steak.

The RealEats menu has enough variety for specific diets like plant-based or keto, but it doesn’t offer any set menus or plans for diets. Meals are packaged in vacuum-sealed plastic pouches, and you reheat them using the sous-vide method by submerging the pouch in boiling water.

Pricing and Plans

Meals are shipped out once a week. They’re chilled and sent out on Mondays and arrive on Tuesday or Wednesday, depending on your location. Shipping is free.

RealEats offers eight different meal plans:

Dinners only: 4, 6, 8, or 12 dinners
Breakfasts + Dinners: 4 dinners + 4 breakfasts, 6 dinners + 6 breakfasts, 8 dinners + 8 breakfasts, 12 dinners + 12 breakfasts

In addition to meals, you can also add snacks, smoothies, side dishes, soups, proteins, and greens to your plan. Many of these a la carte options come from local purveyors, just like much of the ingredients in the meals.

Best for High Protein: Trifecta Clean Plan

Why We Chose It: Meals on this plan are nutrient- and protein-dense and feature an abundance of humanely raised proteins.

Key Specs

Lowest Price per Serving: $13.79
Number of Diets Served: 5
Number of Recipes: 60

Pros & Cons

Pros

Each meal averages more than 30 grams of protein
Humanely raised, sustainable proteins
Organic

Cons

Expensive
Subscription service may not be for everyone

Overview

Trifecta offers nutrient-dense, protein-rich prepared meals delivered right to your door. Its Clean plan in particular has an average of 38 grams of protein per meal, along with 42 grams of carbs, 20 grams of fat, and 500 calories.

Trifeca’s meals are 100 percent certified USDA organic. Proteins are sourced from grass-fed beef, sustainably caught seafood, and free-range poultry. All meals on the Clean plan are free of gluten, soy, and dairy.

Trifecta offers breakfasts, lunches, and dinners on its meal plans. You can order additional third entrees, which may be helpful for couples or small families looking to use a prepared meal delivery service. For further customization, customers can select a Meal Prep meal plan and order a la carte proteins, sides, and vegetables.

Pricing and Plans

Meals range between $13.79 and $15.49 each on the Clean plan, with free shipping. Vegan, vegetarian, and a la carte items are less expensive.

You’ll have the option of ordering a minimum of seven meals per week, up to 28 meals per week. The maximum number of meals per week includes breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and third entrees for seven days.

Trifecta has five meal plans to choose from:

Clean
Paleo
Keto
Vegan
Vegetarian

In addition to these five plans, Trifecta also has Meal Prep plans and a Classic menu with more basic, familiar recipes.

Best for Organic Meals: Fresh n’ Lean

Why We Chose It: Fresh n’ Lean offers organic prepared breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and snacks for a variety of dietary needs and preferences.

Key Specs

Lowest Price per Serving: $7.93
Number of Diets Served: 6
Number of Recipes: 59

Pros & Cons

Pros

Affordable
Caters to different dietary needs
Offers breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks

Cons

Less flexibility with choosing meals
Subscription service may not be for everyone

Overview

Fresh n’ Lean offers organic and nutritious prepared meals delivered to your door. Customers can customize their meal plan to include any combination of breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and even snacks. You can choose to receive meals for five or seven days of the week.

The foods Fresh n’ Lean includes in meals are all high quality and feature organic produce, grass-fed meats, and free-range poultry. Your meals are delivered fresh and chilled, and just need a few minutes in the microwave before they are ready to eat. Meals stay fresh for 10 days in the fridge or up to eight weeks in the freezer.

You can select different Fresh n’ Lean meal plans depending on your health priorities and goals. For example, the company offers two types of vegan plans that are completely plant-based.

Pricing and Plans

The standard vegan plan is the least expensive, starting at $7.93 per meal when you order the maximum number of meals (seven breakfasts, lunches, and dinners). Meal prices increase based on how many meals per week you order and the plan you choose.

Deliveries arrive around five days after you place your first order, usually on a Friday. Shipping is free.

Fresh n’ Lean offers six meal plan menus:

Protein+
Paleo
Vegan
Low Carb Vegan
Whole30 Approved
Keto

Customers can also order snacks and bulk offerings, such as extra prepared proteins, grains, and side dishes.

Final Verdict

For a high-quality, nutritious, and delicious prepared meal delivery service, Freshly has something for just about everyone. Freshly has familiar and appealing recipes that are even healthier, as the company strives to use limited added sugar and fresh vegetables in every meal. Of all the prepared meal delivery services we researched, Freshly is also one of the more affordable options.

Guide for Choosing the Best Prepared Meal Delivery Services

Are Prepared Meal Delivery Services Worth It?

Prepared meal delivery services may end up costing more money on average than you spend on food each week, but the cost could be worth it for several reasons. Ordering prepared meal delivery services can save you a ton of time devoted to meal planning, grocery shopping, cooking, and cleaning up. If you have a busy schedule but want to eat well, prepared meal delivery services may be for you. For folks with health conditions that require following a strict diet, prepared meal delivery offers a good solution to solving the issue of what to eat for dinner.

Ordering meals from a prepared meal delivery service can give customers who live far away from grocery stores or restaurants access to nutritionally balanced, fresh meals. Some meal delivery services even offer discounts for teachers, students, military, and healthcare professionals.

Prepared meal delivery services may be beneficial for someone looking to lose weight, gain muscle, or who has another fitness goal. Several companies offer tailored meal plans to help you meet your goals, as well as access to registered dietitians and educational materials through an app or website.

Comparing Prepared Meal Delivery Services

There are some important factors to consider when selecting the best prepared meal delivery service for you:

Pricing: Some prepared meal delivery services cost more than others. You can compare the cost of weekly food and groceries to the cost of the meal delivery service you are considering to help you decide.
Customizability: If you like to have more control over your meals, opt for a prepared meal delivery service that lets you select your own meals. Some offer set menus with little flexibility.
Dietary restrictions: If you have a food allergy or dietary restriction, explore which meal delivery services can cater to your needs. Some services allow you to filter meals by ingredient or food group. You can also find out how and where meals are prepared.
Specific diets: Do you follow a special diet like keto, paleo, or vegan? Many prepared meal delivery services offer tailored plans for all sorts of diets.
Meal and snack options: Some prepared meal delivery services only offer dinner entrees, but many let customers select breakfasts, lunches, sides, and snacks.

Prepared Meal Delivery Services as Part of a Lifestyle

Once you find a prepared meal delivery service you love to eat, you can integrate it easily into a healthy lifestyle. Prepared meal delivery services save you a lot of time in the kitchen and grocery store, giving you more time to dedicate to health-promoting behaviors like exercise and socializing.

If you’re trying a new diet, using a prepared meal delivery service makes it easy to stick to it. They take the guesswork out of meal planning, counting macros, or grocery shopping for foods. Some companies even have a mobile app, making it easier to customize your meals or pause your subscription.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can Prepared Meal Delivery Services Help With Weight Loss?

In order to lose weight, you must be in a calorie deficit. In other words, you must burn more calories than you consume. Prepared meal delivery services are an appropriate tool to use for sustainable weight loss.

Prepared meal delivery services can help you get into a calorie deficit in order to lose weight. They deliver you calorie-controlled meals, and you are only eating a set amount of food. The meals you receive are nutritionally balanced as well.

When losing weight on any diet, it’s best to do so slowly and sustainably. One to two pounds per week is ideal. Depending on your current eating habits, the prepared meal delivery service you choose, and other factors, you may lose more or less weight to begin with.

Some prepared meal delivery services may be more catered to weight loss than others, as they may offer lower calorie meals or specific weight loss meal plans.

How Much Do Prepared Meal Delivery Services Cost?

Prepared meal delivery services tend to price out similarly to other meal delivery services. Prices fall in the range of around $8 to roughly $15 per meal, with some companies offering free shipping or discounts for certain populations.

What Are the Potential Health Benefits of Using Prepared Meal Delivery Services?

Using prepared meal delivery services can have several health benefits, especially depending on your current dietary habits. Prepared meal delivery services provide nutritionally balanced meals, which ensures you are consuming important micronutrients and dietary fiber. You may find it easier to eat more vegetables, whole grains, or other healthful foods using these services as well.

The meals you receive are calorie-controlled, so they can help with weight loss or weight maintenance. If you don’t enjoy cooking, they are an excellent alternative to regular meal delivery services because the food is prepped for you. They’re also a good option to use instead of restaurant take-out, as portions are smaller and meals tend to be healthier overall.

Methodology

We researched over a dozen different prepared meal delivery services to find the best options. The most important consideration was to identify services that offer nutritionally balanced meals that included fresh vegetables, lean proteins, healthy fats, and complex carbohydrates.

We looked for prepared meal delivery services that offer a variety of meals for dietary restrictions, including gluten-free options, vegetarian options, and weight loss options. Finally, we considered the delivery area to find prepared meal delivery services that are widely available to a majority of the U.S.