Meal Delivery Services Fresh n’ Lean Review A variety of heat-and-eat meals are offered By Mia Syn, MS, RDN Mia Syn, MS, RDN Mia Syn, MS, RDN is a registered dietitian nutritionist with a master of science in human nutrition. She is also the host of Good Food Friday on ABC News 4. Learn about our editorial process Updated on March 09, 2022 Fact checked Verywell Fit content is rigorously reviewed by a team of qualified and experienced fact checkers. Fact checkers review articles for factual accuracy, relevance, and timeliness. We rely on the most current and reputable sources, which are cited in the text and listed at the bottom of each article. Content is fact checked after it has been edited and before publication. Learn more. by Elizabeth Brownfield Fact checked by Elizabeth Brownfield Elizabeth Brownfield is a freelance writer, editor, and researcher who specializes in food, travel, home, and lifestyle content. Elizabeth received Bachelor of Arts degrees in English and Communication Studies from the University of Iowa. Learn about our editorial process Print tested by icon verywell fit Created with Sketch. tested by icon verywell fit Created with Sketch. We independently research, test, review, and recommend the best products—learn more about our process. If you buy something through our links, we may earn a commission. 4.2 Fresh n’ Lean Verywell Fit / Maxwell Cozzi Fresh n’ Lean is a meal delivery service that targets people who follow specific diets and don’t want to spend time in the kitchen cooking. If you are most concerned with adhering to a diet and do not care about the option to choose the meal itself, this service could be for you. Pros Caters to a variety of diets Simple reheating instructions Expansive menu Cons Cannot select meals Expensive Lacks credibility and evidence-based resources Sign Up Now 4.2 Fresh n’ Lean Verywell Fit / Maxwell Cozzi In This Article Expand Pricing How It Works Choosing Meals Packaging Customer Support Nutrition The Cooking Process Flavor, Freshness, and Quality Fresh n’ Lean Is Good For Fresh n’ Lean vs. Seattle Sutton’s Healthy Eating Methodology Final Verdict Specs Fresh n’ Lean is a meal delivery service that caters to those who follow high-protein, Paleo, keto, Whole30, and vegan diets. It was founded in 2010 in the kitchen of a one-bedroom apartment, and the company is now headquartered in Anaheim, California. Fresh n’ Lean ships meals to customers in all 50 states. Each week, customers are sent randomly selected meals from their chef-curated menu to fit their selected diet or a la carte meals. We ordered a box to learn more about what the service has to offer. All the Fresh n’ Lean meals are chef-curated and ready to heat and eat. Pricing: It Varies Fresh n’ Lean offers six meal plans in addition to an a la carte meal plan option: Protein+, Keto, Paleo, Whole30, Standard Vegan, and Low Carb Vegan. The price per meal starts at $7.93 but will vary based on your selected diet and the number of meals you order. Shipping is free. With the exception of the Whole30 plan, you choose meals from your selected diet and can order breakfast, lunch, or dinner, a combination of two meals, or all three. You are only given options to order for five or seven days. For the Whole30 plan, you can order five, seven, or 10 entrees and either zero or five breakfasts. Additionally, you can order a la carte meals to build your weekly meal plan for an $85 minimum. Here is the pricing breakdown: Protein+ Breakfast for 5 or 7 days: $10.75 per mealLunch or dinner for 5 or 7 days: $14.99 per mealBreakfast and lunch or dinner for 5 or 7 days: $11.09 per mealLunch and dinner for 5 or 7 days: $12.43 per mealBreakfast, lunch, and dinner for 5 days: $10.36 per mealBreakfast, lunch, and dinner for 7 days: $9.75 per meal Keto Breakfast for 5 or 7 days: $10.50 per mealLunch or dinner for 5 or 7 days: $15.43 per mealBreakfast and lunch or dinner for 5 or 7 days: $11.25 per mealLunch and dinner for 5 or 7 days: $12.99 per mealBreakfast, lunch, and dinner for 5 days: $10.63 per mealBreakfast, lunch, and dinner for 7 days: $9.97 per meal Paleo Breakfast for 5 or 7 days: $10.50 per mealLunch or dinner for 5 or 7 days: $15.43 per mealBreakfast and lunch or dinner for 5 or 7 days: $11.25 per mealLunch and dinner for 5 or 7 days: $12.99 per mealBreakfast, lunch, and dinner for 5 days: $10.63 per mealBreakfast, lunch, and dinner for 7 days: $9.97 per meal Standard Vegan Breakfast for 5 or 7 days: $10.50 per mealLunch or dinner for 5 or 7 days: $12.64 per mealBreakfast and lunch or dinner for 5 or 7 days: $9.78 per mealLunch and dinner for 5 or 7 days: $10.05 per mealBreakfast, lunch, and dinner for 5 days: $8.45 per mealBreakfast, lunch, and dinner for 7 days: $7.93 per meal Low Carb Vegan Breakfast for 5 or 7 days: $10.70 per mealLunch or dinner for 5 or 7 days: $13.92 per mealBreakfast and lunch or dinner for 5 or 7 days: $10.99 per mealLunch and dinner for 5 or 7 days: $12.27 per mealBreakfast, lunch, and dinner for 5 days: $10.09 per mealBreakfast, lunch, and dinner for 7 days: $9.41 per meal Whole30 5 or 7 entrees, no breakfast: $15.43 per meal10 entrees, no breakfast: $12.99 per meal5 entrees, 5 breakfast: $11.25 per meal7 entrees, 5 breakfast: $11.54 per meal10 entrees, 5 breakfast: $10.63 per meal How It Works: Chef-Curated Meals All the Fresh n’ Lean meals are chef-curated and ready to heat and eat. Start by selecting your meal plan. You will then choose whether you want five or seven days' worth of meals, along with which meals (breakfast, lunch, and/or dinner). At this point, you are also given the opportunity to add whether you have any allergies to eggs, sesame, dairy, shellfish, tree nuts, or soy, as well as an option to exclude up to three ingredients from your meals, such as cilantro, curry, and olives. Next, you can add “bulk and sides” as well as branded accessories. Finally, you are prompted to check out and are given a pre-set “deliver by” date. Under all six plans, you will be sent meals at random. The a la carte plan, on the other hand, allows you to choose from around six entrees and three breakfasts each week. Verywell Fit / Maxwell Cozzi Choosing Meals: Mostly Pre-Selected While some meal plans like keto and Paleo have a range of items on the menu, the low-carb vegan plan only offered four options consisting of a soup and three plates of vegetables. However, they have since updated the low-carb vegan plan to include six options. After selecting your number of meals and types of meals for the week, you can choose to add additional breakfasts, snacks, entrees, proteins, and vegetables. You are billed weekly and if you want to cancel or skip a week, you have to notify the company by Saturday at noon PT. What We Made For the purposes of this review, we ordered five days’ worth of dinners from the Paleo meal plan and did not make any customizations or add food allergies. We received: Creamy broccoli soupStir fry vegetables with braised beefGinger sweet potato bowl with shrimpRed pepper-infused salmon and veggiesVegetables con pollo Packaging: Well-Insulated Our meals arrived in vacuum-sealed, BPA-free recyclable trays in an insulated cardboard box with ice packs. All meals were prepared and ready to heat and eat with the exception of the soup, which was packaged separately from the chicken breast—so it required an extra step to prepare. The box was well-insulated, and the ice packs kept the food cold. In total, there were 19 pieces of packaging in our delivery. Fresh n’ Lean claims that some of its packaging items are recyclable, such as the plastic meal trays and seals. The padding/insulation is biodegradable. For the ice gel packs, follow the manufacturer's instructions printed on the packaging. Verywell Fit / Maxwell Cozzi Customer Support: Full Slate of Support The meals themselves arrived in plastic trays with written preparation instructions as well as an ingredient list and nutrition facts label. This information is also available on the website, where you can click on the meals that were delivered to you. You can reach customer support through email, an online request page, and by phone every day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. PT. We reached out via phone and received immediate assistance, and also got a same-day answer to an email we sent. Nutrition: Experts on Staff Each meal is crafted with nutrition and ingredients in mind to fit within the specified diet. However, there is no mention on the website of how the company determines its nutritional parameters or if it employs a dietitian to assist in menu development. Fresh n’ Lean did tell us, however, that it has two nutritionists on its staff. One is a holistic nutritionist certified by the American Fitness Professionals & Associates, and the other is a Precision Nutrition Level 1-certified nutritionist. In terms of menu creation, Fresh n’ Lean added, “We develop our menu by analyzing current global meal trends as well as what is seasonal.” Each meal comes with a nutrition facts label as well as an ingredient list. The meals that were delivered to us on the Paleo plan were especially high in protein and fat, and lower in carbohydrates. Fresh n’ Lean also takes your indicated food allergies into consideration when sending you your meals for the week. The Cooking Process: Simple The meals were easy to reheat from the instructions provided which included directions for microwaving meals, reheating in an oven, and cooking on the stovetop. If you opt to microwave the meal, you will not need any additional cookware. However, if you use the oven or stovetop, you should have a pot and an oven-safe dish on hand. Microwave reheating was the fastest but resulted in the least palatable and visually appealing dish. Thus, we recommend using the oven or stovetop. Verywell Fit / Maxwell Cozzi Flavor, Freshness, and Quality: Fresh, but Lacking Variety All of our meals arrived vacuum-sealed in their trays and nothing was spoiled. In regards to menu diversity, we found the meals on the Paleo plan to be similar to each other—they were primarily a serving of animal protein served over vegetables. Fresh n’ Lean Is Good For Fresh n’ Lean is good for people who prioritize following a specific diet above all and are not concerned with the specific meal itself as they will not be able to pick and choose. It’s also a good option for anyone looking for quick meals at an affordable price that only need to be reheated. Fresh n’ Lean takes your indicated food allergies into consideration when sending you your meals for the week. The Competition: Fresh n’ Lean vs. Seattle Sutton’s Healthy Eating Fresh n’ Lean and Seattle Sutton’s Healthy Eating both offer prepared meals with very little option for customization. With Seattle Sutton’s Healthy Eating program, you know exactly what meals will be sent to you. The opposite is true for Fresh n’ Lean. While Fresh n’ Lean is focused on catering to specific diets, Seattle Sutton’s Healthy Eating is geared towards calorie and portion control to support weight loss and weight management. Finally, Seattle Sutton’s Healthy Eating meals are crafted following recommended guidelines for good health set forth by the American Heart Association, American Diabetes Association, National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Fresh n’ Lean does not reference a dietitian or evidence-based resources in crafting its meals. Read Verywell Fit's Full Review of Seattle Sutton’s Healthy Eating Final Verdict If you are serious about following a high-protein, keto, Paleo, vegan, or Whole30 diet but do not want to spend time cooking, then this service may be for you. While you won’t be able to select the meals, you can at least be confident that you will be eating within the diet plan that you follow. Methodology We ordered, cooked, and evaluated meals from 27 meal delivery services to get a sense of each one’s offerings, nutrition profiles, prices, and, of course, flavors. We contacted the customer service teams at each of the companies, collected data, and wrote detailed reviews about each one. Our writers are all registered dietitians and rely on their research and its resulting data to inform their reviews. Specs Product Name Fresh n’ Lean Lowest Price per Serving $7.93 Number of Diets Served 6 Number of Recipes 60 Delivery Area 50 states Serving Sizes Available 1 Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Get nutrition tips and advice to make healthy eating easier. Sign Up You're in! Thank you, {{form.email}}, for signing up. There was an error. Please try again. What are your concerns? Other Inaccurate Hard to Understand Submit