Note that occasionally Green Chef may need to substitute some non-organic ingredients in your box, depending on availability.

All of these will be clearly labeled. For more information, check out our in-depth Green Chef review. Purple Carrot is an exclusively plant-based meal kit service that offers both traditional meal kits and ready-to-heat meals, making it a good choice for vegan families and individuals alike.

Overall, the service has great reviews from customers, although many say that some of their produce items regularly arrive in poor condition. They also offer several gluten-free options each week. Still, it may not be a good fit for families with picky eaters because the recipes tend to feature bold, regional flavors.

However, they have a huge catalog of weekly options, including several that require minimal prep. This makes Dinnerly a better fit for families on a budget who also need meals that come together quickly.

Some of their recent menu options include No Chop! Low-Cal Chorizo Tacos and Ready Made! Cheesy Chicken Penne Alfredo. Many reviewers love the variety that Dinnerly provides, but they do say that occasionally produce arrives in bad shape. Overall, the sheer variety of Dinnerly—along with its low price—makes it a great fit for most families without special dietary needs.

They even offer some low-carb and dairy-free meals. HelloFresh is one of the most well-known meal kit delivery services. They offer a wide variety of meals each week, including crowd-pleasing choices and more unique dishes.

For singles, a two-serving plan provides a dinner and one serving worth of leftovers for lunch the next day.

It can save a lot of money compared to dining out for lunch and dinner. Other than occasional shipping issues, reviewers rate HelloFresh highly—with many saying that they cook at home much more since starting their HelloFresh subscription.

Meal delivery services are companies that ship prepared meals or meal kits to your doorstep each week. There are several different meal delivery services to suit nearly all budgets and diet preferences.

Meal delivery services are convenient and they can help you save time and money. They also may help you incorporate healthier meals into your routine and they can add some variety if you find yourself in a cooking rut.

By eliminating the need to meal plan and grocery shop, meal delivery services provide convenience and save lots of time.

Even if you choose a meal kit that requires you to prep and cook the ingredients, you may still save a couple of hours each week of planning and shopping.

If you find yourself eating out or ordering out regularly, meal delivery companies could also help you save money. Many meal delivery services also feature well-balanced, nutritious meals that prioritize fresh produce and healthy protein sources.

They can be a good way to introduce your family to healthier meals. Finally, meal kit services often feature large selections of meals from different types of cuisine. They can add some much-needed variety if your dinners have been feeling stale.

There are two different types of meal delivery services: prepared meal delivery and meal kit delivery. Prepared meal delivery services send single-serving meals that are completely cooked.

They only require reheating and they may be sent fresh or frozen. Meal kits, on the other hand, consist of weekly shipments of recipe cards and all the corresponding ingredients to cook those recipes. There are five main factors to consider when choosing the best affordable meal delivery service for your household.

For individuals, prepared meals may be more convenient, but meal kits are often a better choice for families. Families who follow specific diets like gluten-free, vegan or keto will need to choose meal delivery services like Purple Carrot or Green Chef, which are more expensive than some others.

Additionally, if you eat organic that will limit your options as well. Only Green Chef offers exclusively organic meal kits. Finally, you should review the menu before you sign up and make sure that there are plenty of options that you and the other members of your household will enjoy.

When choosing a meal delivery service, what to avoid really comes down to your personal preferences and budget. Fortunately, you can view the menu for all of these services on their websites before signing up. In fact, I have tested all of the services on this list for myself, in addition to several others.

We were able to use my first-hand experiences to help guide our decisions for the best cheap meal delivery. Additionally, we considered price per serving, specialty diets and customer reviews to ensure that we included highly-rated meal kits that offered affordable options for people with many different dietary needs and preferences.

Meal delivery services are weekly subscriptions that send pre-prepared meals or meal kits with recipes and ingredients to your door each week. Some, like Nutrisystem, send monthly shipments. Meal delivery services are available at a wide range of prices.

Many of them cost around eight to ten dollars per serving, but they can range from five to fifteen dollars per serving. Meal delivery services can be a good fit for athletes, depending on their unique nutrition needs. President Biden said the U. is negotiating a hostage deal that "would bring an immediate and sustained period of calm to Gaza for at least six weeks.

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The meal has to be right around $5. 2. We're looking for the best food the joint offers on a budget. It's not about the most food you can get Meal kits and prepared meals for under $6 a serving? It's true. We tested dozens to find the best budget meal delivery for Get $/meal and $1 steak (limited time only!). Enjoy affordable meal kit delivery and easy recipes with America's Best Value Meal Kit service

Inexpensive meal offers - Missing The meal has to be right around $5. 2. We're looking for the best food the joint offers on a budget. It's not about the most food you can get Meal kits and prepared meals for under $6 a serving? It's true. We tested dozens to find the best budget meal delivery for Get $/meal and $1 steak (limited time only!). Enjoy affordable meal kit delivery and easy recipes with America's Best Value Meal Kit service

Why You Can Trust CNET. Table of Contents Top. Cheapest Meal Delivery Services of What's the best cheap meal delivery service?

Cheapest meal delivery services for Cheapest prepared meal services compared. How we test meal kits and meal delivery services. Factors to consider when choosing a meal delivery service. Why you should trust us.

Cheap meal delivery FAQs. Back to selection. See at EveryPlate. Best cheap meal kits overall. See at Fresh N' Lean. Best cheap prepared meal delivery overall.

See at Dinnerly. Best cheap meal kits for picky eaters. See at Mosaic Foods. Best cheap vegan meals. See at Blue Apron. Best cheap meal kits that include steak and seafood.

See at Daily Harvest. Best cheap meal delivery for breakfast and lunch. See at HelloFresh. Best cheap meal kits for diet and weight loss.

FILTER BY all Meal Kit Prepared Meal. Showing 7 of 7 Results. Editors' choice. Show less. CNET rating out of 10 8. Cons Not as many healthy options No customization allowed. Type Meal Kit. Good for Healthy, family-friendly, comfort food, picky eaters, quick and easy.

Full Review Read full review. See at EveryPlate Best cheap meal kits overall EveryPlate. Show expert take Show less. CNET rating out of 10 9. Pros Food mostly tastes great Good for diets and healthy eating plans.

Cons Expensive if you only order fewer than 10 meals per week. Type Prepared Meal. Meal options per week Good for Keto, paleo, Whole30, gluten-free Mediterranean, vegan, vegetarian, high-protein.

See at Fresh N' Lean Best cheap prepared meal delivery overall Fresh N Lean. CNET rating out of 10 7. Pros Huge recipe selection More healthy options than other budget services. Cons Some recipes are bland and boring. Regional Availability Continental United States.

See at Dinnerly Best cheap meal kits for picky eaters Dinnerly. png","caption":" ","credits":"Mosaic Foods meal delivery service","imageData":{"id":"1cb0d31acfa-a2ea-2ad6b","filename":"mosaic.

Pros Food is some of the best we tried Hearty and filling recipes. Cons Vegan pizzas are just OK. Type Prepared meal. Good for Vegan, vegetarian, paleo, gluten-free, low-calorie. See at Mosaic Foods Best cheap vegan meals Mosaic Foods. Pros A standard plan includes steak and seafood recipes Recipes are interesting and easy to make.

Cons Some produce was a little overripe. Recipes per week Are you looking for the cheapest meal kits that have comfort foods and more in them?

Most meals from HelloFresh usually include meat, starch, and fresh produce. The Yumble is a prepared meal delivery service with an affordable price per meal and offers convenient options for families. These fully prepared meals are designed specifically for kids aged 1 — 12, and a nutritionist approves them.

Plus, there are over 40 different options to choose from each week. You can pause, skip, or cancel the subscription at any time. Many menu options include fresh low-carb, low-calorie meals or comfort foods such as ravioli or tacos. The ingredients are fresh, and the recipes are delicious. You can choose a two-person or a family box with 3 — 6 meal kits a week delivered to your home each week.

There are no fancy marketing campaigns or paper recipe cards. Plus, you can skip any delivery you want or pause your subscription completely. The packaging is made out of recyclable materials and is simple.

Many companies offer similar cheap meal kits, varying in price and quality. However, they all have one thing in common: the more you order from the service, the cheaper it is per serving.

EveryPlate has 17 delicious recipes that change every week. Each recipe has only six simple steps for preparation. The options include 3 — 5 meals a week for 2 or 4 servings.

The EveryPlate box comes hand-packed with delicious ingredients and recipe cards. You can order a Classic Plate, Veggie Plate, Family Plate, or Easy Plate- even protein packs and other add-ons.

The quick and easy meals will last up to 14 days from delivery and are delivered straight to your home nationwide. These prepared meals are heat-and-serve and come with custom, easy-to-read labels in a custom cooler that keeps the food cold during transportation. The big draw for this service is that they cater to clients covered under Medicare Advantage plans, Medicaid plans Long-Term Services and Supports LTSS programs, or the Older Americans Act.

Home Chef has been in business since and is one of the cheapest meal kit services that deliver fresh and pre-made meals to your door. Home Chef offers many dishes, including carb-conscious, calorie-conscious, and vegetarian options.

Each Home Chef meal can take anywhere from 5 — 30 minutes to make, depending on the option you choose. They deliver their meal kits in coolers with insulated linings, so the food stays cold until it arrives at your doorstep.

If you prefer to get Home Chef from the store, you can find several Home Chef products at Kroger-owned grocery stores across the country. Each Daily Harvest item is ready to enjoy in minutes and made with organic ingredients, non-GMO fruits, and vegetables.

The great thing is that there is no shopping, chopping, or prepping needed. You can customize your order to include as many vegan, gluten-free, and dairy-free items as you like. Freshly is a meal delivery service that focuses on fresh, healthy food.

With the Freshly app or website, customers can choose from over 30 meal options for all-natural delicious meals cooked by chefs and sent to their door.

These meals are prepared with quality ingredients and have a refrigerated shelf life of about 3 — 5 days before they need to be eaten or frozen for later use. Each meal is perfectly sized for one person to enjoy and is ready in about three minutes.

If you like comfort food, this may be the service for you! There are no contracts, and you can cancel your subscription at any time. Blue Apron is one of the first names people think of for cheap meal delivery services. You can choose between two and four recipes per week.

Each meal takes between 35 — 45 minutes to cook. There are three meal styles to choose from: Signature, Wellness includes WW options , and Vegetarian.

All of the options in our list allow you to skip a week, pause your subscription, or cancel any time before a weekly deadline. We researched 40 different meal delivery services and narrowed them down by price. We also considered menu options, plans, and other factors. Use limited data to select advertising.

Create profiles for personalised advertising. Use profiles to select personalised advertising. Create profiles to personalise content. Use profiles to select personalised content.

Measure advertising performance. Measure content performance. Understand audiences through statistics or combinations of data from different sources.

Develop and improve services. Use limited data to select content. List of Partners vendors. Buying Guides. The Cheapest Meal Delivery Services Can Help You Save and Simplify Your Dinners Dinnerly and EveryPlate offer the least expensive meals for home delivery.

By Kalisa Marie Martin Kalisa Marie Martin. Kalisa Marie Martin a is classically trained chef, content creator, and travel entrepreneur of Jamaican heritage.

Learn about Simply Recipes' Editorial Process. and Kayleigh Drake Kayleigh Drake. Kayleigh is an associate food editor for the Performance Marketing team at Dotdash Meredith. She has nearly a decade of combined experience in both the media and culinary industries. Continue to 5 of 8 below. Frequently Asked Questions What Is a Meal Delivery Service?

How Much Does a Meal Delivery Service Cost? Do Meal Delivery Services Require a Commitment? How We Test and Rank Meal Delivery Services READ MORE:. You may accept or manage your choices by clicking below, including your right to object where legitimate interest is used, or at any time in the privacy policy page.

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