Best Jelly of the Month Clubs of 2023

Homemade strawberry jam with fresh fruit on white — MariaUspenskaya / Getty Images

Jelly of the month clubs make it possible to sample unique flavors and fruit combinations from small farmers and producers. Not all grocery stores offer high-quality preserves, so when you've already enjoyed the local options in your area, subscription services make it easy to try something new.

Even if you don't start every morning with a fresh slice of toast, you can keep unopened jars for a year or more to use them in a variety of recipes and desserts. The best services offer multiple types of preserves and subscription options. We've rounded up the top clubs for jellies, jams, marmalades, and fruit butters to help you find the best option to try at home.

Best Jelly of the Month Clubs of 2023

Best Overall: Small Batch Jam Co.
Best for Variety: Amazing Clubs Jam and Jelly of the Month Club
Best for Organic: Piece of Love
Best for Chunky Preserves: Lemon Bird Preserves
Best for Small Jars: Little Black Box

Best Overall: Small Batch Jam Co.

Small Batch Jam Co.

Key Specs
Cost: $89, $166, or $332
Number of Jars: 2 jars per month
Subscription Options: 3 months, 6 months, or 12 months

Why You Should Try It: Small Batch Jam Co. provides an ever-changing cast of jellies, jams, marmalades, and fruit butter with creative flavor pairings. It's a solid choice for lovers of all types of fruit preserves.

Pros
International shipping available
Access to micro-batch flavors

Cons
Expensive
No substitutions except for allergies

Overview
Pacifica sits on the California coast just south of San Francisco, so Small Batch Jam Co.'s delicious fruit preserves have gained a cult following at farmers markets and events throughout the Bay Area. They use locally grown fruits for jams and jellies, both straightforward and unexpected: quince rosewater jam, lime jelly, and Earl Grey bergamot marmalade are a few examples.

Choose between three subscription options: three months, six months, and 12 months. Each month you'll receive two jars: one from their regular collection, and one from their micro-batch run that is not often available elsewhere. Outside of accommodating requests for allergies, there’s no customization. But for jelly aficionados who want to go with the flow, the range promises plenty of new tastes.

Best for Variety: Amazing Clubs Jam and Jelly of the Month Club

Amazing Clubs

Key Specs
Cost: $80.85, $155.70, or $299.40 (shipping included)
Number of Jars: 2 jars per month
Subscription Options: 3 months, 6 months, or 12 months

Why You Should Try It: If you want to try jellies and jams from different producers all in one subscription box, look to Amazing Clubs. Their wide variety of producers will take you on a nationwide tour of preserves.

Pros
Multiple producers
Shipping included

Cons
Some offerings available at decent grocery stores
No customization

Overview
With every jam of the month club box featured here, you’ll get a ton of variety. This is the only club that curates from multiple producers, offering a tour de preserves from coast to coast. You’ll never get the same thing (or close to it) twice. Previous selections have included Oregon Hill Farms’ marionberry jam, Brenham Kitchens’ apple pie jelly, and Three Rivers Orchard’s muscadine grape jelly.

This subscription is designed for gifting. Each shipment of two jars (totaling 10 to 20 ounces of preserves) comes with a newsletter (The Daily Spread) describing the producers and selections. However, note that you can’t make substitutions, so it’s not ideal for those with special preferences or dietary needs.

Best for Organic: Piece of Love

Piece of Love

Key Specs
Cost: $13 per month plus shipping
Number of Jars: One 9-ounce jar per month
Subscription Options: 1 to 12 months

Why You Should Try It: Preserves lovingly made with organic fruit and an abundance of durations to select from (anywhere from 1 to 12 months) distinguish Piece of Love among jam subscriptions.

Pros
Plans from 1 to 12 months
Enroll for 6 months and get the 7th free

Cons
Only one jar per month
Shipping not included

Overview
Baker Jen Pattap might spend her time firing up her fair share of ovens, but her baking business, Piece of Love, also affords her plenty of time over jam kettles. Pattnap takes care to ensure that the organic fruit going into those batches comes from local farms whenever possible.

Flavors are mostly classic (strawberry, blackberry, and peach jam) with some more adventurous choices and fruit combinations (kiwi, quince compote, and strawberry rhubarb). The subscription is very straightforward, allowing you to sign up for a jar each month for anywhere from one month to a full year. Shipping is about $13 per month.

Best for Chunky Preserves: Lemon Bird Preserves

Lemon Bird Preserves

Key Specs
Cost: $75, $115, or $225 (shipping included)
Number of Jars: Two 6-ounce jars shipped every other month
Subscription Options: 3 months, 6 months, or 12 months

Why You Should Try It: If you like your jams bearing visible pieces of fruit, Lemon Bird Preserves will give you plenty of opportunities to spread on toast or add to a cheese board.

Pros
Creative flavors
Handmade process

Cons
All jams are pre-selected for club members
Not many jellies

Overview
It’s time for a quick lesson in fruit preserve nomenclature. Jelly is made with juice, not fruit chunks; usually, it’s transparent. Jam can be seedless or have seeds, but it’s made with crushed fruit. Preserves, on the other hand, can be made with whole fruits or fruit chunks (but are not always).

If you absolutely love having visible pieces of fruit in your preserves, Lemon Bird is for you. Its chunky preserves and jams have identifiable pieces of fruit ideal for spooning into yogurt, pairing with cheeses (their other business makes cheese boards), or just lavishing over your toast.

The fruit comes from farms near their Southern California location. Note that shipments go out every other month, meaning you don’t get a new jar each month, but two per shipment in alternating months.

Best for Small Jars: Little Black Box

Little Black Box

Key Specs
Cost: $60 plus shipping
Number of Jars: Three 4-ounce jars per month
Subscription Options: 3 months

Why You Should Try It: When you want to sample a few flavors at a time but don't want jars to overtake your fridge, Little Black Box’s manageable 4-ounce jars make it easier to polish one off so you can set into a new one guilt-free.

Pros
Fun flavor combinations
Smaller jars are easy to share and sample

Cons
3 jars a month maybe too many for some
Selections might be too adventurous for those who prefer straightforward jellies

Overview
A fixture in Jacksonville, Florida markets and shops, Little Black Box began as a one-woman baking operation that added homemade jams to its lineup after discovering the high sugar content of commercial fruit fillings for baked goods.

The selling point with this subscription is that the smaller jars allow for easier mixing and matching. Each shipment includes one bestseller and two seasonal limited editions. You’ll find flavors like banana rum lime jam, stout & cherry jam, pineapple mango pepper jelly, and raspberry whisky chipotle jam.

Final Verdict

We chose Small Batch Jam Co. as the overall winner for its ever-rotating selection of jellies, jams, marmalades, and fruit butter. If you're a fruit preserve aficionado, you'll love both their classic, straightforward flavors as well as their more eccentric options.

Guide to Choosing a Jelly of the Month Club

Ingredient Quality

Some jelly of the month clubs offer organic ingredients, while others are non-organic. You can also opt for subscriptions that use locally-grown fruits and ingredients from small farmers. Additionally, many services offer both smooth and chunky preserves to let you choose the best type for your recipes.

Variety of Flavors

Many jelly subscription services offer a variety of flavors each month, including a mix of signature recipes and limited edition preserves. Additionally, users can choose between services with traditional flavors or unique blends (like rosewater jam, Earl Grey bergamot marmalade, muscadine grape jelly, banana rum lime jam, or even pineapple mango pepper jelly).

Customization

If you want to customize the flavors in your subscription box, it's best to opt for a jelly club that allows you to choose your monthly picks. However, most services do not offer customization, as their recipes are fresh and limited (but some services without customization do allow users to input allergies to avoid these ingredients).

Quantity of Jars

Jelly subscription services offer between one and three jars per month, but single jars may be larger. For example, Piece of Love includes one 9-ounce jar per box. Other services offer two to three jars that are 4 to 6 ounces in size, and some even offer up to 20 ounces of preserves per month.

Cost

Jelly of the month clubs charge about $6 to $13 per jar on average. Since the service is billed all at once, the actual cost is between $60 and $80 for a three-month subscription from most providers.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do Jelly of the Month Clubs Use Organic Ingredients?

Some clubs offer organic ingredients, while others do not. Many producers use organic ingredients as much as possible, and some emphasize using locally grown fruit and seasonings over organic options.

Are There Low Sugar Options with Jelly of the Month Clubs?

We weren’t able to find a low-sugar, sugar-free, or no sugar added jelly of the month club. For a gift, try Blake Hill Preserves Naked Jams Gift Box, which includes three jams made with fruit and fruit juice only.

Are Seasonal Flavors Available With Jelly of the Month Clubs?

With many jelly of the month clubs, shipments reflect what’s in season at that time of year. For example, you'll receive berry preserves in the summer, apple and pear butters in the winter, or citrus marmalade. You can always contact the business directly and ask for yourself, or look at previous selections on their website.

What Do I Do With All This Jelly?

Unopened jars of preserves will keep for at least a year, and quite likely longer. If your fridge is overrun with half-eaten jars, try using them in recipes! Recipes like thumbprint cookies, marmalade pound cake, pork tenderloin with orange marmalade, gruyere, apple, and fig jam panini, and raspberry jam sweet rolls can all be adapted to other preserves. You can also explore new preserving and canning recipes.

Methodology

To find the best jelly of the month clubs, we compared top options based on their average price, variety of preserves, subscription options, customization, number of jars, and jar size. All companies in this list were chosen for their personal feel, and the best companies also offer high-quality ingredients and unique flavors.