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Simply Recipes / Designed by Amelia Manley
Meal kits take the hassle out of meal planning and grocery shopping, but the best prepared meal delivery services take convenience even further by fully cooking the meals for you. With one of these services, you’ll always be just a few minutes (of reheating) away from a delicious meal—no chopping or sauteing required.
With so many out there, finding the best prepared meal delivery service is all about knowing what’s most important to you. Is it affordability, dietary restrictions, or the variety of meals that matter to you most? Whatever your preferences, there’s bound to be a meal delivery service for you among our best options.
Best Prepared Meal Delivery Services of 2023
- Best Overall: CookUnity
- Best Value: Fresh N' Lean
- Best for Vegan: Veestro
- Best for Keto: Factor
- Best for Paleo: Pete's Real Food
- Best for Fitness: Trifecta
- Best for Health Conditions: BistroMD
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Best Overall: CookUnity
Key Specs
Starting Price: $11.09
Delivery Area: 45 states
Products Arrive: FreshWhy You Should Try It
CookUnity accommodates a variety of dietary needs, all while offering up delicious, chef-created selections, making it our top pick for overall best meal delivery service.
Pros
Caters to a variety of diets
Easy to filter searches
Restaurant-quality meals
Cons
Limited delivery area
Overview
CookUnity’s menus offer up diverse, delicious, chef-driven selections that you might find in restaurants, but instead get delivered straight to your door. The company offers a variety of dietary accommodations, including vegan, vegetarian, low carb, keto, paleo, whole30, gluten-free, less than 600 calories, and dairy-free. The dietary needs that CookUnity accommodates are very easy to find and filter: Across the top of the weekly menu page, there are icons for each that allow you to view only those meals, whether you’re looking for vegan items, calorie-limited items, or simply dairy-free options.
Pricing and Plans
Customers can purchase either four, six, eight, 12, or 16 meals per week. At the largest number of meals per week, each meal is $11.09, and at the opposite end of the spectrum, four meals per week will cost you $13.59 each.
16 meals a week: $11.09 per meal
12 meals a week: $11.19 per meal
8 meals a week: $11.69 per meal
6 meals a week: $12.29 per meal
4 meals a week: $13.59 per meal
Meals We Tried
Coconut lime hanger steak
Carnitas street tacos
Butternut squash ravioli
Chili roasted shrimp
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Best Value: Fresh N Lean
Fresh N' Lean
Key Specs
Starting Price: $8.49 per serving
Delivery Area: 50 states
Products Arrive: Fresh
Why You Should Try It
Fresh N Lean offers delicious, sustainably sourced, and fully prepared meals at a budget-friendly price.Pros
Lots of options for special diets
Organically sourced ingredients, sustainable practices
Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack options
Cons
Most meals are pre-selectedOverview
Fresh N Lean delivers fresh, organically sourced meals that are ready to be enjoyed in three minutes. Each delicious chef-cooked dish is full of macronutrients, balanced calories, and protein. In addition to dinner options, you can add on breakfast, lunch, snacks, and even bulk items, and it starts at an affordable $8.49 per serving.Fresh N Lean accommodates the most popular dietary needs with eight meal plans: Protein+, Keto, Paleo, Vegan, Low Carb Vegan, Whole30 Approved, Mediterranean, and Bulk, along with an A La Carte option. Not to mention, these meals are entirely gluten-free. Once you subscribe to a meal plan, you’ll choose the number of meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner) and the number of days (five or seven). Although you can’t select your exact meals, Fresh N Lean will send a variety of delicious and fully prepared dishes that change week to week based on your preselected preferences.
Pricing and Plans
Vegan Standard: starts at $8.49 per serving
Vegan Low Carb: starts at $9.99 per serving
Protein+: starts at $10.32 per serving
Keto: starts at $10.66 per serving
Paleo: starts at $10.66 per serving
Whole30 Approved: starts at $10.66 per serving
Mediterranean Diet: starts at $10.32 per serving
Meals We Tried
Grilled shrimp with caper dill aioli and roasted winter squash
Moroccan mint grass-fed steak with spiced cauliflower and brown rice
Tikka chicken with turmeric-roasted cauliflower and quinoa
BBQ turkey meatballs with white beans
Cajun salmon with Yukon potato and tomato rice
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Best for Vegan: Veestro
Veestro
Key Specs
Starting Price: Varies; see website for details
Delivery Area: 48 states
Products Arrive: FreshWhy You Should Try It
With over 50 fully prepared, entirely plant-based, and organic meals, Veestro makes it easy to be vegan.Pros
100 percent vegan
50+ options
Organic, non-GMO ingredients
Breakfast, lunch, and dinner
Cons
10-meal minimum
The menu doesn’t rotateOverview
Veestro is a plant-based prepared meal delivery service that uses preservative-free, organic ingredients. Its chef-designed meals are delivered frozen and ready to heat, eat, and enjoy. There are two plans to choose from: The A La Carte plan allows you to select 10, 20, or 30 meals to receive either as a subscription or a one-time purchase, while the Weight Loss plan has you choose three meals per day for either five or seven days each week. Both plans allow you to filter by the following dietary preferences: Gluten-Free, High Protein, Low Calorie, Soy Free, Nut Free, and Kosher.
Pricing and Plans
Veestro's meal prices depend on the zip code you live in. However, the average cost is about $13 per serving, according to customer service. All deliveries have a flat rate of $12.95 for shipping.Meals We Tried
Lentil meatloaf
Kale and quinoa salad
Fajitas
Farro ragout
Quinoa risotto
Mushroom Stroganoff
Chick’n quesadilla
Enchilada casserole
Soba noodles in peanut sauce
Red curry with tofu
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Best for Keto: Factor
Factor
Simple Tip!
Offer: Enjoy a total of $120 OFF throughout your first 5 boxes using the code SIMPLY120OFF
Key Specs
Starting Price: $11 per serving
Delivery Area: 48 states
Products Arrive: Fresh
Why You Should Try It
Factor offers fully prepared, keto-compliant meals that are chef-crafted and designed by dieticians, plus access to nutrition coaching.Pros
20+ dietician-created options per week
Free of gluten, hormones, and more
Several a la carte options
Has a mobile app
Cons
Not many options for vegetarian, vegan, or paleo
Not suitable for severe food allergies
ExpensiveOverview
Factor uses fresh ingredients for its fully prepared refrigerated meals that are all free of gluten, hormones, antibiotics, refined sugars, and GMOs. The recipes are both chef-crafted and designed by dieticians. In addition to meal subscriptions, Factor offers nutrition coaching packages as well.When signing up, you have the option to choose the number of meals you’d like per week: four, six, eight, 10, 12, or 18. Then, select your meals from a list of more than 20 options. Though there are no separate meal plans, you can filter the options by Keto, Paleo, Low Calorie, Vegan, Vegetarian, Dairy-Free, and other keywords.
Braised Pork Ragu with Parmesan Risotto, Salmon with Roasted Mango Salsa, and Southwest Turkey Chili are just a few of the options you can expect. Plus, there are breakfast options like blueberry pancakes with sausage, desserts like pistachio and raspberry cheesecake, as well as shakes, broth, and other a la carte items. All Factor meals can be heated in the microwave or oven in minutes, according to the meal-specific instructions on the package.
Pricing and Plans
4 meals per week: $15 per serving
6 meals per week: $12.83 per serving
8 meals per week: $12.38 per serving
12 meals per week: $11.50 per serving
18 meals per week: $11 per servingMeals We Tried
Mango salsa salmon with coconut rice and black beans
Creamy parmesan chicken with broccoli and tomatoes
Vegetable ratatouille with mascarpone polenta (vegetarian)
Smoked tofu almond stir-fry with edamame succotash (vegan)Continue to 5 of 7 below. -
Best for Paleo: Pete’s Real Food
Pete's Real Food
Key Specs
Starting Price: $15.60
Delivery Area: 50 states
Products Arrive: FreshWhy You Should Try It
For a meal delivery service specializing in paleo-friendly meals that arrive fresh and ready to heat, look no further than Pete’s Real Food.
Pros
Specializes in paleo cuisine
Meal arrive fresh
Sustainably sourced animal proteins
Cons
Expensive cost per serving
No free shipping
Overview
Pete’s Real Food is a meal delivery service specializing in paleo meals made from seasonal, locally sourced ingredients and sustainably sourced animal proteins. Customers can order lunch and dinner entrées from a menu that changes every week and can even add on breakfast items for an additional cost. Since Pete’s Real Food was founded by a professionally trained chef, the meals taste wonderfully gourmet. Plus, they are ready to eat in a matter of minutes. Meal bundles arrive fresh and can be stored in your refrigerator, while a la carte options need to be stored in your freezer.Pricing and Plans
Shoppers can order Pete’s Real Food meal bundles and a la carte entrees on a subscription basis or by submitting a one-time purchase. Customers can purchase between five and 10 single-serving meals each week, and you can also add on extra proteins or sides to your order. A sample meal order (dinners only) is priced at:5 meals (dinner): $99.62
7 meals (dinner) $137.20
10 meals (dinner): $192.80Meals We Tried
Grilled chicken with sautéed cabbage and green goddess potato salad
Chicken chili with oven-roasted tomatoes and spaghetti squash
Beef stroganoff over sweet potato noodles
Chicken meatballs with cauliflower mash and sweet potato fries
Turkey burgers with lemon garlic asparagus and roasted purple potato wedges
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Best for Fitness: Trifecta
Trifecta Nutrition
Key Specs
Starting Price: $11.49 per serving
Delivery Area: 50 states
Products Arrive: Fresh
Why We Chose It
Trifecta specializes in macro-balanced, organic meals that are designed to support your weight loss and muscle-building goals.Pros
Options for keto, paleo, vegan, and vegetarian
Uses many organic and sustainably sourced ingredients
Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are available
Cons
Most meals are pre-selected
ExpensiveOverview
With its nutrition-trained chefs, Trifecta caters to many dietary preferences with delicious, fully prepared, macro-balanced meals that optimize performance. While not all ingredients are organic, the company sources as many high-quality organic ingredients as possible, and sources its food from environmentally sustainable farms and fisheries.Trifecta offers several meal plans to fit your lifestyle: Clean, Paleo, Keto, Vegan, and Vegetarian. Select one, then choose the number of meals per day—breakfast, lunch, dinner, and/or a third entree—and the number of days per week (five or seven). These meal plans are all chef’s choice, which means that rather than choosing each meal yourself, a variety will be selected for you based on your preferences. In addition to these meal plans, Trifecta also offers Classic Meals that you can choose from individually and Meal Prep items that you can buy to assemble your own dishes.
Pricing and Plans
Choose how many meals per day you'd like (breakfast, lunch, dinner, and third entrée) and the number of days you want to prepare them (five or seven days). Sample pricing for the Whole30-approved plan is as follows:Lunch and dinner 5 days per week: $157.99 per week
Lunch and dinner 7 days per week: $219.99 per week
Breakfast, lunch, and dinner 5 days per week: $229.99 per week
Breakfast, lunch, and dinner 7 days per week: $310.99 per weekMeals We Tried
Kung pao grilled chicken with broccoli and roasted sweet potato
Beef skillet with roasted sweet potato and marinated cabbage
Herb-roasted cod with walnut basil pesto and vegetables
Slow-cooked rosemary thyme beef with root vegetables
Salmon Mexican bowl with tomato salsa and vegetables
Ginger shrimp with herb-marinated sweet potato
Cajun chicken andouille sausage and roasted vegetables
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Best for Health Conditions: BistroMD
BistroMD
Key Specs
Starting Price: $8.24
Delivery Area: 48 states
Products Arrive: FrozenWhy You Should Try It
BistroMD provides healthy and delicious meals suited for a variety of health conditions.Pros
Specific diabetic program designed by a doctor
150+ rotating diabetic meals
Dietician consultation included
Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks
Cons
Small portions
Cannot accommodate some restrictive dietsOverview
BistroMD is a doctor-designed meal delivery service that sends fully prepared, nutritionally balanced, and frozen meals meant to support a variety of medically necessary diets.Once you’ve chosen a dietary protocol, you can select your plan: either the full program (including breakfast, lunch, and dinner) for five or seven days or the lunch and dinner program for five or seven days. While the menu of entrees doesn’t rotate weekly, there are more than 150 options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner to choose from.
Pricing and Plans
BistroMD offers the following programs: Signature, Keto Flex, Heart Healthy, Diabetic, Gluten-Free, and Menopause. A sample Signature plan costs as follows:5 days of lunch and dinner: starting at $164.85
7 days of lunch and dinner: starting at $141.65Ordering snacks requires signing up for BistroMD's EATS program, which includes two to three snacks per day for a cost of $3 to $4.50 per day. BistroMD delivers to the continental U.S. and charges $19.95 for shipping.
Meals We Tried
Chicken, rice, and cheddar casserole
Salmon with dill mustard sauce
Turkey breaks with cranberry apple chutney
Oven-fried catfish with spicy tomato leek sauce
Baked pasta marinara with chicken sausage
Meatloaf with honey bourbon glaze
Mojo pork with black beans and rice
Chicken pad thai
Grilled salmon with creamy pesto
Lasagna with garden marinara
Final Verdict
With the hard work of planning, shopping, and cooking taken care of, all you have to do is decide what kind of meal you’d like to heat up. If affordability is key, Fresh N Lean is the way to go. If you're vegan, Veestro caters specifically to you. For those with a health condition that requires a medically-necessary diet, bistroMD could be a great choice. And we recommend CookUnity as our top pick because it offers the widest range of options for a variety of diets and delivers restaurant-quality meals at a reasonable price.
How Do Prepared Meal Delivery Services Work?
A prepared meal delivery service delivers premade meals to your door based on your preferences. While these services are typically subscriptions that deliver on a regular basis, some companies offer the option of one-time purchases as well.
Are Prepared Meal Delivery Services Cheaper Than Buying Groceries?
Meal delivery services may not be as cost-effective as grocery shopping yourself. That said, if you’re not interested in cooking, they’re typically less expensive—and usually healthier—than ordering take-out. Not to mention, prepared meal delivery services save you travel-related expenses and, arguably, your most precious resource: time.
Who Should Use a Prepared Meal Delivery Service?
Prepared meal delivery services are a great option for anyone looking for help to put food on the table at least a few times a week. They allow you to maintain an active role in what's going into your meals without the hands-on responsibility and time commitment of pulling it all together.
Are Prepared Meal Delivery Services Healthy?
Because “health” may mean a different thing from one person to the next, determining whether a prepared meal delivery service is healthy depends on your particular needs. That said, prepared meal delivery services cater to many preferences, including low carb, low calorie, high protein, dairy-free, vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, diabetic-friendly, keto, paleo, and other special diets.
Methodology
Our testers ordered from, cooked, and rated 40 different meal delivery services. To choose the best prepared meal delivery services, we identified those that have been around long enough to establish a solid reputation with services available across the nation. It was also important to include services that are transparent about their meals, subscription details, and customer service accessibility.