The 6 cheapest meal delivery services – CNET [CNET]

You gotta eat, as they say, and if you want a homecooked meal, well, then you’ve gotta cook too. Meal planning and grocery shopping can be enjoyable when you’ve got the time and inspiration. When you don’t, an affordable meal kit can swoop in to help blunt the burden. You’ve probably heard about meal kits such as Blue Apron, Green Chef and HelloFresh by now, but what you may not know is there’s a growing pack of cheap meal kits to help you feed yourself and the crew for as little as $5 per serving. Not only will an affordable meal kit subscription save you time and energy in the kitchen, but it can help you eat healthier since many of them offer nutritious, veggie-packed dinner recipes you can have on the table in no more than 20 minutes. 

Meal kits — from the budget-friendly to the pricier outfits — also add some fun to dinner mostly by eliminating the not-so-fun parts: grocery shopping, prepping and, for some, deciding what to make. Meal kit services are ultra convenient too, especially during these days when having the essentials delivered just makes life simpler. 

So, now that you’ve decided to skip the grocery store and take the meal kit plunge, it’s time to narrow down which meal delivery company is right for you. There are a lot out there, each with its own niche menu and recipes. For example, if you’re an experienced home cook looking for meal kits to help diversify your monthly recipe rotation, you might want to opt for one of the more sophisticated operations like Sun Basket or Martha & Marley Spoon. 

However, if the price is your main concern, there are cheap meal kits with easy recipes starting at as little as five bucks a serving — even less if you snag a sign-up offer. Dinnerly and EveryPlate, both of which clock in at $5 a serving, are the most budget-friendly meal delivery outfits. But there are also midrange options such as HelloFresh and Home Chef. The latter two may cost a few bucks more per serving but they allow for more customization and have more recipes to choose from each week, so if you have specific dietary needs or are just a picky eater, they afford you more flexibility in your meal choice. Most of these services also offer vegetarian kits or customization for those who don’t eat meat. We’ll also note that there are meal kits out there that cater to a specialized diet, such as keto, paleo, low calorie, gluten-free and more.

No matter your budget, there are affordable meal kit delivery services to make cooking for you or the family as easy as ever. We even tested all the cheapest meal kits operations and prepared meal services on this all to help you decide which one is best for your budget, tastes and schedule.

So, for the absolute cheapest meal delivery services available in 2021, keep reading for our top meal plan picks.

Read more: Best meal kits for vegetarians and vegans in 2021