Meal prepping when you’re juggling responsibilities is always a hassle, but it’s an even more of a hassle when you’re trying to limit trips to the supermarket. Healthy food delivery services are one work-around, if you can afford them. They can save you time on grocery shopping, plus help you develop your cooking skills and eat healthier by providing you with preselected (often chef-approved) meal kits, with the details of flavors and fixings already thought through.
Particularly for people who are going vegan or vegetarian in quarantine, healthy meal kits are a great way to help filter ingredients according to your dietary needs so you can make sure you’re still getting enough nutrients and proteins (and without worrying that you forgot that head of garlic or bunch of tomatoes at the grocery store).
Since many of them come with recipe cards, they can also help you expand your cooking repertoire and master new dishes. Or, if you’re not interested in cooking at all, there are also meal kits like Fresh and Easy, Freshly, or Snap Kitchen that send you meals precooked and ready to be heated up. And though anything involving shipping and lots of single-use containers is inherently not great for the environment, there are even some meal kits that use recycled or compostable packaging, carefully size portions to avoid food waste, and are sourcing food sustainably.
Below, we detailed all the need-to-know info about navigating the best healthy meal delivery services on the market, including special dietary options and pricing for each. Also, since delivery times and ingredient availability may be in flux due to the coronavirus, we’ve updated this story with COVID-19 statements from brands, along with any other service changes you need to know.
All products featured on SELF are independently selected by our editors. However, when you buy something through our retail links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
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Home Chef
Good for: People who love having options.
The details: Home Chef is one of the post popular meal kit delivery services out there, and it’s not hard to see why: The brand offers one of the most customizable meal kits and doesn’t just limit you to kits with fresh ingredients to cook up at home or one-pan reheatable meals. It gives you the option of choosing based on your needs and even has you narrow down your dietary preferences, whether you want to cut back on shellfish or go gluten-free. There’s an option to choose meals that are “ready in 15 minutes” if you’re truly starved for time, plus a menu for entrée-size salads or “premium” meals from the brand’s culinary collection that will make you feel like you’re eating gourmet.
Recipes are often simple, but satisfying, like hearty steak and potatoes, sesame chicken, and salmon bagels, but also extend to international items like Vietnamese pork kebabs and Cuban steak burritos. Home Chef’s memberships are also flexible, in case you change your mind or want to press pause—you can cancel an order or take a break whenever you want. All the dishes are designed to take no more than 30 minutes to put together, and easy-to-follow recipe cards will show you how to make everything. If you’re worried about the waste involved with a weekly meal kit, all of the ingredients are delivered in recyclable packaging, with more instructions on the website that tell you exactly how to dispose of them.
Special dietary options: Recipes include vegetarian and non-vegetarian options, plus you can opt out of having wheat, dairy, soy, red meat, nuts, and more in your meals.
Availability: Nationwide, excluding Alaska and Hawaii.
Customer Review: “We had our first Home Chef meal this evening. Our 20-year-old son, no chef by any stretch of the imagination, followed the instructions for shrimp. He was chopping bok choy and sprinkling spices and browning shrimp like a pro. The meals were shipped beautifully. The produce looks great. The protein was great. We could not have gotten a better meal if we had gone out to a restaurant. Since we can’t really go out to restaurants right now, what a treat to have a restaurant-quality meal at home prepared by a true amateur. And, he had fun doing it! Tomorrow, tacos, the next day, scallops, next week who knows?” —Chris
Cost: $10 per serving for dinner and $8 per serving for lunch. Shipping is free for orders over $40, and otherwise $10.
Editor’s note: Home Chef is still up and running, and meals are expected to ship out on schedule. See their statement on COVID-19 here.
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Sun Basket
Good for: The person who tried the Paleo diet and kind of loved it.
The details: If you’ve been thinking about trying out the Paleo diet, or you have a food sensitivity, you may want to sign up for Sun Basket. All the recipes it offers have been approved by registered dietitians and include a variety of vegan, vegetarian, Paleo, and gluten-free options. Sun Basket only uses antibiotic- and hormone-free meat, plus sustainably sourced, wild-caught seafood and seasonal, organic produce. The recipes, which are all developed by a James Beard Award–winning chef, take as little as 30 minutes to make and include mouthwatering options like lemongrass shrimp soup and chipotle turkey chili.
Special dietary options: Recipes include Paleo, gluten-free, vegan, vegetarian, pescatarian, and mediterranean options.
Availability: Nationwide, excluding Alaska, Hawaii, Montana, and parts of New Mexico.
Cost: Between $66 to $176 for weekly meal plans, plus $6 for delivery.
Customer Review: “Absolutely love Sun Basket. I love eating organic and their chickens which is humane-certified. It is great that they work with a nutritionist to ensure balanced meals. They have converted me from a junk food junkie to a healthy eater…my blood tests show the results. A big plus is you that you get to choose your protein. Customer service has always been great.” —Gwyn
Editor’s note: Sun Basket is still up and running, with some delays expected as the company responds to high order volumes. See the brand’s COVID-19 FAQ page here.
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Freshly
Good for: The person who doesn’t like to cook.
The details: If you love the idea of delivery meal kits but wish that they arrived precooked, Freshly is the service for you. Freshly works with chefs to refine its menus, which include more than 30 nutritious meals per week that are ready to reheat in three minutes. It does all the preparing, cooking, and delivering for you, so all you have to do is warm it up and set the table. Every recipe is free of refined sugar and gluten, and Freshly has lots of options that could easily work for someone on a Paleo or Whole30 diet, like spaghetti squash and meatballs or slow-cooked pork with sautéed kale. It’s kind of like ordering takeout, except the recipes are guaranteed to be satisfying and good for you. And you can plan your meals up to three weeks ahead of time, so you can do all your “meal prep” at the beginning of the month and totally forget about it.
Special dietary options: All of the recipes are 100% gluten-free, and many of them are Paleo- and Whole30-approved.
Availability: Nationwide, excluding Alaska and Hawaii.
Cost: Between $50 to $108 per week, including shipping.
Customer Review: “With Freshly, I don’t have to think about what I’m going to eat for lunch each day and feel good knowing that I’m eating a healthy meal. I love the convenience!” —Cindi
Editor’s note: Freshly is still up and running, and meals are expected to ship out on schedule. For COVID-19 relief, Freshly has also teamed up with Nestlé to donate $500,000 to Meals on Wheels America.