Shopping·11 min read

Our Fave Meal Plans for Every Type of Eater

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Design: theSkimm | Photo: Blue Apron
August 9, 2023

This post was originally published in January 2023 and has been updated.

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Looking up recipes, doing a weekly grocery haul, portioning out ingredients, and then actually cooking most of your weekly meals requires some time and patience. Let’s be real — it’s much easier to hit ‘order’ on a food-delivery app. We’re here to help you find the middle ground and break down the rather overwhelming world of meal kits and plans. To help you eat smarter, we looked at a variety of them: ones that offer vegetarian meal kits, vegan meal kits, meat-based options, plans for kids, dessert deliveries, and more. Here are our faves.

Plans for Meat-Eaters:

Everyplate Meal plan
Everyplate

Everyplate

Have trouble brainstorming new recipes to cook? Then Everyplate is for you. Each week you’ll get 18 delicious and affordable recipes to choose from. Once your selection is finalized, everything is delivered to your door. Each meal can be made in under 45 minutes and won’t call for a grocery run. To help you through prepping and cooking, each recipe has just six simple steps to follow. Dishes range from garlic rosemary chicken to Italian pork sausage gnocchi bake. Yum. (Plans start at $44.94/ box, Everyplate)

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Meal kit
Gobble

Gobble

We love a home-cooked meal. The prep work? Not so much. This meal kit from Gobble sends you freshly sourced, restaurant-quality ingredients that are already portioned, prepped, and chopped for the meal — and it'll all come together in 15 minutes or less. All you have to do is pick your weekly meal plan, unbox, and follow the recipe. Simple. Gobble offers options that suit a range of dietary preferences and restrictions, including vegetarian, dairy-, and gluten-free. Psst... first-time customers get six meals for only $36. Sounds like a deal. ($67.96+, Gobble)

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Thistle Meal Plan
Thistle

Thistle

These nutritionally designed meals are packed with superfoods. Each week a new menu is crafted, and everything is both gluten- and dairy-free. Choose from dishes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, including juices, snacks, and wellness shots. You can keep meals strictly plant-based or add meat. As a heads-up: Right now Thistle only covers California, parts of Arizona, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Washington. A Skimm HQ’r tried it and found the meals to be very inventive and packed with a variety of veggies and nutrients. When it comes to sustainability, Thistle works hard to reduce their energy, water, and waste footprints across their supply chain. They donate the byproducts of their pressed juices and meals to local farmers for composting. (Plans start at $11.50/meal, Thistle)

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Blue Apron
Blue Apron

Blue Apron

Probably the most popular meal plan on this list, Blue Apron meal kits include always-fresh ingredients, along with step-by-step instructions, so you can learn new skills and experience new flavors. What’s great is that all the ingredients are perfectly portioned, so you won’t have to think about food waste or portion control. Everything comes from farms, importers, and family-run purveyors. There’s also a special focus on protein, with seafood and sustainably sourced red meat (no antibiotics or hormones either). You can sub in Beyond Meat for regular meat dishes, choose from diabetes-friendly options, and there’s a handy market section where you can shop wine and kitchen tools. (Plans start at $7.99/serving, Blue Apron)

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Hello Fresh
Hello Fresh

HelloFresh

Another hugely popular option, HelloFresh is all about taking the stress out of mealtime. It’s got a big focus on protein, whether that be from fish, meat, or plants. And it’s pretty low-commitment, so you can easily skip weeks or cancel. It works much like Blue Apron in the sense that ingredients come to you with easy-to-follow instructions. Nutritional info is clearly provided, ingredients are preportioned, and 25 new recipes designed by chefs and nutritionists are created each week. The plans are pretty diverse: You can choose from low-carb and low-calorie options, go veggie-focused, or select family-friendly if you’re looking to feed kids. Meal options are also labeled as “easy cleanup” and “easy prep” to help you save time in the kitchen. (Plans start at $60.95/ box, HelloFresh)

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Vegan and Vegetarian Meal Kits:

meal plan
Veestro

Veestro

These plant-based meals are frozen, so they don’t require any cooking. It’s a great option for people who don’t have time to prep or who want to take something to the office that they can quickly microwave. There are more than 50 meals to select from, which are all super tasty (we tried them). If you don’t want to eat them right away, just keep them in your freezer till you’re ready to heat up. Some of our favorites include the soba noodles, enchilada casserole, and mushroom stroganoff. Everything is made with organic ingredients and is gluten-free and non-GMO. (Plans start at $14.99+/meal, Veestro)

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Mosaic Meal plan
Mosaic

Mosaic

Using whole fruits and veggies, this meal plan ships frozen, microwave-ready dinners straight to you. Meals are plant-centric and handmade by expert chefs, with ingredients sourced from farms and distributors around New York’s Hudson Valley. Aka no artificial ingredients or preservatives are used. For every box that’s sold, Mosaic works with the nonprofit City Harvest to reallocate 2 pounds of nutritious food to New Yorkers in need. One Skimm HQ’r highly recs this meal plan, also noting that 100% of their packaging is either curbside recyclable or made with post-consumer recycled fiber. They even have a full guide on how to correctly dispose of every component. Eat good, do good. (Plans start at $5.99+/meal, Mosaic)

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Sprinly meal plan
Sprinly

Sprinly

This meal plan is focused on fresh dishes that are 100% vegan and plant-based. You’ll have to heat them once they arrive (max five minutes), but everything is cooked to be eaten the same week it gets delivered. All meals are free of refined sugar, artificial preservatives, and gluten. If you need to skip a week, there’s no fee associated. Some of our personal faves are the veggie tikka masala and the bean-packed marinara with gluten-free pasta. One thing to note: We love how each meal was clearly labeled with nutritional info. The dishes are high in protein and low in sodium, which means you can add additional salt to your liking. For those who are calorie-conscious, this is a great meal plan to help you keep track of intake. (Plans start at $109+/week, Sprinly)

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Purple Carrot Meal plan
Purple Carrot

Purple Carrot

One Skimm HQ’r has been using this 100% vegan meal-kit plan for over a year and has yet to get bored of the recipes. She repeats some of her favorite meals, but says there is more than enough variety each week to keep trying new things. If you’re in a time crunch, there are “quick and easy”-labeled options for meals that take less time to prep. There are also soy-free, nut-free, gluten-free, and high-protein options, along with dishes that come in at under 600 calories. (Plans start at $79.50+/week, Purple Carrot)

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splendid-spoon
Splendid Spoon

Splendid Spoon

This plant-based meal plan features soups, smoothies, grain bowls, and noodles, all made with whole ingredients. If you’re looking to cut down on processed foods, this is a great place to start. The meals are preportioned, can easily be stashed in the fridge or freezer, and require zero prep. Yes, you read that right. Plus, we love that we can still satisfy our cravings with options like vegan meatballs with marinara sauce and a strawberry-chocolate smoothie. Our mouths are watering. (Plans start at $9.02+/meal, Splendid Spoon)

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Keto and Paleo Meal Plans:

Fresh n’ Lean meal plan
Fresh n’ Lean

Fresh N Lean

There’s a ton of flexibility with Fresh N Lean: You can select up to three meals per day or individually pick dishes you like. Based on your preferences, you can choose to go protein-heavy, low-carb, keto, paleo, or vegan. You can easily note allergies, add additional snacks, or bulk-order sides. If you need to exclude ingredients from meals for dietary reasons, your portions won’t be smaller. Meals arrive fresh so you can pop them in the fridge or heat them in the microwave. All of the containers are BPA-free and the packaging is recyclable. (Plans start at $10.82+/meal, Fresh N Lean)

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Territory meal plan
Territory

Territory

What’s great about Territory’s meal plan is that you can really personalize it to your needs. The meals are already gluten-free, dairy-free, and without refined sugars, but you can tailor them to your lifestyle — like if you eat a paleo diet. Each dish is sorted by ingredient and macronutrient range, so you can get a bit picky if you have specific wellness goals. To get everything made, dietitians partner with local, independent chefs, small businesses, and restaurants to deliver you the best meals possible. We’ve tried this meal plan and found it to be very tasty, with full nutritional info provided. Meals are quick to heat and portions are more than enough to keep us feeling satisfied. (Pricing depends on location, Territory)

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Plans for Kids:

Little Spoon meal plan
Little Spoon

Little Spoon

With tons of different options available, LIttle Spoon sends baby food, toddler-appropriate, and big-kid meals right to your door. You can even add clinically researched vitamins, probiotics, and all-natural remedies to your selected meals. Little Spoon focuses on providing your kids with nutritious foods at a low cost. The new line of toddler and kids meals starts at just $5 per meal. You begin by picking your plan, then choosing which dishes your kids would like most. There’s a rotating menu, so your little one will never get bored. (Plans start at $2.96+/blend and $5.83+/meal, Little Spoon)

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If You Need Groceries:

Hive meal plan
Hive

Sustainable online grocery shopping that doesn't require a subscription…

Hive makes it easy to order your favorite products, from pantry items to snacks to things for your pet. Everything is held to a high standard, otherwise known as the Hive Five: ingredient integrity, recyclable packaging, low carbon footprint, committed to social good, and rave-worthy. Foods have been tested, and tastiness is measured. Every shipment is carbon neutral, and 99% of the box is recyclable, compostable, or TerraCycle-able. (Prices vary by shipment, Hive)

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If You Want Dessert:

Deux meal plan
Deux

Delicious vegan cookie dough you can eat out of the jar…

Or bake into cookies — the choice is yours. Deux is a woman-founded company and uses ingredients you can actually pronounce in its products. Like peanut butter, organic maple syrup, water, and organic coconut sugar. And since there are no raw eggs, you can scoop it from the jar. Your sweet tooth is screaming. ($48/6-pack)

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Levain cookies
Levain Bakery

A bundle of the famous Levain cookies you’ve been wanting to try…

Introducing the chunkiest, gooiest, and (arguably) best cookies of all time. Based in New York City, this women-owned bakery creates one-of-a-kind cookies and breads. This pack ships nationwide and comes with chocolate chip walnut, dark chocolate chocolate chip, dark chocolate peanut butter, and oatmeal raisin. The cookies can also be found in the freezer section of Whole Foods Market stores. The biggest problem will be whether or not to share them. ($29+/4 pack, Levain Bakery)

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If You Wanna Give the Gift of Food:

Goldbelly Meal plan
Goldbelly

Easy-to-ship treats that highlight regional eats…

Maybe you want to send someone New York bagels; maybe you want to give the gift of San Francisco sourdough. Whatever it is — Goldbelly has you covered. You can explore by region or browse gifts from top chefs. You can also go the route of a one-time delivery, or choose to do a subscription. We highly rec this babka from Breads Bakery or this deep-dish pizza from My Pi Pizza. Best gift-giver award, coming right up. (Prices vary, Goldbelly)

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