Ever wondered if the meal kits are worth the cost? Many of us have tried out the meal kit trend at this point. Who could blame us with those glitzy mailings and alluring offers of $50 off your first order or 40% off the first month? Some of the offerings we receive in the mail are beautifully presented, with as much card stock as a fancy wedding invitation!
And we understand the attraction to meal kits and having everything you need for dinner delivered to your door in a box. After all, getting dinner on the table night after night is one of those universal challenges we all face. So many of us are looking for ways to make this daily task less stressful and time consuming. When meal kits first came on the scene, they were hugely popular, and the prospect of having your weekly dinners delivered to your door in a box was just so enticing.
But are the meal kits worth the cost?
We understand many people love meal kits for many good reasons. They are helpful in many ways. And if they help you get a healthy home-cooked dinner on the table, then that is a great thing. Cooking at home is one of the best things you can do for your health, so we will always be proponents of a solution that makes this happen consistently.
If you have never signed up for a trial or have wondered if the meal kits are worth it, let’s explore the pros and cons. We tested two of the leading companies and have outlined below what we liked and what we didn’t.
Our Test of the Meal Kits:
To determine if the meal kits were worth the cost, we tested two leading meal kit companies to get a real sense of how this works for a busy family. Even with The Dinner Daily at my fingertips, I still struggle some nights with getting dinner on the table, and things don’t always go as planned. So, we considered our family a good representation of people who need help with dinner and dinner planning.
We also know there are multiple varieties of meal kits today, and your favorite might have other advantages or disadvantages to our test. We selected two of the most popular brands and based our testing on these two offerings.
Lastly, although we wanted to experience the whole process in detail, from signing up to putting the meal on the table, we primarily focused on three key things: convenience, food quality, and whether they were worth the cost.
Here’s what we found:
The Upside of Meal Kits:
On the one hand, meal kits offer a variety of benefits. We did enjoy many of the most popular convenience factors, such as:
- Ingredients for that night’s dinner delivered to our front door felt like a luxury. If you live in an area where getting to the grocery store is challenging, this could be a massive convenience.
- Having pre-portioned ingredients for everything you need, down to the oils and spices, eliminating the need to measure things out in advance. It also ensured you weren’t missing an ingredient.
- It nicely removed the question, “What’s for dinner?”
- The kits can also introduce you to new recipes and ingredients you might not try on your own, broadening your cooking experience. I cook all the time and have been involved in creating hundreds of recipes for The Dinner Daily members, but I see why this would benefit many.
- The dinner tasted great and was enjoyed by everyone at the table.
No doubt the meal kits offer convenience. Cooking at home consistently is so important, and anything that makes that happen for you regularly should be embraced. However, is there a better way to do this?
Let’s explore the things we didn’t like so much.
The Downside to Meal Kits:
In our testing of two of the leading meal kit companies, here are some of our findings:
- Although we did enjoy the convenience of the “dinner in the box at the door,” I could not get past the high cost relative to the ingredients. In our test, we paid $40 for 4 Sloppy Joe Sandwiches on white sub rolls with a simple cabbage salad. We estimate the total cost of those ingredients at the store would be about $12. If the meat was on special, it most likely would be under $10. The ingredients were basic and not expensive if bought at the store, but they came at quite the markup in the kit.
- The largest family size offered at both companies we tested was four servings. We have a family of five which meant we had to buy additional ingredients, somewhat killing the convenience factor.
- The packaging…oh my! All those itty bitty packages that need to be unwrapped made me feel frustrated, slowed down the cooking process, and left me with a whole bunch of waste. As mentioned above, it did save me the step of measuring things out, but I felt like that benefit was taken away by all the opening and unwrapping.
- We still had to cook and clean up afterwards, even though we spent $40 on the meal. If we are making a decision to spend that much on a very simple dinner, I really don’t want to prep it and be cleaning up after, beyond walking a few takeout containers to the recycling bin.
- There were no leftovers for lunch or another meal. Also, unlike shopping for dinners at your grocery store, there were no extra ingredients that could be repurposed for another meal. You get exactly what you need for that dinner, nothing extra.
- For instance, if you need 2 carrots for a recipe, you typically buy the whole bag and have the rest to use in another meal. Same for many other common ingredients such as shredded cheese, packaged veggies or salad ingredients. When we shop for meals at our grocery store, we are typically buying more than the exact amount needed for that recipe. What you get with the meal kits is just enough for the dinner, and in our case, not even enough for a family of five.
- We felt compelled to cook all the meals right away due to spoilage concerns, and that wasn’t necessarily what we wanted to do. What if you can’t use the entire box of meals before expiration? The waste and cost just grows even more.
- I still needed to go to the grocery store for all the other items we need. It didn’t save me a trip to the grocery store, but it did mean I did not need to plan as many meals for dinner.
- You do not have control over the ingredients, or know where they were sourced. This was a big one for me…I like to pick my own food even if it takes a bit more time.
Cost Comparison of Meal Kits vs Groceries at Your Store:
When deciding whether meal kits are worth the cost, we compared the cost of using a leading meal kit service versus buying ingredients from your local grocery store. We started by looking at the average undiscounted cost of the meal kits per meal per person, and the average cost of preparing one of our typical dinner recipes, which often includes sale items from local stores. Keep in mind these are estimates and your favorite meal kit or grocery store spending might be different.
From the chart below, you’ll notice that if you opt for a meal kit service for dinner five nights a week at an average cost of $10 per meal per person, your annual expenditure would be approximately $13,000.
On the other hand, if you choose to shop at your local grocery store and take advantage of weekly specials, the average cost drops to about $4.20 per person per dinner. This approach not only saves money but also often results in leftovers for lunch or extra ingredients for future meals, maximizing your grocery budget.
The savings add up to a substantial $7,450 annually! Now you may say “well I would never solve dinner with a meal kit 5 nights a week.” That is a fair point. This comparison is designed to illustrate the potential savings when grocery shopping is your go-to method for daily meals. While everyone’s costs will differ, the real takeaway here is it will cost you far less to solve dinner by shopping your store, especially if you make use of the sales flyer.
Our Conclusion on if the Meal Kits Are Worth the Cost:
Our view comes down to this: they can be a great solution depending on your situation and budget.
- If you live in a city or urban setting, having the box of meals delivered to your door can be a big convenience.
- They may bring some excitement into your kitchen that comes with trying something new. It might even get the kids interested enough to help cook. Having a package at the door with new ingredients might be a fun family activity.
However,
- If you are cost conscious, or care about spending your money in the smartest way possible, the kits are likely not the best solution. You will spend more.
- If you are concerned about all the excess packaging and resulting waste…well that might not be for you either. There is no way around the fact that the kits will bulk up your recycling bin pretty quickly.
Ultimately, whether meal kits are worth the cost depends on your preferences, priorities, and budget.
From a cost standpoint, we believe shopping your grocery store is the way to go. Food is expensive enough and although the convenience is tempting, we couldn’t justify what we paid for the actual food in the box vs what we knew it would cost in the grocery store up the road. We also like to select our food at the store and know where it comes from.
Another option is a hybrid approach. The kits can be a great add-on to your weekly routine-it doesn’t have to be all or nothing. Some of our longest term members have told us they like to add in a meal kit here and there for fun, even while they still use The Dinner Daily for their day in and day out dinner routine.
And one final and important point: meal kits also don’t address the bigger issue here: learning to make meal planning, shopping your grocery store, and cooking at home a regular part of your life. It really is the way to eat healthy on a consistent basis, lower your food costs at the same time, and demonstrate good money habits to your kids. It all starts with having a plan, and a plan that works for your family.
The more sustainable, long-term solution may not involve having your dinners delivered in a box, but rather embracing the practice of planning your meals, cooking from scratch, and saving money in the process.
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