Are you unsure what to make for dinner for the thousandth time? Don’t worry, we’ve all been there. Using a meal kit delivery service can save an incredible amount of time on recipe planning, grocery shopping for fresh ingredients, and meal preparation. But, with so many choices out there, the main challenge is knowing where to start. Hello Fresh, Home Chef, Blue Apron, or Dinnerly, are just a few great examples – this is where the Meal Kit Review comes in handy!
We provide in-depth reviews and detailed meal kit company comparisons, so you will have all the information at hand to decide which is the best service for you. This comparison will look at two entirely different companies: Hello Fresh and Dinnerly.
Hello Fresh first started out as a meal kit service in Germany, eventually extending its reach throughout Europe and beyond. Today, it may be the most well-known meal kit brand in the U.S. On the other hand, Dinnerly is a little newer on the scene and very price-focused – offering meals at less than $5 per serving.
Let’s dive into the full comparison and help you decide which service is best for your meal kit needs:
We understand meal plan offerings change year over year, so it’s important to us to provide up-to-date information and reviews to provide the most comprehensive details to help you decide which meal plan is the best fit for you and your dietary needs/wants. We hands-on review all boxes, with the most recent review taking place in 2024 over the span of two weeks.
What Is Hello Fresh?
Known as America’s most popular meal kit company, Hello Fresh provides customers with pre-portioned ingredients and easy-to-follow step-by-step recipes. Hello Fresh uses a desktop and mobile app to help customers pick out their recipes for the week, providing hundreds of choices based on personal preferences and seasonality. One of the biggest benefits of using Hello Fresh is cutting down on food waste and giving you more time to focus on other tasks rather than figuring out what to make for dinner and shopping for groceries.
What Is Dinnerly?
Like Hello Fresh, Dinnerly is a meal kit service that provides its customers with pre-measured ingredients and step-by-step recipe instructions. Dinnerly has been operating since 2017 and is owned by its parent company Marley Spoon, a meal kit service focused on farm-fresh ingredients and chef-inspired recipes (Martha Stewart being the most notable).
Dinnerly’s main focus is on affordability, with some of their meals costing less than $5 per portion. Customers may pick from 100s recipes per week on their desktop or mobile app. Dinnerly’s menu choices are simple and basic yet incredibly delicious, making it an excellent choice for beginner cooks, students, budget-oriented customers, and picky eaters looking for easy cooking opportunities.
Pros and Cons
Hello Fresh Pros
- Great variety of easy-to-prepare meals
- Provides meals for dietary needs, including vegetarian, pescatarian, and reduced-calorie
- Option to swap out proteins or sides with meals
- Family-friendly
- Priced competitively with other meal kits
- Nutrition information is provided
Dinnerly Pros
- Affordable meals starting at $4.99
- Meals are usually under 5 steps and ready in 30 minutes
- Recipes are quick and easy
- Recipes do not require special tools
Hello Fresh Cons
- Does not offer meals for certain diets including keto, vegan, or gluten-free.
- Some meals require special tools (ie, zester)
- Prep time tends to take longer than stated on the recipe depending on cooking experience
Dinnerly Cons
- Uses virtual recipe cards instead of paper
- Limited organic options
- Simplistic recipes that may leave seasoned cooks bored
Hello Fresh Plans
Note: Customers can choose more than one preference, noted below, to create their perfect meal plan. Need a family-friendly option that is pescatarian? Check off both boxes for the ultimate customization.
- Meat & Veggies Plan: 2-6 meals per week for 2 or 4 people
- Family Friendly Plan: 2-6 meals per week for 2 or 4 people
- Under 20 Minutes Plan: 2-6 meals per week for 2 or 4 people
- Veggie Plan: 2-6 meals per week for 2 or 4 people
- Fit & Wholesome Plan: 2-6 meals per week for 2 or 4 people
- Pescatarian Plan: 2-6 meals per week for 2 or 4 people
Dinnerly Plans
Note: Customers can select multiple preferences to personalize their meals. These personalizations include: gluten-free, low-calorie, low-carb, picky eater approved, quick & easy, and vegetarian (which includes vegan options).
- Two-person plan: 2-6 meals per week for two people
- Family-box plan: 2-6 meals per week for four people
Meal Variety And Style of Dishes
When it comes to meal variety and customization, both of these meal kits cater to every taste and dietary need, including health restrictions.
As a Hello Fresh customer, you can choose from 100 + changing meals every week. The menu includes options for vegetarians, low-calorie needs, quick & easy, and family-friendly options.
As a Dinnerly customer, you will have a choice of 100s of dinners and exciting recipes every week. These dishes include child-friendly, fast-cooking, vegetarian, gluten-free friendly, low-calorie, climate hero, and dairy-free options.
Both companies offer mainly classic style meals, with a range of tastes from all across the globe – from Asian-inspired stir-fries and Italian pasta, Mexican tacos or enchiladas, to American classics like burgers or upgraded mac & cheese.
If you are looking for something more adventurous (think international ingredients such as Gochujang and Harissa), Hello Fresh provides 100s of American and international recipe choices, including favorites such as their Shrimp Pasta Primavera with Lemon Sauce, Bell Pepper, Zucchini and Peas, and their Taqueria Pork Bowls loaded with Corn Esquites, Sour Cream, and Cilantro.
Hello Fresh promotes their classic “Hall of Fame” choices, which are considered some of their most popular meal choices. Hello Fresh also provides “premium picks” as gourmet recipe options. Customers can expect recipes such as Bistro Steak with Mushrooms & Polenta Cakes and Mandarin Orange Trout with Asparagus, Served With Golden Rice and a Dill Creme Fraiche, but these require an additional upcharge.
Dinnerly, focuses on keeping their prices low, which translates to simple meals and recipes. Dinnerly’s dishes tend to have fewer ingredients and involve recipes that generally do not take longer than 30 minutes to prepare and are very easy to cook. Some recipe examples include Lemon-tarragon Chicken & Creamy Polenta, With Asparagus, Baked Tortelloni Parmesan, and Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Peppers.
Quality of Ingredients of Hello Fresh and Dinnerly
When it comes to the quality of ingredients, both of these meal kit services provide packaged high-quality ingredients for customers to use to make the step-by-step meals.
Hello Fresh only provides the highest quality ingredients. They ensure their meats are domestically sourced and responsibly raised, with no added hormones. All their seafood is sustainably sourced, and they include a generous amount of vegetables to try to assist their customers in increasing their intake of fresh vegetables.
According to Hello Fresh, all ingredient suppliers adhere to USDA Inspection Guidelines and are supplemented by globally recognized third-party food safety audit programs. Hello Fresh personally takes an on-site visit to every meat vendor they work with to ensure the operation is food-safe. Meats are primarily sourced domestically. As for seafood, Hello Fresh has teamed up with Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch to source only ocean-friendly seafood rated Best Choice, Good Alternative, or Eco-certified by trusted, independent programs.
If you are wondering about the ingredients you received, check out the Ingredient Specifications page, which denotes potential allergens and notes the country of origin.
Similarly, Dinnerly also uses very high-quality ingredients. We were quite surprised by this due to their focus on price; you’d think they would be of lesser quality, but we felt that the standard of ingredients was just as good as other companies with a higher price point. Their costs are kept low due to simple packaging, using digital recipe cards rather than including them in your meal kit, and using fewer ingredients.
Want more information about the food you received in your box? Dinnerly boasts a digital Ingredient Hub, which shows every recipe and the ingredients noted in each, including the allergens in some of the ingredients. The Ingredient Hub also notes any potential cross-contamination in the facility, which can be important for people who have tree nut or egg allergies.
According to Dinnerly, all meat and fish should be stored below 40 degrees, noting that the bottom of the fridge is the best place for these temperature-sensitive items. While the shipments are packed with a cooler bag and ice packs, Dinnerly recommends storing these items as soon as possible. To enjoy your meals at their best, cook the seafood dishes within 1-2 days of delivery, ground meat and chicken within 2-3 days, and other meat and veggies within 3-5 days.
Dinnerly also states that all the vegetables you receive in your shipment should stay fresh for a minimum of 4 days after delivery. If stored properly upon delivery, all ingredients should last until the end of your best-before date.
Popular Meals From Dinnerly and Hello Fresh
For the purpose of this review, we tasted and tested so many dishes and recipes from both meal kit companies.
These are our best recommendations from the Hello Fresh menu
- Beef Bulgogi Meatballs With Roasted Carrots
- Steakhouse Pork Chops With Lemony Green Beans
- Rajas Quesadillas With Salsa Fresca, Crema & Guacamole
These are our best recommendations from the Dinnerly menu:
- Creamy Ravioli With sSpinach & Parmesan
- Better-Than-Takeout Saucy Chicken Enchiladas
- General Tso’s Chicken Fingers With Rice & Broccoli
The two things we loved most were the delicious (and pre-cooked!) pulled pork meat and the Yakiniku sauce on top. This sauce is a sweet and savory Japanese version of a BBQ sauce. To accompany the pork meat, the meal is served on a bed of fluffy rice with a side of healthy broiled green beans.
The most surprising part of this meal is that it was super-fast to cook, only taking about 20 minutes. With a few easy steps, dinner was ready! Preparation simply involved cooking the rice, broiling the green beans, heating the pulled pork, and finishing off the dish with the amazing sauce. This Rice Bowl is a perfect meal kit for busy people (singles or couples) who are looking for a fast, easy, satisfying, and healthy dinner. What makes Dinnerly so unique is that you can enjoy this tasty treat for the very affordable price of $4.99 per serving! It’s almost a crime not to try it!
We love taco meal kits, so we were excited to try this one, and it came out great. It was a hit across the table! A tasty meal that we all loved.
For us, what gave this meal the extra kick was both the smoky red pepper crema sauce and the mango salsa. A great combination of sweet and smoked flavors.
HelloFresh meal kits, and especially the “one-pan” taco recipes, are mostly simple to cook by design. It is a great meal option for a light prep weekday family dinner.
The most technical skill you will need to assemble this meal is some basic veggie chopping, working with a frying pan, and mixing a few ingredients for the topping crema.
The color-printed recipe card that accompanied the ingredients of this meal kit was neat, organized, and very clear to understand, and the meal took only about 20 minutes to cook from A to Z.
The result, as mentioned – was absolutely delicious!
Diet & Lifestyle Customization
Everyone has dietary or lifestyle requirements as well as food likes and dislikes. Thankfully, both Hello Fresh and Dinnerly provide choices for customers to personalize each meal, including dietary needs, to prevent potential allergens from getting included in the shipment. Both meal kits provide helpful tags on their recipes, allowing customers to quickly gauge what kind of recipe it is.
Hello Fresh
Hello Fresh features the following dietary tags to help customers pick the best meal option for them:
- Veggie
- Calorie Smart
- Protein Smart
- Vegan
Note: it is up to the customer to ensure that all dietary requirements are met. Hello Fresh does not offer gluten-free or nut-free meals. Hello Fresh does offer two vegan meals a week that are dairy-free and notes that customers can make veggie meals dairy-free by omitting or substituting items like milk or cheese in the recipes.
Dinnerly
When it comes to diet support, Dinnerly provides more dietary tags to help customers pick the best meal for their needs. Dinnerly features the following dietary tags:
- Low Carb
- Low Calorie
- Vegetarian
- Dairy Free
- No Added Gluten
- Healthy
- Nutritious
The last two options, healthy and nutritious, can be misleading simply because there is no definition of what is considered healthy or nutritious.
Optional Add-ons
Both meal kit companies offer a few additional add-ons to help you skip that extra trip to the store. These market add-ons allow customers to add snacks and ready-to-eat meals to their weekly delivery, making it simple to bundle all your food needs in one single package.
Hello Fresh
Need some staples? Hello Fresh now offers Hello Fresh Market, a one-stop shop for essentials and other items, including quick meals, breakfast, sides, tantalizing desserts, proteins, fresh produce, and Hello Fresh sauces and condiments that you’ve grown to love (and can’t be purchased anywhere else!).
Hello Fresh also offers a selection of ready-to-eat meals. According to Specialty Food, Hello Fresh is looking to increase revenue with its ready-to-eat meals by 50% in 2024. Because of this, you may see a large push for their meals this year, which may mean sales or discounts for customers.
Dinnerly
Dinnerly also offers Market by Dinnerly, an easy and convenient market option to help customers skip the trip to the grocery store. The market is packed with ready-to-eat options such as soups and easy sides as well as pantry staples including proteins, desserts, and sides.
Pricing
The biggest difference between these two meal delivery services is their cost. Let’s break down each meal’s cost as well as shipping costs. The more meals you purchase, the lower the per meal cost, so families ordering 4 meals receive a discount compared to a customer only ordering 2 meals. Overall, Dinnerly is more affordable per meal.
Hello Fresh
Per Meal Cost: $7.99 – $11.49
Shipping: $10.99 per shipment
Dinnerly
Per Meal Cost: $4.99 – $8.49
Shipping: $11.99 per shipment
The Delivery Box of HelloFresh vs Dinnerly
Hello Fresh uses a delivery box designed to ensure the proper and safe delivery of ingredients. Their ingredients are sorted per meal kit, so they are individually labeled and packaged. That means no sorting is required when unpacking. Items requiring refrigeration, such as proteins, are packed at the bottom of the box with enough ice-packs to keep them cool during the delivery process.
The Dinnerly delivery arrives in a smaller and labeled box, and the cooled proteins are packed on the bottom with ice-packs to keep it cool during transportation.
As Dinnerly is focused on being as cost-effective as possible, the ingredients are not sorted per meal, so a little sorting is required when unpacking.
With both companies, The size of the box changes according to your plan – the Four-person box is larger than the two-person box, for obvious reasons.
Managing Your Online Account
Both Hello Fresh and Dinnerly have a website and a mobile app that you can use to manage your account easily. Here, you can register, specify dietary preferences, swap plans, and select your dishes. Hello Fresh also gives you access to past and future recipes, and the recipes include ingredients and nutritional information for each dish.
Both Hello Fresh and Dinnerly are available as a subscription service only, with no one-time purchase option. Still, they allow a certain amount of flexibility – you can skip weeks when needed, change your day of delivery, and more.
What Are Customers Saying?
For additional customer reviews, we headed over to Reddit, a platform where people can share their thoughts on practically…everything. Overall, most reviews pointed towards the price of Hello Fresh, with most customers noting that you can look up the recipes online and make them at home with your own groceries. There are fewer reviews about Dinnerly on the app; however, customers shared how they appreciated the cost and high quality of ingredients. They noted that Dinnerly does not ship staples such as garlic and flour, but for most houses, these are already in the pantry.
User ardxabsence noted: “i’ve been a customer for years and I love HF! it might just be my area but they’ve never done me dirty! if the meals get too repetitive i’ll just skip that week and on to the next. last night we ate louisiana style tilapia, and tonight we had mango salsa steak tacos. BOMB! lol”
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Lextastic noted: “When our schedules get busy, we always hop back onto Hello Fresh. It is always just a bandaid fix until our schedules die down, but we never regret it. Having someone else plan and shop for us really helps.”
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User Lionel-Boyd-Johnson noted: “Dinnerly:
Only about $5 more than EveryPlate. This is my favorite service by far. I will only be using this one from here on out with the occasional box from the other services when they do the “please come back” steep discounts. Here’s why
- The variety is impressive. They have meals like steak and fish that would be up-charged in the other boxes that just come standard. Lots of salads and other sides so, no more potatoes and carrots!
- No produce or shipping issues, and I haven’t had to contact CS once, ever. The ingredients are also higher quality than the other boxes.
- The option to pick simple meals for the nights when my teen is cooking.
There are some drawbacks to Dinnerly, but I don’t mind. The meals don’t come prepackaged like HelloFresh and you don’t get recipe cards. I print mine out at work, but it’d be just as easy to follow the recipe online. Also, they don’t provide pantry staples, i.e., garlic, milk, eggs, flour, etc.”
I tried HelloFresh, Everplate, and Dinnerly for 3 months each and the winner is Dinnerly
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From User ShineImmediate7081 “
I actually like Dinnerly because I’m a really picky eater and their meals are VERY basic. So that’s a plus for me. They are definitely the simplest of all the kits.”
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Customer Support
Hello Fresh and Dinnerly both prioritize customer satisfaction, offering customer support through email, on the app, or even over the phone to ensure a smooth experience with their services. Each service provides ample FAQ pages to help customers find answers to their questions quickly.
Bottom line – Our Winner is?
We enjoyed our food experiences with both Hello Fresh and Dinnerly so that you won’t go wrong with either. However, we felt they would appeal to quite different audiences, mostly regarding pricing and the style of meals.
After carefully reviewing both services for several weeks, our vote goes to Dinnerly.
Our number one reason is the $5 meal price, which is, without a doubt, incredibly affordable (almost half the Hello Fresh price).
Even with their low pricing, the Dinnerly menu also offers a large variety of 22 great weekly meals, so everyone will be able to find something to suit their tastes.
Lastly, even though their prices are low, Dinnerly keeps the quality of ingredients high, based on our experience. We genuinely believe that Dinnerly is a win-win choice.
