The 9 Best Prepared-Meal Delivery Services Of 2023

You won't have to worry about a plate of beige foods staring back at you: Mosaic always includes at least four veggies in their recipes—whether it's veggie bowls, soups, oatmeal, or family-sized bakes. The brand's ultimate goal? To make every dish as satisfying and nutritious as the last, with generous portions and hearty ingredients.

The abundance of items available may make it hard to choose what to try first—but Mosaic has you covered. It offers a program where you can choose recipes created by well-known and award-winning chefs.

Example recipes: 

-Ginger sesame noodles

-Jerk lentil and plantain bowl

Sustainability & Quality: In addition to donating all excess product to City Harvest, which helps New Yorkers in need, this brand uses dry ice to keep their boxes cold so that you don't have to dispose of wasteful gel packs. Trays are made of BPA-free plastic, and cups are made of recycled paper and recycled fibers (the latter cannot be recycled).

A great option for people who want to opt in for a few meals per week, Factor offers healthy, low-carb options customized to keto, vegan, or vegetarian diets. Each fresh entrée ships in compact plastic containers that could be stored for up to seven days in your fridge. Best of all, you can always put excess in the freezer, though the brand encourages customers to prioritize eating them fresh. 

We love that recipes never include refined sugars, antibiotics, or GMOs. New chef-curated plans also launch weekly with a handful of brand-new items that heat in less than 3 minutes.

Example meals: 

-Poblano bowl with roasted broccoli "rice" and scallion sour cream

-Chicken and mushroom marsala with garlic mashed cauliflower and haricot verts

Sustainability & Quality: The BPA-free plastic packaging used for every entrée is recyclable—and always ships with reusable, nontoxic gel packs to keep the food cold. Plus, there's a zero-tolerance policy for animal welfare, so all meat is humanely raised.

Price: From $11 per serving

Fresh N' Lean offers up enough meal plans and recipes for you to choose something new with every order. Plans are available for people on high-protein diets, keto, paleo, Whole30, Mediterranean, and so many more. Don't worry, they offer multiple vegan and vegetarian options as well—including a vegan low-carb service. 

The microwavable meals take just 3 minutes to heat up, so you'll have a truly nutritious meal at your fingertips in no time. Each plan allows you to choose the number of meals for each week with enough selection to pick up to three meals per day.

Example meals: 

-BBQ pulled chicken with potato salad and rice

-Moroccan mint grass-fed steak with spiced cauliflower and brown rice

Sustainability & Quality: While the brand does use a considerable amount of plastic in the packaging, it's BPA-free and recyclable. They also use gel packs that you can easily repurpose. 

Price: From $11 per serving

Founded in 2014, Purple Carrot is one of the most well-known plant-based meal-delivery companies. Similar to other delivery services, the company launched with meal kits before expanding into prepared options due to customer demand. Now its plant-forward meals offer weeknight options that can be ready in the microwave in just 2 minutes.

Overall, you can expect plenty of recipe variation with new menus dropped weekly. Just keep in mind that each recipe is single-serve, so you'll need to make a larger order for families.

Example recipes: 

-Creamy tahini noodles with crispy shiitakes and quick pickles

-Spicy mango tempeh with toasted almond couscous and lemon arugula

Sustainability & Quality: Purple Carrot is passionate about eliminating food waste and works with The Farmlink Project to give excess farm produce to communities in need. It also sources primarily organic and non-GMO options; however, since they include unique ingredients, some of the options may not be organic. Everything in boxes is also completely recyclable.

Price: From $13 per item

Smoothie lovers, rejoice! Daily Harvest offers up an abundance of absolutely delectable smoothie recipes that are packed with fresh fruits and veggies, so you can check off your micronutrient intake for the day. Of course, smoothies aren't the only items on the lineup. The brand also offer delicious harvest bowls, harvest bakes, flatbreads, soups, and even ice creams.

Each box can contain 9, 14, or 24 items with tiered discounts based on the size of your box. (The more items you purchase, the bigger the discount.) We love that the vegetarian servings are substantial, filling, and convenient to prep—check out our full review.

Example meals: 

-Lentil and tomato bolognese harvest bowl

-Chickpea and coconut curry harvest bake

Sustainability & Quality: Not only is the food meticulously sourced, but the brand prioritizes farmers and aims to build a regenerative food system. All of the food is also grown from crops that don't use synthetic chemicals or pesticides. Plus, the brand also works with farmers to help them transition their land to organic so they can increase the biodiversity of crops.

Check out our full review of Daily Harvest.

Daily Dose works with health experts to design good-for-you menus using fresh, organic ingredients. The meals are delivered directly to your door, completely ready to eat. The company believes in bio-individuality, meaning what works for one person will not work for everyone. Each week, you can choose from over five different menus, including options for keto, paleo, ketotarian, plant-based, and protein-forward lifestyles. Additional plans come from rotating chefs and health experts and focus on foods with science-backed benefits for things like longevity, weight loss, and beauty. 

Everything is free of gluten, dairy, and refined sugar, and these are some of the healthiest ingredients we’ve come across in a meal delivery service,—but there’s no sacrificing taste, either. The meal options are fun, change weekly, and taste delicious. The brand works with local farms and purveyors to source the freshest seasonal ingredients, with a close eye on sustainability in the farming methods as well. While the packaging is a bit flimsy, it’s made up for by the fact that it’s 100% zero-waste.

What our editor says:

"I've tried a lot of meal delivery services and Daily Dose remains right at the top of my list. The meals are fresh, inventive, and make me feel good. With the protein-forward menu option, I loved knowing I had a healthy, balanced meal waiting for me at home while marathon training this summer. Most recently, I tried the Younger You menu, crafted by Kara Fitzgerald, and it was some of the most delicious food I've had from a meal delivery service. I'd recommend Daily Dose to anyone who wants to prioritize their health, but doesn't have the time to cook every meal at home. I did have a few issues with broken packaging on delivery, but for the most part the meals arrived in tact, and I love the company's attention to sustainability." — Carleigh Ferrante, commerce editor

The most budget-friendly option on our list, Home Chef has been around since the early days of meal kit popularity—which means they've had time to perfect both recipes and packaging. While Home Chef is mostly recognized for its meal kits, the brand also offers two types of prepared meals: oven-ready or microwaveable fast and fresh entrées.

Customize your order based on personal preferences, such as protein preferences or allergens. You can also select options that adhere to popular diets, like keto and paleo. Either way, you'll get a nutrient-packed (and delicious) meal in less than 15 minutes.

Example Meals: 

-Pulled pork and fiesta rice bowl

-Shrimp penne in tomato cream sauce

Sustainability & Quality: They use recyclable plastics and materials in their boxes. When sourcing ingredients, the brand opts for organic whenever possible.

Not only is every single ingredient from Sprinly organic, but the brand also cuts refined sugars, artificial preservatives, and gluten from its recipes. Every meal is delivered fresh with an estimated cook time of just 3 minutes in the microwave.

While these meals are on the pricier side, every entrée is unique and boasts a biodiversity of ingredients—and it helps that they're incredibly filling. Plus, it's super easy to find recipes that ditch popular allergens, like nuts and soy, from the entirely gluten-free kitchen.

Example Recipes: 

-Burmese lemongrass noodles with jade pearl ramen

-Mac and "cheese" with BBQ jackfruit

Sustainability & Quality: Along with sourcing purely organic ingredients, Sprinly pushes their sustainability efforts by donating all excess produce to those in need. Bonus: The insulated bag inside the boxes is biodegradable and filled with a compostable inner component. 

Price: From $17

If you've ever tried a low-FODMAP diet, which removes short-chain carbs that are hard to digest, you know that it can get complicated quickly. This service makes it super simple and incredibly delicious; Epicured focuses on gluten-free diets with options for a range of allergies and other dietary restrictions, such as vegetarian, vegan, or pescatarian.

Not only are the recipes created with the help of Michelin-star chefs—so they pack as much flavor and substance into each meal as possible—but they're dietitian-approved brand and great for those living with IBS, Crohn's, colitis, celiac, and non-celiac gluten sensitivities.

Example Meals: 

-Hearty Colorado lamb ragu pasta

-Fish tacos with red cabbage slaw

Sustainability & Quality: While Epicured aims to always source organic, the brand strictly adheres to the Dirty Dozen rule. Otherwise, you can expect ingredients to be local with a strict emphasis on proteins free of hormones, antibiotics, and preservatives. While there's an excess of packaging, it's all fully recyclable, reusable, and even dishwasher-safe. 

Price: From $15 per item