Among the best meal kit delivery services currently on the US market, HelloFresh is one of the most affordable options. With the average meal price just below $9, its prices are not as low as they get, but they do suit different budgets. What we aim to determine in this article is whether what you get from HelloFresh is actually worth the cash. Keep reading to discover how much HelloFresh costs, how it compares to its alternatives, and whether it is a good choice for your household.
What You Get In A HelloFresh Delivery
When you order from HelloFresh, you get 2, 3 or 4 meal kits for 2 or 4 people. Your deliveries include recipe cards and pre-portioned ingredients the recipes call for. You get all the food you need to cook the meals, with the exception of oil, salt, pepper, and similar basics. Everything is tucked into an insulated box with ice packs that keep the food cool during transit. Almost all of the ingredients (save proteins and larger items) are sorted by recipe for easier cooking.
If you have ordered from a meal kit service before, you are sure to notice that HelloFresh has done a superior job designing its packaging and recipe cards. Plus, its ingredients are super-fresh, sustainable, and farm-sourced, although most of them are not organic. In other words, ingredient quality is above-average but not always top-shelf.
How Much Does HelloFresh Cost
At HelloFresh, the average price per serving is $8.87, which is significantly below the industry average. The prices range from $7.49 to $9.99 per serving and depend on the number of people you cook for and the number of recipes you order per week.
The service offers 4 meal plans: Classic, Veggie, Family, and Calorie Smart. Each plan comes with different ordering options. We will now explore each plan individually and discover how much you pay per serving and how much your weekly deliveries cost depending on the plan you choose.
HelloFresh Classic Plan Cost
The Classic plan lets you choose from 17 meat, fish, and veggie recipes every week. You can order 2, 3 or 4 recipes for 2 people or 2 or 3 recipes for 4 people.
With the 2-person option, you pay:
- $9.99 per serving if you order 2 recipes per week;
- $8.99 per serving if you order 3 recipes per week;
- $8.99 per serving if you order 4 recipes per week.
This means that on a weekly basis, you can expect to spend:
- $39.96 on 2 meals for 2 people;
- $53.94 on 3 recipes for 2 people;
- $71.92 on 4 meals for 2 people.
If you opt for the 4-person option, your meals are going to cost:
- $8.99 per serving if you order 2 recipes per week;
- $7.49 per serving if you order 3 recipes per week.
Your weekly total with the Classic plan for 4 people amounts to:
- $71.92 if you cook 2 meals for 4 people;
- $89.88 if you cook 3 meals for 4 people.
Shipping costs are not included in the prices shown above.
HelloFresh Veggie Plan Cost
With the Veggie plan, you can order 2 or 3 out of 3 vegetarian recipes available per week. Each recipe can yield 2 or 4 servings.
If you choose to cook for 2 people, you pay:
- $9.99 per serving if you order 2 recipes per week;
- $8.99 per serving if you order 3 recipes per week.
Your weekly delivery with the 2-person option costs:
- $39.96 if you cook 2 meals for 2 people;
- $53.94 if you cook 3 meals for 2 people.
The 4-person version of the Veggie plan is a bit more affordable. You pay:
- $8.99 per serving if you order 2 recipes per week;
- $7.49 per serving if you order 3 recipes per week.
When you do the math, this means that your weekly total is:
- $71.92 if you order 2 vegetarian meal kits for 4 people;
- $89.88 if you order 3 vegetarian meal kits for 4 people.
Like before, shipping is not included in the price.
HelloFresh Family Plan Cost
The Family plan lets you choose from 9 kid-friendly recipes every week. You can order 2 or 3 recipes per week, each yielding 4 servings. The price per serving is:
- $7.87 if you order 2 recipes per week;
- $7.49 if you order 3 recipes per week.
Therefore, your weekly total is:
- $62.96 if you choose to cook 2 meals for 4 people;
- $89.88 if you choose to cook 3 meals for 4 people.
Additional costs include the shipping and handling fee.
HelloFresh Calorie Smart Plan Cost
The HelloFresh menu features 3 recipes particularly designed for the Calorie Smart plan. With this plan, you can order 2 or 3 recipes for 2 or 4 people.
When cooking for 2, you pay:
- $9.99 per serving if you order 2 recipes per week;
- $8.99 per serving if you order 3 recipes per week.
On a weekly basis, you pay:
- $39.96 for 2 meal kits for 2 people;
- $53.94 for 3 meal kits for 2 people.
Should you opt for the 4-person Calorie Smart plan, you can expect your meals to cost:
- $8.99 per serving if you order 2 recipes per week;
- $7.49 per serving if you order 3 recipes per week.
The weekly total with the 4-person version of the Calorie Smart plan amounts to:
- $71.92 if you cook 2 HelloFresh meals per week.
- $89.88 if you cook 3 HelloFresh meals per week.
Shipping is not included.
HelloFresh Shipping Costs
Not long ago, HelloFresh was one of the rare meal kit services that offered free shipping on all orders. However, times have changed and following the lead of its main competitors, HelloFresh started charging for shipping, with the standard fee being $6.99. The only exceptions to the general $6.99-per-order rule are 2-recipe boxes for 2 people, which come with a $7.99 shipping fee.
Although we are not happy that the service no longer has free shipping, we have to emphasize that $6.99 to $7.99 per delivery is what most meal kit deliveries charge for shipping nowadays.
HelloFresh Coupons & Special Offers
HelloFresh regularly offers coupons that allow you to save up to $80 on your future orders. If you plan on subscribing to HelloFresh soon, be sure to visit our HelloFresh Coupons page to view all active and verified HelloFresh coupons and promo codes available. You can save plenty of cash in just 1 click.
Once you become a HelloFresh customer, you get to save extra cash by entering the company’s referral program. Upon subscribing, you get unlimited referral invites. Every time you successfully refer a friend, your friend gets a $40 discount and you get a $20 credit as a reward.
Finally, there is one more simple way to get a discount on your HelloFresh orders. Namely, the company gives a $15 credit to patrons who subscribe to its newsletter.
HelloFresh Returns & Refunds
HelloFresh gives you your money back if there is something wrong with your shipment. If you notice that there are damaged goods in your box, you should get in touch with HelloFresh’s customer care via phone or email no later than 5 days after you receive your delivery. Depending on the problem at hand, the service may provide a credit for the damaged goods or issue a full or partial refund.
It is important to know that if you claim that there is something wrong with the food you received, HelloFresh may not take your word for it. You may be required to return the damaged goods or provide photographic evidence to support your claim.
Is HelloFresh Worth It?
Now that you know how much HelloFresh meal kits cost and what savings opportunities you have at your disposal, we can proceed to the crucial segment of our analysis. In the following paragraphs, we will discuss how HelloFresh compares to its top competitors, whether it is a better solution than takeout, and whether it is a worthy alternative to conventional cooking.
HelloFresh Vs. Competitors
Compared to most other top-rated meal kit delivery services, including Sun Basket, Plated, and Green Chef, HelloFresh charges $1-$3 less per serving. In comparison to the cheapest meal kit services on the market, it charges up to $4 more per serving. Therefore, it is more affordable than the majority of services of similarly high quality. However, it is much less affordable than the most budget-friendly, somewhat lower-quality options.
The reasons why you may want to opt for HelloFresh instead of some other meal kit delivery include:
- Impressive menu variety with 17 fresh meal ideas every week;
- Specialized meal plans for omnivores, vegetarians, families, and calorie-conscious home cooks;
- Availability of allergy-friendly options;
- Superior ingredient freshness;
- Recipes designed by famous chefs like Jamie Oliver;
- Suitability for all cooking skill levels;
- Great subscription flexibility;
- Optional wine club membership;
- Lower prices for larger orders;
- Regular discounts and referral bonuses;
- Good value for money.
The qualities listed above are only found in the highest-rated meal kit services on the market. Since HelloFresh is significantly cheaper than most of them, choosing it over others qualifies as a sensible and frugal decision.
HelloFresh Vs. Takeout
Ordering takeout can cost more or less than cooking with HelloFresh. It all depends on what takeout options you have available and what your common ordering choices are. However, if you analyze takeout meals that cost about the same as HelloFresh meals, you are likely to find that, in most cases, takeout meals do not provide larger portions, do not include ingredients of equally high quality, and contain fillers and unhealthy additives, unlike HelloFresh meals that only contain natural foods.
Of course, if you do not want to cook, HelloFresh is certainly not the better option. On the other hand, if you want to know what you eat, keep your meals healthy, and enjoy food of higher quality, ordering from HelloFresh is definitely the way to go. After all, its meals can take just 20-30 minutes to cook and the result is a homemade meal that you can be proud of.
HelloFresh Vs. Conventional Cooking
HelloFresh meal kits do not cost less than an average home-cooked meal. You can certainly spend less per portion if you go shopping yourself, choose more affordable brands, and limit the number of ingredients per meal. However, the price difference between a HelloFresh meal and a conventionally cooked meal decreases if you have HelloFresh-quality ingredients delivered to your home. Once you factor in the potential delivery fee and the need to order from multiple stores due to ingredient availability, you do not get to save that much if you cook on your own.
Furthermore, when ordering from HelloFresh, you get more than just ingredients. You get original recipes, great assistance in meal planning, convenient home delivery, and plenty of time saved. Plus, you get to save cash by ordering exactly as much food as you need for your meals. Food waste equals money wasted and since HelloFresh delivers pre-portioned ingredients, you only spend money on the food you actually eat. Keeping in mind that an average American wastes 1 pound of food per day, this is an important advantage to consider.
HelloFresh Is A Good Choice For…
If you only eat organic food, follow a specialized diet like keto or Paleo, need more than 4 kits per week or cook for more than 4 people, HelloFresh may not be an ideal choice for you. However, based on our research and user feedback, it works wonderfully for:
- Busy couples;
- Families with children;
- Singles who like to cook once and eat twice;
- Single parents;
- Vegetarian couples and families;
- Picky eaters;
- Home cooks who want to eat more healthily;
- Wine-loving foodies;
- People who want to try out new recipes and diversify their diet;
- Home cooks who cannot afford to spend more than 30 minutes in the kitchen;
- Inexperienced cooks.
Of course, HelloFresh can be a great choice for virtually everyone who enjoys cooking. It makes it easy to get a home-cooked meal on the table, it saves you time, and it is among the more affordable meal kit solutions. After trying out its kits in our test kitchen, we can say that it is definitely worth the cash, so if its prices fit your budget, we warmly recommend giving it a shot.