Do you love home-cooked meals, but run on a tight schedule? Then you might have heard about two popular meal kit delivery services: HelloFresh and Blue Apron. Both subscription services offer pre-portioned, fresh ingredients delivered straight to your door, along with recipes for various meals. But how do these two meal kits compare and are there better alternatives? 

In this article, we'll take a deep dive into these two popular meal delivery kits, HelloFresh and Blue Apron. We’ll discuss their pricing, ease of use, meal creativity, and support for dietary preferences. We’ll also look at alternatives to meal kit services, like Hungryroot, that can offer more variety, better service, and more dietary preferences, while also being budget-friendly.  

If you want to live a healthy lifestyle, but don’t have the time for meal planning, the expert chefs at Hungryroot have crafted a wide variety of delicious recipes and healthy, premium groceries that cater to your specific dietary needs. That way you can enjoy simple and delicious meals in no time. Take the personalized quiz here and get recommendations just for you.

Blue Apron and HelloFresh: An Overview

Blue Apron is a popular meal kit delivery service that provides customers with high-quality, fresh ingredients and easy-to-follow recipes to create delicious meals at home. Founded in 2012, the company offers a range of plans to suit different dietary preferences, including premium and signature options, vegetarian, wellness, ready-to-heat meals, Weight Watchers recommended, and family-friendly recipes.

HelloFresh is a meal kit delivery service that provides customers with pre-measured ingredients and recipes to cook at home. Founded in 2011 in Berlin, Germany, the company operates in several countries worldwide and offers a variety of plans to suit different dietary preferences, including vegetarian, pescatarian, quick & easy, fit & wholesome, and family-friendly options. Depending on your needs, HelloFresh offers a selection of 30+ recipes on a weekly basis.

Both HelloFresh and Blue Apron source their ingredients from trusted suppliers and emphasize the use of fresh, seasonal produce in their meals. With these services, customers can enjoy the convenience of home cooking without the hassle of grocery shopping or meal planning. 

Hungryroot: A Meal Kit Alternative

Hungryroot is a unique alternative to meal kit services that provides customers with good-for-you groceries and healthy recipes delivered straight to their door. Unlike traditional meal kit companies, Hungryroot offers premium ingredients that are ready to use, such as fresh vegetables, whole-grain pasta, fresh produce, pantry staples, and flavorful sauces. 

Hungryroot’s offerings are focused on health-conscious lifestyles, with a strong emphasis on nutrient-dense, whole ingredients. Hungryroot also provides customers with personalized meal planning and recipe suggestions based on their dietary preferences and needs. With its easy-to-use and customizable approach to meal prep, Hungryroot is a great choice for busy individuals who want to eat healthy, save time, be budget-conscious, and get more variety when compared to HelloFresh and Blue Apron.

Blue Apron vs. HelloFresh: Price Comparison

When it comes to meal kit services, price is an important factor to consider. HelloFresh and Blue Apron both offer affordable pricing options, with meals starting at around $8 per serving. However, the exact pricing can vary depending on the specific meals and subscription plan you choose.

Without discounts, Blue Apron meals can be as low as $7.99 a serving when purchasing 4 meals a week for 4 people and up to $11.99 a meal for the less frequent option of 2 meals for 2 people. Blue Apron charges $9.99 for each shipment meaning your meals end up costing about $1-2 extra per serving each week. HelloFresh prices skew higher starting at a minimum of $9 per serving, and they also charge $9.99 for shipping without discounts.

Hungryroot: A budget-friendly alternative

If you're looking for a budget-friendly and flexible option, Hungryroot may be a better choice. With prices starting at $65 per delivery, and free shipping for plans $70+, Hungryroot is fully customizable! Hungryroot sends fresh groceries and recipe instructions you can reuse between multiple recipes leading to not only less cost but also less food waste. 

Hungryroot delivers healthy and delicious meals that are not only affordable but also customizable to fit your dietary needs. So if you're looking for an alternative to a meal kit delivery service that is both affordable and flexible, Hungryroot is definitely worth considering.

Blue Apron vs. HelloFresh: Meal Choices and Variety

Since both are similar in price, menu option variety and quality become important factors to consider. Both HelloFresh and Blue Apron offer a range of meal options, from classic comfort foods to international cuisine, but cater to a limited variety of dietary preferences. Because recipes are either pre-prepared or pre-packaged, the meal choices can be somewhat limited. Blue Apron tends to have a wider selection of meal options including add-ons and prepared meals every week. Blue Apron offers 70+ meal options including prepared meals while HelloFresh offers a more limited 30 meals, with both offering add-ons. Although both services offer simple recipes, Blue Apron recipes tend to be more gourmet and complicated than HelloFresh’s recipes. 

Blue Apron's meals also accommodate more customization by offering substitutions such as alternative protein options (like subbing chicken for beef). Blue Apron uniquely offers wine pairings alongside their meals and add-ons. On the other hand, HelloFresh doesn't offer the same type of customization. Their kits come as-is with no substitutions allowed. 

Blue Apron offers heat-and-serve, prepared meals that don't require cooking, offering convenience for those who don't have time. HelloFresh, on the other hand, doesn't offer ready-made meals, but they do offer sheet pan recipes, ten and twenty-minute recipes, and low-prep meals to accommodate a busy schedule.

If you like to plan ahead, HelloFresh allows you to see the menu six weeks ahead as opposed to Blue Apron's four-week look ahead. This option can give you peace of mind in planning your meals ahead of time. 

If you follow a particular diet such as vegan, paleo, keto, low carb, or vegetarian, neither Blue Apron nor HelloFresh delves deep into intentionally accommodating a wide variety of these preferences. Both of these meal kits are generally best for omnivores seeking to have healthy variety and balance.

Hungryroot: More Choice and Variety

An alternative to Blue Apron and HelloFresh, Hungryroot takes a different approach by sending you a personalized box of full-sized groceries with recipe cards that you can use to create your own meals in as little as 5 minutes! Plus, since the groceries are not pre-portioned, you have the flexibility to use them in multiple ways, meet your dietary preferences, and get more variety out of each delivery, reducing food waste and cost. Skip the grocery store, reduce your carbon footprint, and get more meal choices with Hungryroot's vast selection of groceries and delicious, easy-to-make recipes.

Unlike Blue Apron and HelloFresh, Hungryroot's service isn't limited to a set amount of recipes each week. You can select from any of their 2,000+ chef-crafted recipes every week, and they continuously add new ones on a regular basis. If you like flexibility, Hungryroot will give you the most variety when it comes to meals.

So, if you're looking for a delivery service with more variety and flexibility in meal choices, Hungryroot is definitely worth considering. Hungryroot is doing what no other store or service does by blending recipe discovery, food planning, and shopping to create a stress-relieving, personalized experience that gets better with every visit. 

By leveraging AI to understand customers (including dietary restrictions and preferences), Hungryroot fills your cart each week with groceries and recipes that you’ll love, saving you time and worry. With a customizable grocery selection and recipe cards, you'll have the freedom to create delicious and healthy meals that meet your unique needs and preferences.

Blue Apron vs.HelloFresh: Types of Diets Served

When it comes to catering to specific diets, both meal delivery services offer a variety of meal plan options, including family-friendly, low-calorie, and vegetarian options. However, their meal choices may be limited for people with specific dietary restrictions.

HelloFresh offers vegetarian, pescatarian, quick & easy, fit & wholesome, and family-friendly options. Blue Apron offers premium and signature, vegetarian, ready-to-heat meals, Weight Watchers recommended, and family-friendly options. Although both Blue Apron and HelloFresh showcase ingredients and nutritional facts, you will still have to do work to figure out whether their ingredients fit your needs as it’s hard to filter by specifics on their online menus. If you’re following a specific diet like paleo, keto, vegan, or low-carb, it may be hard to get enough variety with either of these meal kit services. 

In contrast, Hungryroot offers a wider range of options to cater to different dietary needs and preferences. They offer a variety of plant-based options, gluten-free, dairy-free, and other healthy grocery and recipe options. Additionally, Hungryroot's personalized grocery boxes allow you to customize your meals to fit your unique dietary needs and preferences. When curating your delivery online, Hungryroot allows you to filter recipes and groceries by gluten-free, vegan, low-carb, vegetarian, soy-free, and more. They also offer the ability to filter by protein like chicken, beef, and tofu, whether a recipe is 500 calories or less, cook time, and amount of servings you're looking to create with your ingredients.

Overall, while both HelloFresh and Blue Apron offer a range of meal options for various health-conscious lifestyles, those with more specific dietary needs may prefer the greater selection available with Hungryroot. With a focus on whole, high-quality ingredients and customization to fit specific dietary lifestyles, Hungryroot offers a more inclusive alternative to meal kit delivery services for those seeking a personalized experience.

Blue Apron vs. HelloFresh: Sustainability and Food Waste

Blue Apron is committed to sustainability and responsible sourcing practices. In 2022, Blue Apron became a carbon-neutral company by offsetting their 2021 emissions. The company has taken several measures to reduce its environmental impact, such as implementing compostable and recyclable packaging materials, reducing food waste through portion control, optimizing its supply chain, and sourcing ingredients from local farmers and suppliers whenever possible. Blue Apron also partners with organizations like Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch to ensure that the seafood it uses is sustainably sourced and not overfished. 

In addition, the company has made a commitment to achieve 100% sustainable, compostable packaging use by 2025. Overall, Blue Apron's sustainability efforts demonstrate a commitment to not only providing high-quality meals to its customers but also to making a positive impact on the environment.

Like Blue Apron, HelloFresh is also committed to sustainability and reducing food waste throughout its supply chain. The company works closely with its suppliers to source ingredients that are in season and locally grown whenever possible, which helps to reduce the carbon footprint of transportation. In addition, the company has implemented a packaging program that uses recyclable and compostable materials, reducing waste from its operations. HelloFresh also partners with food banks and other organizations to donate excess food, reducing food waste and helping those in need. HelloFresh's sustainability and food waste reduction efforts demonstrate a commitment to providing high-quality meals while minimizing its environmental impact.

Hungryroot: Commitment to Sustainability

Similarly, Hungryroot is also committed to sustainability and reducing food waste and environmental impact throughout its supply chain and at the customers’ homes. Hungryroot’s service is built from the ground up with recipes as the foundation. Since they know all about their customers' dietary needs, flavor preferences, and health objectives, the groceries Hungryroot offers all come with a plan: a simple recipe that puts every ingredient to use, reducing food waste at home. 

The AI at the center of what Hungryroot does allows them to have dramatically less waste at their warehouses too. Since they know their customers and their needs, they can funnel that data through their AI to better predict inventory demand and source only what they’re able to sell and donate excess stock to communities in need: food banks like Community Food Bank of New Jersey and non-profits like City Harvest. Hungryroot also invests in 100% curbside recyclable packaging materials and biodegradable ice packs. 

Overall, Hungryroot's sustainability and food waste reduction efforts demonstrate a commitment to providing healthy and convenient meals while minimizing its environmental impact.

Blue Apron vs. HelloFresh: Recipe Difficulty, Support Material, and Customer Service

When it comes to recipe difficulty and support material, HelloFresh and Blue Apron both offer recipes and step-by-step instructions, along with tips and tricks for novice and experienced home cooks alike. However, Blue Apron's recipes tend to be slightly more complex and gourmet-style, requiring a bit more time and effort to prepare.

In terms of support material, both HelloFresh and Blue Apron offer online resources, such as cooking tips, instructional videos, and user forums. Additionally, both services provide customer support via email, chat, and phone.

Overall, while both HelloFresh and Blue Apron offer quality ingredients and helpful support material, those looking for simpler recipes with less prep time may prefer HelloFresh, while those seeking a more gourmet-style experience may prefer Blue Apron. However, it's worth noting that neither service allows for as much customization and flexibility as a service like Hungryroot, which sends you groceries and easy recipe cards to create your own meals.

When it comes to recipe difficulty and support material, Hungryroot takes a unique approach. Rather than providing pre-prepared ingredients, Hungryroot sends you a personalized box of groceries with recipe cards that you can use to create your own meals. This means that the recipes are often simpler and require less time and effort to prepare, while still providing plenty of flavor and nutrition.

In terms of support material, Hungryroot offers a wealth of resources to help you make the most of your groceries and recipe cards. From instructional recipes and cooking tips online to customer support via email and text seven days a week, Hungryroot makes it easy to create delicious and healthy meals at home. So if you're looking for a better alternative to a meal kit delivery service with easy recipes and plenty of support material, as well as the flexibility to create your own meals and reduce food waste, Hungryroot may be the right choice for you.

The Bottom Line

Now that you have all the facts you need about HelloFresh and Blue Apron, you can make the best decision that fits your needs. If you like to stick to a small, curated set of recipes and don’t have specific dietary requirements, meal kits like HelloFresh and Blue Apron are right for you. If you like variety and want more than what simple meal kits have to offer, look no further than Hungryroot’s wide selection of good-for-you groceries that easily transform into tasty recipes fit for many dietary lifestyles.  

Want to live a healthy lifestyle but lack the time for meal planning and prep? Their expert chefs at Hungryroot have crafted a wide variety of delicious recipes and good-for-you groceries that cater to your specific dietary needs, so you can enjoy tasty and nutritious meals in no time. Take their personalized quiz here and get the best recommendations just for you.