Time-wise, Factor is the faster service, and it doesn’t need you to do any kind of prep work, pan-frying, or handwork for putting together a meal. Green Chef does, and it’s designed for larger families because of its bigger portion size. Meanwhile, Factor is for a bachelor or bachelorette as all their meals are single-serve.
Subscribing to a meal kit delivery service like Factor and Green Chef is an excellent way to form a healthy eating habit. Both services don’t believe in the “fast-food” fad and ensure that all their recipes are wholesome, healthy, and delicious at the same time.
Forming a healthy habit is no piece of cake! See what I did there? Plus, meal kits are dietitian-endorsed for improving gut health and metabolism, lowering high cholesterol levels, and maintaining overall wellness.
If you keep nutrition and diet aside for a minute, there are other benefits of subscribing to a service like Factor or Green Chef too. These benefits are best explained with the help of two of the most popular services today.
Factor delivers prepared meals for busy people. Whether you’re working a typical 9 to 5 job or have many other commitments and cooking is the last thing on your mind, you don’t need to worry about getting a nutritious meal in your belly. Factor makes the food for you and delivers them straight to your door with meals for the entire week.
Green Chef delivers meal kits with prepped ingredients and cooking instructions. Picking Green Chef is a wise choice for someone who likes cooking without spending too much time in the kitchen. All you have to do is combine all the ingredients provided. This takes time but definitely not more than 30 minutes per meal.
Subscribing to a Meal Kit Delivery Service – Is It Worth It?
If you’re waiting for the perfect opportunity to start eating healthy, here’s one way to go about it. A meal kit delivery service sticks to wholesome, organic, and nutritious diets. It’s not like takeout food at all!
Reviews and clinical studies have proven that subscribing to a meal kit delivery service can play a major role in improving overall health and well-being. You’ll get your daily dose of vegetables and can pick from a variety of proteins including vegetarian protein and chicken, beef, seafood, etc.
Good Nutrition
Services like Factor and Green Chef are well-equipped to simplify your diet and nutrition. You select dishes you want to eat for the upcoming week, looking for the ideal balanced meal with the right number of proteins, carbs, sufficient calories, less fat, and other essential nutrients like vitamins, minerals, iron, etc.
None of the dishes contain preservatives or artificial ingredients. That’s what makes meal kit delivery services like Factor and Green Chef such a hit! They simplify your expectations with regard to diet and nutrition while also serving up some really creative and wholesome dishes.
You end up using ingredients that you never would have picked up in a supermarket before. Also, each of these recipes contains a blend of nutritious veggies, nuts, beans, proteins, and others. If you’re allergic to something or dislike any ingredient, you can easily look for another recipe that fits you best.
Skip Food Prep Altogether
Because a meal kit delivery service takes care of the prepping and measuring of each ingredient depending on the number of servings you select before placing an order, you only have to cook the meal (with Green Chef) at home or heat it up in a microwave (with Factor) that’ll take only minutes.
There’s even a chance you’ll actually love spending time in the kitchen getting the meal together. You don’t have to chop too many vegetables at once. Cooking feels easier and faster, which is perfect if you’re not a cooking enthusiast. Instead of the countertop looking cluttered and dirty, meal kits are easier to manage because everything is labeled correctly and you only need to follow the cooking instructions that each meal kit comes with.
Less Food Wastage
Investing in a good meal kit delivery service also significantly reduces food waste.This then makes a huge impact on how you consume your meals every day. If you have fewer or no leftovers, you can eat fresh and nutritious food every day. You can even free up some space in your freezer or refrigerator! Likewise, there’s no need to buy lots of grocery items that you won’t end up using completely in order to cook one tiny meal.
Factor vs Green Chef – Discount Offers
Both meal delivery services hand out considerable discount offers for new customers. This applies not only to the first box you order after subscribing but also to the following boxes.
In the case of Factor, you get a $120 discount in total on the first few boxes. Even if you order the minimum amount, there will be $120 off on the first few orders.
Green Chef follows the same discount pattern, but it is comparably more cost-effective as it offers $130 off across the first 4 boxes. On the first box, you claim 50% off based on your final bill amount. The following three boxes are entitled to a 22% discount. Again, this depends on the final bill amount, but you will, in total, claim a $130 discount across the first 4 boxes.
Green Chef wins over Factor as far as getting discount rates are concerned. Keeping the discount aside, both services offer similar prices per serving. The elevated discount prices of Green Chef make it the more tempting pick which is comparatively better than Factor even though the latter is only $10 less in its discount offer for new subscribers.
Factor vs Green Chef – Pricing
[Please note: All the prices mentioned below are based on the standard pricing structure of both services. These do not include the discounted prices for first-timers. If you want to know how much you will pay as a first-timer, I have made a note of the discount in the section above. Meal plan prices provided by both Factor and Green Chef are standard and apply to everyone after the discount offer is exhausted.]
The structure of Factor’s meal plan pricing is different because unlike Green Chef, Factor only provides prepared meals. You pay per meal and not the way Green Chef offers the best value to its customers. (I’ll get to that in a minute.)
Factor charges you per meal x week. This means you pay according to meals, not by the number of people. This should also automatically imply that Factor provides only single-serve meals, so you can get as many servings as you want of the same recipe. It’s like shopping for groceries online. You can add as many items to your cart by pressing the “+” sign. This depends on how many meals of the same recipe you want to order. With Factor, the more meals you add to your cart, the lower the price will get. This is great for bachelors, bachelorettes, and families!
The minimum order on Factor is 4 meals per week which cost $15 per serving. The largest meals per week plan on Factor is 18 meals per week at $11 per serving – not a huge difference in “per-serving” cost if you ask me. However, Green Chef is much the same, so both are relatively in the expensive range of meal delivery services.
| Number of Meals Per Week | Cost Per Serving |
| 4 | $15 |
| 6 | $12.8 |
| 8 | $12.3 |
| 10 | $11.9 |
| 12 | $11.5 |
| 18 | $11 |
Factor’s shipping fee varies based on the delivery location. This is a good thing because if you’re lucky and happen to fall within a suitable area, you may not have to pay a fixed price on shipping. It’s a step ahead of its game with flexible shipping costs.
Meanwhile, Green Chef has a fixed shipping fee of $9.99 on every order.
Speaking of Green Chef, their pricing structure is slightly more complicated because it charges in two ways:
- By the number of people
- By the number of meals per week
I also found that Green Chef is less flexible on its minimum order than the Factor. With Factor, you can easily order 4 meals per week and try new recipes for every meal without any problem.
With Green Chef, however, the minimum order is 6 meals, and you can order 3 meals with 2 servings each on that order. If you want to try something new, you have to add 2 servings of it. You cannot order a single serving of any dish you like.
This is a huge point of difference between Factor and Green Chef. It limits how many meals you get to eat per week, especially if you live alone and would like to try as many new exciting, and delicious meals as possible. If that’s your aim, Factor is more suited to your needs.
Green Chef is more suited to 2 or more people and families. The 2-serving-per-meal deal is not a problem when you don’t have to eat all the meals by yourself every week. This is what the pricing structure of Green Chef looks like.
| For 2 Servings Per Meal (2 People) | |
| Number of Meals Per Week | Cost Per Serving |
| 3 | $13.49 |
| 4 | $12.99 |
| For 4 Servings Per Meal (4 People) | |
| Number of Meals Per Week | Cost Per Serving |
| 2 | $12.99 |
| 3 | $12.49 |
| 4 | $11.99 |
| For 6 Servings Per Meal (6 People) | |
| Number of Meals Per Week | Cost Per Serving |
| 3 | $11.99 |
| 4 | $11.99 |
As you can see, there is no significant reduction in cost on the largest order you can place with Green Chef. That is for 24 meals per week where you pay $11.99 per serving. This applies even on their minimum order which is 6 meals per week at $13.49 per serving – barely a $1.5 margin between both orders. As an interested customer, I would have appreciated a steeper reduction in cost “per serving” for orders as large as 24 meals!
On top of that, Green Chef charges a fixed shipping fee of $9.99 on every order. Only to first-time subscribers does it completely eliminate shipping costs. Once the discount expires or is completely exhausted, the shipping is fixed, and the standard prices that I’ve mentioned above apply to all orders.
Factor vs Green Chef – How It Works
Factor serves only prepared meals, while Green Chef serves only meal kits. You will find many other meal kit delivery services which offer both, but for now, Factor is a prepared meal-only service, while Green Chef is a meal kit delivery service.
This brings me to my main point: Factor is designed for someone who doesn’t have time to cook from scratch, even with the help of a meal kit. Because it delivers quick, cooked meals right to your door, you only have to heat it in a microwave, oven, or on the stovetop.
Don’t worry though – Factor does not pack frozen food, nor are the meals cooked with preservatives. All the recipes are cooked with high-quality and fresh ingredients. You get to choose from various meal plans and choose the number of meals you want to eat per week. You can select more than one serving per meal since all the meals at Factor are packed as single-serve.
Green Chef sings a different tune. For starters, it packs a meal kit that includes separate ingredients and cooking instructions based on the meal you select. Say you select the Feta & Sun-Dried Tomato Turkey Burger from Green Chef’s menu. In the meal kit, you will receive the following items packed individually in plastic-sealed bags or containers:
- Ground turkey
- Almonds
- Feta cheese
- Balsamic vinegar
- Roma tomatoes
- Brioche buns
- Sun-dried tomatoes
- Green kale
- Dates
- Lemon pepper and herb seasoning
- Lemon-basil caper aioli
These are premeasured so you can cook up the entire meal for a single serving without any leftovers. According to the recipe card, it won’t take more than 25 minutes to cook it. All you need is a pan to cook the meat patty after marinating it with the sauce and seasonings. Everything including the brioche buns, veggies, cheese, seasonings, etc. is included in the meal kit along with the beginner-friendly step-by-step cooking instructions.
Evidently, Green Chef’s meal kit delivery service works in contrast with Factor’s quick, prepared meal boxes.
Factor’s Spinach Chicken, for example, comes in a prepared box. With it, you will find a meal card with heating instructions written on it. Follow the steps mentioned for microwave or oven and voila! The recipe card also mentions all the ingredients present in the dish such as spinach, chicken breast, heavy cream, cauliflower, almonds, cream cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, parsley, onion, etc.
Factor makes sure you know what’s in every dish, but you don’t have to deal with the separate ingredients and make the meal from scratch. However, that’s what you are required to do when you order a meal box from Green Chef.
Factor vs Green Chef – Meal Plans
On Factor’s menu, you will find select dietary plans:
- Gluten-Free
- Chef’s Choice
- Calorie Smart
- Keto
- Vegan & Veggie
Green Chef’s menu is more health-conscious and customized. Plus, it has a few more dietary plans on its menu than Factor:
- Keto
- Paleo
- Balanced Living
- Plant-Powered
- Gluten-Free
- Fast & Fit
- Mediterranean
The prices for each and every dietary plan on Factor and Green Chef are the same. You don’t pay extra if you order a Vegan meal from Factor or a Chef’s Choice meal. The same applies to Green Chef whose dietary plans have the same cost “per serving” no matter what diet you select.
If you consider dietary preferences, Green Chef also features a diabetes-friendly and organic menu.
Factor has more meal options for you to choose from than Green Chef. Compared to the 30+ meals on Factor, Green Chef only features 12-15 meals per week. It must also be said that despite the 30+ meals on Factor, their menu changes every week with new recipes. Green Chef changes their recipes every week as well, so it’s not so bad that they offer half as many recipes as Factor.
However, it’s true that Factor spoils you for choice as they have so many dishes to offer in a single week!
Factor vs Green Chef – Dietary Needs
If you have specific dietary needs, or dietary restrictions, this table will help you find your perfect match.
I would like to mention one very specific dietary restriction for people with a gluten allergy.
Factor does not use gluten at all in its processing. For someone with a severe gluten allergy, you can rest assured that none of the dishes have gluten or are processed in the same facility as recipes with gluten.
On the other hand, Green Chef serves both gluten-filled and gluten-free recipes. However, both dietary meals are processed in the same kitchen facilities, so cross-contamination is very likely. For someone with a severe gluten allergy, ordering from Green Chef may not be feasible.
On that note, Green Chef is certified organic, while Factor is not. Likewise, I did a little digging and found that Factor ensures that all ingredients are free from gluten, antibiotics, hormones, soy, and any other genetically modified organisms.
Both services are licensed and FDA-approved for food safety.
| Factor | Green Chef | |
| Allergy-friendly | No | No |
| Gluten-free | Yes | Yes |
| Diabetic | No | Yes |
| Organic | No | Yes |
| Paleo and Keto | Yes | Yes |
| Dairy-free | Yes | Yes |
| Kid-friendly | No | Yes |
| Vegetarian | Yes | Yes |
| Vegan | Yes, but very limited | Yes |
| Chicken | Yes | Yes |
| Beef/Turkey | Yes | Yes |
| Seafood | Yes | Yes |
| Low-calorie | Yes | Yes |
| High-protein | Yes | Yes |
| Low-carb | Yes | Yes |
Factor vs Green Chef – How Long Will the Food Last?
The freshness and lastingness of the meal boxes, once they arrive, are crucial points to consider. It measures the brand’s flexibility with regard to its service. It also determines whether you can invest in a meal kit delivery service for a long time.
I found that Factor’s meals stay fresh for up to a week after they arrive. You can keep a meal without opening the lid or breaking the seal in the refrigerator for 7 days without the food spoiling.
Factor packs the meals in a BPA-free CPET plastic container. This type of container is multifunctional because it is oven- and microwave-friendly, but it is also recyclable. For any other questions regarding their food safety practices, you can visit Factor’s FAQ page.
For some recipes, Factor does mention the “Enjoy By” date. In fact, this date is printed on every meal box’s label so you’d know exactly by then to consume the food.
Green Chef’s ingredients are 100% organic and have a shorter shelf life. Including transit and packaging, Green Chef’s meal kits stay fresh and high-quality for up to 5 days after arrival. If you’re ordering seafood, it’s best to cook the meal within 3 days for the best flavor and texture.
Green Chef uses standard plastic packaging with insulation to keep the food fresh and prevent leakage or spills. You can read about Green Chef’s safe food handling tips on their FAQs page.
Factor vs Green Chef – Cooking Time
Since Factor offers prepared meals, each meal takes only a few minutes to heat and serve. The exact time varies as it depends on the meal you select but also on the oven or microwave you’re using to heat up the food.
Having said that, it should not take you more than 5 minutes to heat up and serve each meal. With a recipe like Creamy Parmesan Chicken, for example, it will take 2.5 minutes to heat up in a microwave and 5-7 minutes in an oven.
Each recipe comes with accurate heating instructions for the microwave and oven so you’ll know exactly how to go about it.
Green Chef’s recipes, on the other hand, are different because they are meal kits. That’s why investing at least 30 minutes for preparing each dish is a must. On every recipe card, Green Chef mentions the approximate cooking time, and it varies from 25 to 35 minutes.
All the recipes are beginner-friendly and come with easy hands-on cooking instructions, and most of the heavy prep of the ingredients, sauces, etc. is already done for you.
Factor vs Green Chef – Nutritional Value
Isn’t nutrition the same as dietary needs?
Nutrition and diet go hand in hand when it comes to eating healthy. You can find your ideal diet, but if it isn’t providing the nutrition you need, then you’re in some big trouble!
Both Factor and Green Chef let you know about the nutritional value of each and every one of their meals – the proteins, carbs, sodium, fats, calories, sugar, fiber, etc. You can also read about the ingredients list and know which recipe meets specific dietary requirements.
All these are available before you have to sign up and order a meal from Factor or Green Chef. You can quickly view the full nutritional information for each meal and compare your options between Factor and Green Chef.
Factor vs Green Chef – Packaging
You can recycle most of the packaging material provided by Factor and Green Chef. Both companies have dedicated time and effort to exploring more eco-friendly and sustainable options for their meal kits.
Considering how compact Factor’s packaging is in comparison to Green Chef’s, I want to talk more about their individual packaging details and how to dispose of them once they’ve arrived.
About Factor
The recyclable items in a typical Factor meal box are cardboard boxes, gel packs for insulation, and food containers – all of which are certified to be 100% recyclable.
However, you have to take some time off to figure out the recycling process in your vicinity. You might also have to drive out to the centers to drop in the plastic packaging, insulation, etc.
The plastic items that aren’t recyclable will be labeled as such. These can be plastic films, seals, or the gel inside an ice pack that you’re supposed to empty out in the sink before recycling the plastic packet.
About Green Chef
Green Chef offers a similar plan, but it has a higher number of plastic wrappers and containers as the ingredients are packed individually. Contact your local recycling center to keep your options open.
All the cardboard boxes, insulation, and plastic containers/seals that Green Chef provides can be easily recyclable. Packaging such as paper bags, small cardboard boxes, and any other paper items are ones you can compost at home or drop off at a local composting site.
Green Chef labels all the plastic packaging to inform you which is eligible for curbside picks, drop-offs, etc.
Factor vs Green Chef – Delivery
Factor delivers to all 48 contiguous states including Alaska and Hawaii. Since they have different courier services to get their orders delivered, they can easily send meal boxes consistently to varying locations.
The delivery time is quite flexible from 8 AM to 8 PM – a full 12-hour delivery window for busy bees!
Green Chef delivers to most of the states except Alaska and Hawaii. This limitation is because Green Chef does not use multiple courier services like Factor.
Exactly like Factor, Green Chef’s delivery window is flexible and accommodating to all kinds of workers. You can select your preferred time from 8 AM to 8 PM, and the delivery days are from Monday to Saturday. Green Chef also gives you the extra option to have your meal kits delivered to your workplace before 5 PM.
Factor vs Green Chef – Customer Service
You can chat, email, and get in touch with Factor via text, phone number, live chat, and social media. If you ask me, the best way to contact Factor to get your queries solved ASAP is via live chat.
They are available to chat with you in real time from 9 AM to 9 PM CT every Monday to Friday.
Similarly, you can call and email Green Chef at their customer service department. They are also available on Instagram and Facebook for a quick chat. Any specific questions about delivery, recipes, meal planning, cancellation, etc. will be effectively addressed. I did also find live chat details on Green Chef’s contact page. They are available from 9 AM to 7 PM EST every Monday to Sunday.
Factor vs Green Chef – Vegetarian Diet
Both Factor and Green Chef serve plant-based meals that are tasty and wholesome. Factor’s plant-based meals are dietitian-approved which ensures you get the right nutrients with every meal. This includes plant proteins, complex carbs, and healthy fats.
It so often happens that when you switch to a new kind of diet, you are unaware of what nutrient you’re missing out on that you were previously getting. In the case of switching to a plant-based diet, this can be consuming too little protein and too many carbs.
The solution? A good balance of leafy veggies, nuts, seeds, legumes, and grains not only boosts overall health but improves heart and gut health and stamina.
The chefs at Factor replicate other non-plant-based dishes so you won’t find vegetarian food dull or repetitive. One drawback to the meals provided by Factor is that they are not as vegan-friendly as Green Chef. You’ll find only 1 or 2 vegan recipes on Factor which is a bummer. Factor does offer more vegetarian options that are completely meat-free and wholesome to eat.
Moving on to Green Chef, they take a vegetarian and vegan diet very seriously – even more so than Factor to be honest.
You can order vegetarian-only recipes on Green Chef and get a whole host of organic and fresh ingredients. Nothing is frozen or processed if that’s what you’re worried about.
One thing that stands out about veg food is its shelf life. Compared to meat or seafood, storing a vegetable in the refrigerator does not necessarily prolong its shelf life. Vegetables taste best when cooked and consumed fresh.
With Green Chef, all the ingredients are preportioned and prepped, so you cook them right away without any wastage or leftovers. These recipes take less than 30 minutes to cook with an interesting blend of wholesome and power-packed ingredients like sweet potatoes, cauliflower, red peppers, apricots, dates, tofu, chickpea, etc.
Unlike Factor, Green Chef is best suited for vegans. Most of their vegetarian recipes are vegan-friendly as well, and you’ll quickly pick out the vegan meals while browsing the dishes.
Factor vs Green Chef – Protein Sources
Vegetarian Protein
Both these meals from Factor and Green Chef contain a host of delicious and nutritious vegetables.
I’ve mentioned these two in particular for the sake of comparison. You can select other vegetarian meals like the Curried Paneer by Green Chef or the Mushroom Marsala by Factor that are high in protein as well.
| Factor | Green Chef | |
| Vegetable Ratatouille with Mascarpone Polenta | Creamy Squash Linguine with Green Chard, Parmesan, Gremolata | |
| Protein | 15g | 34g |
| Calories | 470kcal | 1090kcal |
| Carbs | 45g | 84g |
| Fats | 28g | 70g |
| Cooking time | 2-3 minutes | 30 minutes |
| Dietary preferences | Vegetarian Low-Calorie | Veggie |
Vegan Protein
The vegan options are very limited, but the ones that are available are low calorie, gluten-free, and high in protein per serving.
| Factor | Green Chef | |
| Peanut Buddha Bowl | Maple-Miso Mushroom & Brussels Bowls | |
| Protein | 16g | 11g |
| Calories | 590kcal | 630kcal |
| Carbs | 67g | 82g |
| Fats | 31g | 30g |
| Cooking time | 2-5 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Dietary preferences | Vegan | Veggie Fast & Fit Gluten-Free |
Chicken Protein
Both feature delicious chicken recipes that are easy to make. From Factor’s menu, I found so many other exciting options. They even have shredded chicken,chicken risotto, Thai almond chicken, and so many other recipes.
I found that Green Chef has fewer chicken options than Factor, but their Creamy Mushroom Chicken is a top-rated and protein-rich meal.
| Factor | Green Chef | |
| Grilled Chicken a la Vodka | Herby Balsamic-Dijon Chicken | |
| Protein | 44g | 41g |
| Calories | 650kcal | 590kcal |
| Carbs | 15g | 16g |
| Fats | 47g | 40g |
| Cooking time | 2-5 minutes | 30 minutes |
| Dietary preferences | Keto | Keto Mediterranean Gluten-Free |
Beef/Pork Protein
Factor’s beef menu is quite interesting and low calorie. Combined with healthy veggies, it doesn’t feel too heavy nor are they loaded with unhealthy fats! I have their Honey Maple BBQ Beef recipe in mind.
Green Chef’s Spicy Beef & Broccoli Noodle Bowl looks very appetizing. It’s packed with proteins as it swaps grain noodles with broccoli noodles. These are super difficult to make at home from scratch!
| Factor | Green Chef | |
| YiaYia’s Greek Beef Bowl | BBQ Pork Meatloaves & Cabbage Apple Slaw | |
| Protein | 24g | 30g |
| Calories | 500kcal | 810kcal |
| Carbs | 12g | 71g |
| Fats | 40g | 47g |
| Cooking time | 2-5 minutes | 35 minutes |
| Dietary preferences | Keto Low-Calorie | Gluten-Free |
Seafood Protein
Both Factor and Green Chef have limited seafood options, but the ones they do have are delicious, nutritious, and super easy to make. Unfortunately, Factor does not offer any more seafood recipes than the one mentioned below.
I did find that Green Chef has a recipe with beef and shrimp in a single meal! It’s also a Chef Select recipe which means it’s one of their top picks for meat lovers.
| Factor | Green Chef | |
| Garlic Herb Salmon with Celery Root Mash & Roasted Cauliflower | Lemon-Herb Shrimp & Tomato Orzo with Green Beans & Parmesan Cheese | |
| Protein | 36g | 36g |
| Calories | 660kcal | 810kcal |
| Carbs | 11g | 81g |
| Fats | 54g | 39g |
| Cooking time | 2-5 minutes | 30 minutes |
| Dietary preferences | Keto | None |
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. How Easy Is the Sign-Up Procedure on Factor and Green Chef?
Starting a subscription with Factor and Green Chef is unbelievably easy. There is only one way to go about it, and that is by adding your email address, zip code, and payment information.
A great thing about both services is that you can view their entire menu and the next week’s menu before signing up!
Factor’s menu lets you view 3 weeks of meal plans in advance, which is a great way to convert curious browsers into loyal customers.
Green Chef’s menu displays a whole month’s menu – that’s 4 weeks in total! You know exactly what to expect, and it also proves that Green Chef never repeats the same meal twice, at least not for an entire month!
Apart from their website, you can also sign up through their mobile app. Once you enter the zip code, it’ll let you know the shipping fee and other information. Following that, you can quickly select the meals you want and any add-ons if Factor has any on its current menu. Everything you need to see and know before placing your order is on their app and website. You can manage all your orders using the phone app, which includes adding/removing meals before the cutoff time.
Green Chef also has a phone app that you can sign up on and place or track an order. You can also select how many meals and servings you want each week. The shipping fee is fixed, and you can make last-minute adjustments even after placing your order on Green Chef. Just make sure you do so before the cutoff time.
2. Is Managing Subscription/Orders Easy on Factor and Green Chef?
Managing your subscription and orders on Factor and Green Chef couldn’t get any easier. Swapping meals, modifying placed orders, skipping meals for next week, and switching your plan size – all these things are possible with both services!
On Factor, you can skip your meals for the next week before the cutoff time. The cutoff time for making any last-minute changes is 12 AM CT on all Wednesdays. This could be the Wednesday before the delivery week.
On Green Chef, you can skip your meals 5-7 days before delivery. You can skip as many meals as you want 4 weeks in advance.
For the rest of it, such as changing delivery address, modifying orders, etc., the cutoff time is 7 days before the delivery at 12:00 AM EST.
3. Are They Allergy-Friendly?
Factor may not exclude common foods that cause allergies from their menu. Even if some recipes happen to not have those allergy-causing ingredients, there might be cross-contamination as Factor does not use a separate facility to cook allergy-friendly meals.
It says so on their website that Factor processes all wheat, milk, soy, eggs, tree nuts, peanuts, fish, and shellfish in the same facility as all other ingredients.
Having said that, Factor continues to take allergies into consideration by declaring beforehand the allergens in each recipe. You’ll know exactly what ingredient is in a Factor recipe: nuts, gluten, grains, seeds, dairy, etc.
It’s important to read all the ingredients of the recipe before ordering.
Green Chef does the same, and unfortunately, is not very allergy-friendly either. Cross-contamination is a risk so if your allergy is very severe, it’s best to avoid both services altogether.
Factor – Pros and Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Antibiotic, GMO, soy-free, and gluten-free ingredients. | Since you don’t cook the meal yourself, you have no control over what goes in every meal. |
| No preservatives, sugar, or artificial colorants in sauces, marinades, etc. | Not the best choice for large families. |
| Flexible weekly menu with 30+ dishes every week. | Very limited vegetarian/vegan options. |
| Different diet meal plans for keto, weight loss, and vegetarians. | Very limited seafood options. |
| Faster to cook as the meals are already prepared. | |
| You pay less on the minimum order. | |
| Sometimes, add-ons like juices or desserts are included. | |
| Wholesome recipes with proteins, healthy fats, complex carbs, and other essential nutrients. |
Green Chef – Pros and Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Best choice for health-conscious eaters. | Very expensive as a long-term investment. |
| More dietary meal plans for keto, paleo, low-calorie, gluten-free, etc. | A shipping fee is charged on all orders. |
| Organic-certified ingredients for all meal plans. | Not as many recipes per week as Factor. |
| Home-cooked meals in less than 30 minutes. | Some basic cooking skill is required. |
| The packaging is recyclable and 100% eco-friendly. | |
| Adaptable menu with new recipes every week. | |
| Some of the most delicious meals you can make at home without a fuss. |
Conclusion
You can either enjoy food straight out of the box with the help of Factor or choose Green Chef which serves meal kits that contain everything you need to make a new recipe.
Time-wise, Factor is the faster service, and it does not need you to do any kind of prep work, pan-frying, or any kind of handwork for putting together a meal. Green Chef does, and it’s designed for larger families because of its bigger portion size, whereas Factor is for a bachelor or bachelorette as all their meals are single-serve.
Clearly, you have to pick the best based on what you’re looking for. Factor has great long-term value because it’s more affordable. On the other hand, Green Chef is designed for people who don’t mind paying a little extra for nutritious, home-cooked meals that take less than 30 minutes to serve!
