The average meal delivery service in 2026 costs $10.21 per serving, up 5% from last year. MealFan tracks pricing across 15 active services on a quarterly basis.

Dinnerly remains the cheapest option at $4.69/serving, while Gobble tops out at $14.99/serving. The highest-rated service in MealFan’s testing is Factor with a 8.5/10 score based on our 6-Factor Scoring System.

For a household of two ordering 3 meals per week, the average monthly cost is $307 including shipping. That’s roughly 37% less than the average American’s $475/month grocery spend, but you’re getting fewer total meals. The real savings come from replacing $15-20 delivery app orders, not replacing your entire grocery budget.

Price increases have been modest in 2026. Most services raised prices 3-6% year-over-year, with Blue Apron (+8%) and Freshly (+10%) seeing the steepest increases. Budget options like Dinnerly (+2%) and EveryPlate (+3%) kept increases minimal.

Meal delivery services fall into distinct categories, and pricing varies significantly between them.

Meal Kit (avg $9.82/serving): HelloFresh, Home Chef, Blue Apron

Budget Meal Kit (avg $5.39/serving): Dinnerly, EveryPlate

Ready-Made (avg $11.49/serving): Factor

Chef-Prepared (avg $11.99/serving): CookUnity

Meal Kit (Organic) (avg $11.99/serving): Green Chef

Organic Meal Kit (avg $11.49/serving): Sun Basket

Plant-Based Meal Kit (avg $11.49/serving): Purple Carrot

Grocery + Recipes (avg $9.99/serving): Hungryroot

Smoothies + Bowls (avg $8.99/serving): Daily Harvest

15-Min Meal Kit (avg $12.49/serving): Gobble

Weight Loss (avg $12.49/serving): Nutrisystem

Weight Loss (Doctor-Designed) (avg $10.49/serving): BistroMD

For context, here’s how meal delivery stacks up against other food spending in 2026.

The average American household spends $475/month on groceries (USDA moderate cost plan). A meal delivery subscription for two people at 3 meals/week costs $307/month on average. That’s 65% of the grocery budget, but only covers 18 meals out of roughly 90 per month.

Compared to delivery apps like DoorDash and Uber Eats, where the average order is $35-45 including fees and tip, meal delivery services are roughly 60-70% cheaper per meal. Three DoorDash dinners per week for two people runs about $420-540/month.

The budget meal kits (Dinnerly at $4.69/serving, EveryPlate at $4.99/serving) are the only options that compete directly with home cooking on price. Everything else is a convenience premium. And that’s fine. Just know what you’re paying for.

MealFan’s pricing data comes from first-hand testing, not press releases or marketing pages. I’m Eric Sornoso, founder of MealFan. I’ve been ordering from meal delivery services since 2019 and have tested over 40 services with my own money.

How we collect pricing data: Every service on this page has been ordered and tested by the MealFan team. We verify prices by placing actual orders, not by scraping websites (which often show promotional pricing that doesn’t reflect real costs). Shipping costs are confirmed at checkout.

MealFan’s 6-Factor Scoring System: Every service is rated on Taste (based on 15-25 meals tested), Value (cost per serving vs. competitors and grocery shopping), Variety (menu size and rotation frequency), Ease (prep time accuracy and recipe clarity), Delivery (reliability, packaging quality, freshness on arrival), and Dietary Options (range of plans and restriction support). Each factor is scored 1.0 to 10.0 based on personal testing.

Update schedule: This index is updated quarterly. Individual brand reviews are updated whenever services make meaningful pricing or menu changes. All price data on this page was last verified on 2026-03-06.