Take the Guess Work Out of Eating for Weight Loss With These Meal Delivery Services

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There are so many factors involved in weight loss that the process can feel overwhelming. But at its core, losing weight typically involves amping up exercise and focusing on eating a nourishing diet (often with a calorie deficit). If making nutritious meals that meet your needs is a challenge, it’s understandable to consider a weight loss meal delivery service to help you meet your goals.

“Many people struggle with estimating the right portion sizes when preparing their meals, which can lead to over- or undereating,” says Scott Keatley, R.D., co-owner of Keatley Medical Nutrition Therapy. “Meal delivery services typically provide meals with carefully measured portions, which can help individuals stick to a calorie-controlled diet.”

“Calories are one of the primary factors in weight gain or weight loss,” Jessica Cording, R.D., author of The Little Book of Game-Changers, previously told Prevention. “If somebody is consuming fewer calories than they burn, that can result in weight loss.”

Meet the experts: Keri Gans, R.D., is the author of The Small Change Diet; Scott Keatley, R.D., is co-owner of Keatley Medical Nutrition Therapy; Vanessa Rissetto, RD, is CEO and co-founder of Culina Health

These services usually provide detailed nutritional information to make it easier to track what you’re eating, Keatley says. There’s also a huge convenience factor, says Keri Gans, R.D., author of The Small Change Diet. “The continuity of having meals delivered weekly to your home can take the stress away from deciding last minute what to eat, especially for dinner,” she says. “It can also help you cut back on take-out,” which may make it harder to reach a calorie deficit or meet your nutritional needs.

Our top picks

Padding a meal delivery service with fresh fruits and vegetables can also ensure you get essential nutrients, Keatley says. Interested in trying this dietary hack? These weight loss meal delivery services are consistent favorites.

Before starting a weight loss journey, consult your primary care physician or a registered dietitian.

Factor

Factor is a service that Prevention Deputy Editor Emily Goldman has personally tried and loved, and one that came up with the dietitians we consulted. “Factor tends to give the most guidance with their meal plan, which can help explain the ‘why’ of what you're eating,” Keatley says. The company provides fresh (not frozen) meals that are individually portioned and ready to eat, making things as simple as possible. Foods are created by a team of registered dietitians and chefs—and you can schedule a complimentary consultation with one of those chefs to pick the best meals for you. Those meals start at $11 a pop. Factor has a weekly menu rotation with more than 34 meals available a week. You can narrow things down by choosing a plan that focuses on specifics, like keto, protein-heavy, and flexitarian meals. The company also has Calorie Smart plans that are 550 calories or less.

Dinnerly

Meal delivery services can get pricey fast, but Dinnerly keeps its options affordable. Meals start as low as $5, and this company keeps things simple. You’ll choose between two and six recipes a week, and Dinnerly will ship you the ingredients you need. Each recipe has six or fewer ingredients, and everything can be made in under a half hour. There’s a low-calorie meal plan, along with options for specialized eating preferences. Choose from more than 100 dishes that rotate each week. Dinnerly will also make suggestions of recipes you might like based on your previous choices.

BistroMD

The big draw of BistroMD is that it was created by a medical doctor. This service uses frozen meals that are designed to help you lose weight, but the company also offers a range of specific plans based on health conditions and dietary preferences. BistroMD also has registered dietitians available to help you create a specialized diet plan. Choose from more than 150 meals from a variety of plans (starting at $110) including the Standard plan (in men’s and women’s options), Diabetic Plan, Gluten-Free plan, and Heart Healthy Plan. There’s even a Menopause Plan to help meet the needs of people going through this life transition.

Green Chef

Green Chef is ideal for those who love to cook, but don’t have the time or energy to figure out recipes daily. This company says it uses organic and sustainable ingredients shipped in meal kits (starting at $12/meal) that you then toss together to create a meal. Users select a plan based on eating preferences—there is a Calorie Smart plan with meals that don’t exceed 650 calories—along with options for keto, gluten-free, and plant-based preferences. All of the meals can be assembled in 45 minutes or less, which admittedly may take more time than other meal kits. Most of the company’s packaging is recyclable.

HelloFresh

HelloFresh has been in the meal delivery game for a while. The company focuses on easy-to-follow recipes with pre-portioned ingredients and clear recipes. Those pre-portioned ingredients make cooking a breeze. While HelloFresh isn’t a weight-loss service, the company has a Fit and Wholesome plan with meals that are around 650 calories a pop. Meal kits, which start at $10 a meal, only come for two or more people, but you can have leftovers if you’re cooking for one.

Hungryroot

Hungryroot bills itself more as an online grocery store than a meal plan, but the company offers up recipes—and tells you the ingredients you’ll need—on a rotating basis each week. You fill out a survey of your eating preferences along with how often you want meals. From there, you pick the ones you want each week and Hungryroot delivers the ingredients to your home. If you find that meals are piling up, you can pause deliveries or do less on a given week. Hungryroot offers a slew of customizable plans, including low-carb, keto diet, or portion control, along with the ability to weed out certain ingredients. Prices vary based on how many meals you choose, as well as add-ons, but plans start at $65 a week.

Trifecta

Trifecta’s meals are deliberately low-calorie, ranging from 430 to 490 calories a pop. The brand offers different plans, including ones that are paleo, keto, Whole30, vegan, and vegetarian. Whatever plan you choose, you’ll get specialized macros to match. You can pick from more than 100 protein-heavy meals (starting at $15), choosing delivery options of five, seven, 10, or 14 entrees per shipment. If breakfast is a pain point for you, the company offers those as well. Meals come to your door in vacuum-sealed containers that will hold for up to 10 days in your fridge (but for several months in your freezer). A corresponding app lets you create a personalized plan to help you reach your goals.

Marley Spoon

Martha Stewart’s Marley Spoon is a newer option on the market and it’s already getting praise. “Marley Spoon by Martha Stewart provides the most delicious and easiest to make of the meal delivery systems,” Keatley says. This service is a meal kit, so it ships ingredients and simple recipes to your door and you do the cooking. Marley Spoon’s meals can be made in 20 minutes or less and usually feature six ingredients or less. You pick whether you’re feeding two or four people, along with your choice of two to six meals a week. Recipes include things like Garlic-Herb Steak & Potatoes and Martha’s Best Chicken & Lemon Butter Orzo, with the option to choose low-calorie meals, along with ones that meet eating preferences, like vegetarian, gluten-free, and low-carb. Plans start at $64 per week.

Fresh N Lean

As the name implies, Fresh N Lean offers fresh (not frozen) meals that are 500 calories or less. The brand’s meal plans feature organic ingredients in ready-made dishes you can heat and eat. Choose from more than 100 meals a week—nutrition information for each is stated on the Fresh N Lean website. Plans include Keto, Paleo, Vegan, Low-Carb Vegan, and Protein+. In addition to meals, you can order snacks to pad things out. Meals start at $10 a pop.

Purple Carrot

Purple Carrot has emerged as the meal delivery service for people on a plant-based diet. The company offers innovative recipes that are vegan. While most are naturally low calorie, Purple Carrot also gives you the option of choosing options that are 600 calories or less. Choose from fully prepared meals (which are also available at Whole Foods and Target) or meal kits for nights when you want to do the cooking yourself. The company also has specialized “Plantry” items that you can tack onto your delivery. Meals start at $11 per serving.

Daily Harvest

A favorite of Goldman’s, Daily Harvest now offers not one, but two blood-sugar-friendly options for those monitoring their glucose. Goldman tried the Diabetes-Friendly box (though, she notes that anything can be diabetes-friendly, with moderation). The box contains 14 items, including smoothies, grain bowls, pastas, and flatbreads.

“I love the smoothies; there are so many that are under 200 calories and easy to cover with insulin, due to high fiber content in the smoothie making blood sugar spikes nonexistent,” Goldman says. “The grain bowls are tasty, but higher in carbohydrates, if that’s something you’re concerned about, you may want to avoid.”

For those looking to avoid blood sugar spikes, the Blood-Sugar Friendly options may be more your speed.

Can meal delivery services help you lose weight?

A big draw of using a meal delivery service to help with weight loss is that it can help with portion control, says Vanessa Rissetto, R.D., CEO and co-founder of Culina Health. Meaning, you don’t have to worry about how much of a meal you’re eating, because it’s already portioned out for you.

Variety can be helpful, too. “New things every day keep people more engaged for longer as opposed to having to come up with ideas on your own,” Rissetto says. And, of course, the convenience factor is helpful, Keatley says.

What to look for in a weight loss meal delivery service

There are a few elements to keep in mind when shopping for a weight loss meal delivery service.

• Nutrition: “Make sure that they provide the calorie amount for each item,” Gans says. “It is also important to be able to see the entire nutrition profile so you can better choices for overall satiety.” Dishes that provide a mix of fiber, protein, and healthy fats are ideal so that you aren’t hungry an hour later, she says.

• Taste: Everyone is different, but you want to make sure you’re investing in something that you’ll actually eat. “If you don’t enjoy the meals, it could be a total waste of money,” Gans says.

• Customization: This isn’t a requirement, but it’s a nice perk. “Some services allow you to customize your meals based on dietary preferences or restrictions, which can be beneficial if, unlike me, you cannot eat everything,” Keatley says. “Being able to select lower-calorie, low-carb, or high-protein options, for example, can align the service with your specific weight loss goals.”

How we chose the best meal delivery services for weight loss

To choose the best meal delivery services for weight loss, we consulted Keri Gans, R.D., is the author of The Small Change Diet; Scott Keatley, R.D., is co-owner of Keatley Medical Nutrition Therapy; Vanessa Rissetto, R.D., is CEO and co-founder of Culina Health, for their input on what to look for in these food services, along with what to avoid. We then looked at the most popular meal delivery services on the market and analyzed each based on elements like ingredients, variety, ease of use, and value. Because feedback is important, we also pored over reviews from real customers to make sure we had the best sense of how these services perform for a range of users.

Why trust us

For more than 70 years, Prevention has been a leading provider of trustworthy health information, empowering readers with practical strategies to improve their physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Our editors interview medical experts to help guide our health-focused product selections. Prevention also examines hundreds of reviews—and often conducts personal testing done by our staff—to help you make informed decisions.

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