Hitting your calorie and macro targets doesn’t mean your diet is nutritionally complete. Most apps don’t flag micronutrient gaps unless you’re actively looking at that layer. A diet can be on-target for calories and protein while consistently low in calcium, magnesium, or B12 — and only a micronutrient-tracking app like Cronometer would surface that.
Best for Weight Loss Goals
So I started keeping a running list of my favorite cheap meal ideas. The caveat here is that I ABSOLUTELY DO NOT MAKE BLAND MEALS… EVER. For all of the sauces included in this meal (alfredo sauce, basil pesto butter, tomato cream sauce, and sun-dried tomato pesto) I expected a bit more flavor and richness. I felt the orzo, broccoli, and alfredo sauce portion fell a bit flat and didn’t meet my expectations for a tasty and satisfying pasta side. Whether you’re looking for information about calories, carbohydrates, vitamins, or something else, this powerful tool has everything you need to get accurate and up-to-date data about your diet.
Health Categories To Explore
What is unique was that, during our testing, almost every meal was ready to get plated in 15 minutes. That’s because almost everything that arrived in the weekly boxes came prepped—peeled, chopped, and marinated—so all that was really left to do was heat the pans and cook the food. If you’ve used lots of meal kits like we have, you may have noticed that recipes start to run together from one to the next—a lemon chicken, a roasted pork loin, a veggie quesadilla. But Blue Apron will present you with some new ideas like honey chipotle hot chicken, hoisin duck, and peanut udon, or tofu katsu. Despite more novel recipes, we rarely had to use anything from our pantry to fill out the ingredient lists. Eliminating carbs and sugars for 10 days won’t fix everything, but it is a powerful tool to help build healthier eating habits.
Does the app work with other diets besides keto?
These keto meal kits are portioned to have 15 grams of net carbs or less and 550 calories or less and start at $11.50 a serving, making them cheaper—and healthier—than most takeout options. Most meals follow a simple formula (protein, vegetable and grain), but several standout dishes, particularly the meat and seafood options, deliver bold, satisfying flavors. Each single-serving meal takes just two to three minutes in the microwave and averages around 500 calories. Oven-heating instructions are included, too, though the 30-minute cook time somewhat defeats Tempo’s fast, ready-to-eat appeal.
Healthline’s picks for the best meal delivery services
I also appreciate that all of Factor’s meals are made without gluten-containing ingredients. That said, the meals are prepared in a facility that processes wheat, eggs, fish, milk, peanuts, sesame, shellfish, soy, and tree nuts, so it isn’t safe for anyone with severe allergies. Like many prepared meal services, you can’t swap or remove ingredients from the meals, so keep this in mind.
It’s about hitting the right macro ratios consistently, and eating the foods you enjoy while doing it. When you use a macro counting app that’s designed with these principles in mind, you’re not just tracking food, you’re optimizing your results. Hungryroot is highlighted as the best meal kit option for convenience in 2026.
If you’re the type of person who likes to plan ahead, even when it comes to meals, KetoDiet has got you covered. You can create and customize your own diet plan by using some of the hundreds of meals included in the application, but you can also create your custom meals if you’re feeling especially creative. Additionally, KetoDiet provides you with several quick 1-ingredient snacks to stop your cravings, restaurant meals, and barcode scanning to identify branded products easier and add them to your daily log. Although many promote the idea that you can eat as much as you want while you’re on keto, as long as you respect the proportions embraced by the diet, this can actually be a bad idea. Generally speaking, you may find it difficult to overeat when almost everything you eat consists of fat and protein. However, overeating on keto is not unheard of, and you could easily fall through the cracks of consuming way too many calories compared to your regular intake.
Other meal delivery services we tried
Choose from myriad dietary options like keto-friendly or gluten-smart, and sort meals by prep time with the “oven ready” and “30 mins or less” categories. Kristen Smith, MS, RDN, LD, spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, notes that it’s best to peruse the menu before choosing a meal service. “Like any meal you’d prepare for your family, seek out a service that offers meals with a well-rounded nutritional profile, incorporating lean protein, whole grains and a variety of fruits or vegetables,” she says.
#6: Stupid Simple Keto Diet App
For weight loss, the generator creates meal plans that help manage your calorie deficit while providing sufficient nutrients and protein to maintain muscle mass. For muscle gain, it ensures a moderately increased calorie intake along with balanced macros to support intense workouts and muscle recovery. After creating your food plan, Foodabi lets you create shopping lists based on meals and periods of time. For instance, you can take all the meals that the app has planned is unimeal legit for you this week and see all the ingredients you will need to buy if you plan on preparing all of them.
Trifecta is our pick for the best gluten-free meal delivery service. Not only does the company tout its clean, organic ingredients, but all meals are also completely gluten-free. Their meals are minimally processed and avoid extras, like added sugar. The brand currently offers five meal plans, including paleo, plant-based, GLP-1 friendly, and more.
Best for Weight Loss: Eat This Much
Apps that include community features, like user-submitted recipes or forums, further enrich the experience by fostering shared discovery and problem-solving. Advanced users may benefit from apps that track ketone levels, such as Keto-Mojo, which syncs blood or breath ketone readings with macro data. This feature helps correlate dietary choices with ketosis levels, providing actionable insights. For instance, if your ketone levels drop after increasing protein intake, the app highlights the need to adjust your macros accordingly.
While Plate Joy is not a keto-specific app, it does provide users with nutritionist-developed keto meal plans, recipes, and grocery lists, making meal prepping and planning a whole lot easier. The pricing plan starts at $8 a month, but can quickly get a lot more expensive. Our editors tested these meal kit services multiple times over the course of two years to find the best meal delivery service for families. Although they’re experts at curating gift guides and testing products, they’re not culinary professionals. They’re home cooks with busy schedules and regular kitchens—just like you and the meal-prepper in your family.
- Each meal comes with clear reheating instructions, typically involving a few minutes in the microwave or oven.
- Whether through customization, innovation, or integration, these tools empower users to stay on track without feeling deprived.
- This fat-burning effect can lead to rapid weight loss, especially in the initial days, as you deplete your glycogen stores; however, this is primarily due to water weight loss (7).
- We chose Home Chef as the best meal delivery service because its weekly menu offers over 60 dishes, which vary from ready-to-heat microwave and oven meals to partial or full meal kits to prep and cook.
- Download your free starter meal plan or check out our free weight loss starter guide for even more support.
- Our meal kit review testers were impressed with how tasty the meals were, even though they were simple and easy to make.
Heart-Healthy Foods To Add to Your Grocery List
Unlike other services on our list, you can choose to receive a mix of two- and four-serving meals, as well as add additional meals, like breakfasts and lunches, to your order. Purple Carrot makes it easy to eat more plant-based meals by offering creative flavor and ingredient combinations as well as a line of prepared meals for dinner in a flash. To get started, you’ll first complete a quiz, which asks questions about your reasons for choosing a meal kit service, your food preferences, and how many meals you’d like to receive each week. Box size options include two to six meals, with two, four, or six servings each.
Are frozen prepared meals healthy?
Protein is the one thing you can’t afford to skip when you’re eating less. Whether you’re following Weight Watchers points, taking a GLP-1 medication like Ozempic or Wegovy, or just trying to lose weight by cutting calories, the importance of protein is clear. Whichever diet or eating pattern you choose, it’s best to eat a variety of nutrient-rich foods and practice portion management. Still, more research is needed to learn about the long-term benefits and risks of the keto diet and other low carb approaches to eating. Diabetes nutrition experts also encourage a variety of heart-healthy fats, including monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids. These can help reduce your cholesterol levels to support heart health.