There are things to consider before signing up for a meal delivery service. Here you can find my tips and ideas.
We all wonder if a meal delivery service is worth the money and if it is not cheaper to just go to the grocery store and buy the ingredients and cook at home.
Although in general, it is more affordable to do that there are also circumstances that it might be a good option to have a look at a meal delivery service that provides you with a meal straight to your doorstep.
Table of Contents
Types of meal delivery services
I am not talking about ordering a pizza from your local pizzeria but ordering a meal with all the nutrients we need.
There are basically two types of meals you can order.
- Complete prepared meals.
- Meal kits
The first one all you have to do is heat them up and you are ready to eat.
The second one needs some fresh ingredients that you have to add. This can be the meat, fresh vegetables, or many other things depending on the flavor of the meal.
Of course, both have the option to order meals with meats or fully vegan meals and everything in between.
Recommendations
It is very hard and time-consuming to find that one service that fits your special lifestyle or diet. Luckily we did all the searching for you. Maybe there are people in your family or work that can give you tips on what type of service they have used to deliver their food.
Know your budget
The cost of a prepared meal can add up. It is important to stay within your budget. That does not mean that cheaper is bad. Ordering some expensive seafood or ordering a meal with chicken can make a big price difference.
Delivery options
The delivery options need to fit your schedule. If your frozen meal is delivered early in the morning and you are not home too early in the evening that would not be a good option.
Maybe having a full week of meals delivered on Saturday would be a better option.
Cancelation process
You must be able to cancel your deliveries easily. I have read that sometimes it varies from weekly to monthly cancelation and from online to by phone.
Selection and ingredients
It is very important that you can choose from a variety of meals and ingredients. Nothing is more disappointing than ordering meals and you find out that the flavor and ingredients are not your personal preference.
Flexibility
Sometimes all you like to do is temporarily place to hold on to your delivery without canceling. It is most of the time easy to find that type of information on their websites.
Allergen and food preferences
If you have a food allergen is it very important to make sure that the food does not contain the ingredient and the food is prepared without being in contact with that ingredient.
This means that you must be able to order food that comes with the ingredients that you prefer.
Nutrition
Most meal delivery services have on their websites before ordering a table with the nutritional values of the meals. It is in many cases, as you can read here on the Factor 75 page, also include on the label of the food that is delivered.
This makes it easier for people who like to keep track of their calorie intake to keep up with that.
Be Prepared
Before looking into any food delivery service prepare yourself by writing down all the things that are important for you in a meal or in a service that delivers your meal.
This list might be helpful to prepare you and save you some time on digging around too much.
Summary
Using a meal delivery service can be very convenient and that is why most people use them. Just realize that you pay for that convenience.
In general, the quality is very good for the simple reason that with so many options online no company can afford a bad reputation.
Cooking from scratch at home is probably cheaper but also comes with some cons. Many times you need an ingredient in small amounts. However, the packaging contains a lot more than you need.
This can mean that your waste the rest of that product in the long run if you do not use it more than one time.
That is why you have to be even more careful with meal kit delivery services. Those are prone to using a small number of ingredients that you don’t use too much.
Although there are people that eat delivered meals about every day most of us use them for the days we have no time to cook. That can be after a busy day at the office or because of activities at night that do not leave enough time to cook at home.
