The 9 best meal delivery services for weight loss of 2024, tested by experts | Fortune Recommends Health (2024)

Not everyone has the time, energy, or skills to prepare healthy, delicious meals. Some look for truck-to-door meal delivery with easy-to-prep foods that taste great, make healthy eating more doable, and take the drain out of cooking and clean-up. Meal delivery services are quickly multiplying, and picking the right one is not so straightforward, especially if you want a service that can actually help you lose weight.

To narrow down our top picks for the best weight loss meal delivery services, our team tested over 40 of the best meal delivery services that deliver food and convenience right to your doorstep. We ranked each company based on their ordering process, taste, ease of preparation, portion size, ingredient quality, variety, meal customization, nutrition facts visibility, shipping, sustainability, and customer service.

Medical disclaimer: This article is intended for educational and informational purposes only. It is not intended as a substitute for medical advice. For health advice, contact a licensed healthcare provider.

Our picks for the best meal delivery services for weight loss

• Best overall: Trifecta
• Best vegetarian: Vegetarian Diet-to-Go
• Best value: Nutrisystem
• Best meal kit: Home Chef
• Best prepared: Fuel Meals Weight Loss Plan
• Best keto: Factor75
• Best frozen: Personal Trainer Food
• Best vegan: Purple Carrot
• Best organic: Green Chef

Compare meal delivery services

	Trifecta	Vegetarian Diet-to-Go	Nutrisystem	Home Chef	Fuel Meals Weight Loss Plan	Factor75	Personal Trainer Food	Purple Carrot	Green Chef
Rating	4.1/5	3.8/5	2.9/5	4/5	3.1/5	4.3/5	3/5	4.4/5	3.2/5
Cost	Starts at $15 per meal	Starts at $9.71 per meal	Starts at $9.64 per day	Starts at $9.95 per meal	$14 per meal	$13 per meal	Starts at $6.59 per meal	Starts at $11 per meal	$13 per meal
Type	Prepared	Prepared	Prepared	Prepared & Kits	Prepared	Prepared	Prepared	Prepared & Kits	Meal Kits
Delivery Area	Contiguous U.S.	Contiguous U.S.	Contiguous U.S.	Contiguous U.S.	All 50 States	Contiguous U.S.	Contiguous U.S.	Contiguous U.S.	Contiguous U.S.
Frozen	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	Yes	No	No

Best overall meal delivery service for weight loss: Trifecta

Why we like Trifecta as best overall

Trifecta goes the extra mile in providing top-notch, nutritious foods. The company gives special attention to offering fresh, organic foods; responsibly sourced ingredients grown using ethical farming practices; and nutritionally adequate meals.

While Trifecta targets performance athletes, you don’t have to be one to order from their four meal plans, each crafted by dietitians and chefs. The meal plans include clean eating, paleo and whole 30, keto, and plant-based. Most meals are between 350 and 550 calories to align with your health goals. Our testers liked that the meals came vacuum-packed to maintain freshness. They rated the freshness and quality of the ingredients 4 out of 5 stars.

Customization is limited, though. If there are three meals you like, and you want to order 10 of those, that’s not an option.

Kate Meier, a certified personal trainer, Olympic weightlifting coach, and team product tester, tried a wide variety of entrees. Her favorite meals were the egg scrambles from the breakfast menu. However, she wished the portions were bigger.

“I tried breakfast scrambles with brisket, bacon, and sausage. They all had a lot of flavor, but they didn’t keep me full,” she noted. “I think the portion sizes were a little too small for me.”

Another product tester, however, found the keto meals satiating and gave Trifecta 5 out of 5 stars for portion sizes.

If you’re also concerned about the portions being too small, you can toss a few a la carte items into your cart. For example, you can stock up on extra protein, carbs, or vegetables to keep you full and on track to hit your weight loss goals.

Unique to Trifecta are its high-protein, macro-balanced meals—meaning they have a good balance of proteins, carbs, and fat. Adequate protein intake, in particular, can aid weight loss by increasing fullness. ( 1 )

You have easy access to the nutrition information listed on each meal option on the website, which helps you easily keep track of your macros if that’s important to you.

Further, Trifecta helps support weight loss with its app that supplies intuitive weight loss tools, such as a macro tracker and food logger. There are also personalized plans to get you closer to meeting your health goals. Additionally, your meal purchase gets you access to their online community and nutrition experts for more support and help.

Trifecta also stands apart from their competitors due to their low-sodium meal options. Their meals contain around 500 milligrams of sodium, while those from other companies contain 1,000 milligrams of sodium or more.

For best results, our product testers recommend reheating the meals using a skillet or pan instead of microwaving them. That’s something to consider if you want to pack meals for work and don’t have an oven in the office.

Another drawback our testers noted was the packaging, which they found wasteful. According to Kate:

However, according to Trifecta’s website, they plan to make all their packaging biodegradable in the next two years.

What customers are saying

On Trustpilot, Trifecta only has an average of 1.6 stars out of 5. Reviews are split, with some customers liking the taste of the meals.

“Started supplementing my own home-cooked meals with Trifecta, to keep me on track and avoiding fast food cheat meals,” says one reviewer named Curtis K.

Other customers called the meals bland and expressed disappointment in the cancellation process.

“The food is subpar,” Sam V. wrote on Trustpilot. “I tried to cancel five days before my shipment date and was told I couldn’t and they refused to refund me. Had to go to my bank to get my money back.”

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Best vegetarian meal delivery service for weight loss: Vegetarian Diet-to-Go

Why we like Vegetarian Diet-to-Go as best vegetarian

Vegetarian Diet-to-Go, a plant-based meal delivery company, steals the spotlight for the best vegetarian meal delivery service for weight loss. Delivering meals you can reheat in a matter of minutes, Vegetarian Diet-to-Go can help guide you toward your weight loss goals. Research shows that plant-based diets may improve weight in some people by lowering fat and calorie intake. ( 3 )

Vegetarian Diet-to-Go’s rotating five-week menu features portioned breakfasts, lunches, and dinners. Examples of meals you’ll receive include mushroom strata, salads and wraps, and eggplant parmesan. Chefs and registered dietitians work together to create these veggie-packed meals.

On average, the meals have 210 to 580 calories each. They also contain meat-free protein sources from foods like beans, eggs, and soy to help complement your weight loss journey. All meals are flash-frozen before delivery. When they arrive, you can store them in the fridge according to the product’s packaging.

An editorial team member who tried Vegetarian Diet-to-Go said the meals were “hit or miss.” However, she loved the mushroom ravioli despite there only being two ravioli in the meal.

Our product tester also called out inconsistent portion sizes. “Some of the meals were too small for my liking, but others were so filling that I couldn’t finish them,” she said.

Overall, she rated the taste 3 stars out of 5 and the portion sizes 3.5 stars.

Thankfully, if you’re a first-time customer, you can receive 20% off your first week, which can help you save money on groceries . Our tester also had positive experiences with the entire customer service staff. When she called to ask a few questions, an agent responded quickly. Plus, if you don’t like your order, the company promises to make it right or refund your money.

And if you need more support with your weight loss goals, you can take advantage of a one-on-one session with a health coach, included with your purchase.

What customers are saying

Only two people have left reviews on Trustpilot, and both gave the company 1 star. One reviewer didn’t like having to enter his credit card information just to view the menu (though it appears the website’s functionality has since been updated).

The second reviewer, named Lucy S., didn’t like the taste of the meals. She said the food “isn’t very filling, and the vegetables are repetitive and soggy.”

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Best value meal delivery service for weight loss: Nutrisystem

Why we like Nutrisystem as best value

You’ll get a lot of value out of Nutrisystem, whose plans start at $9.64 per day. For the same amount, many other meal delivery services only offer one meal, so Nutrisystem can be a more cost-effective choice.

Nutrisystem provides four meals and snacks per day that total 1,200-1,500 calories as a standard range. According to their live chat customer support, you can order breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks for five or seven days per week. Each plan is four weeks long, so you’ll have plenty of meals to get you through the month.

Nutrisystem offers various weight-loss plans that cater to men, women, couples, those over 50, and people with diabetes. You have many options to choose from, including pizzas, mashed potatoes, pasta, mac and cheese, and quesadillas, allowing you to enjoy lower-calorie versions of your favorite comfort foods. Plus, their website offers honest reviews of every single meal, so you can carefully choose your foods.

Nutrisystem also provides taste-bud-friendly snack options from ice cream to nutty chocolate bars. The meals and snacks include filling ingredients, but several of them lack balanced nutrition.

For example, the mashed potatoes with bacon bits has 10 grams of protein. The mac and cheese has 11 grams. Meals from other meal delivery companies have 15-20 grams of protein or more. Many Nutrisystem meals also lack fruits and vegetables. When the meals do contain these foods, they’re only available in small amounts.

What customers are saying

Of the 2,162 reviews on Trustpilot, only 36% were 5 stars. The negative reviews call out the small portion sizes and unresponsive customer service staff. Those buyers are also dissatisfied with the overly processed ingredients in a lot of the meals.

There are several happy customers, though. Those who enjoy the service say it’s helped them learn portion control and has contributed to their weight loss goals.

A customer from Arizona says, “We both love it. We don’t get hungry and are already experiencing weight loss. We think the food is quite good considering it’s diet.”

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Best meal kit for weight loss: Home Chef

Why we like Home Chef as best meal kit

If you’re looking for meal kits with loads of meal variety, you’ve found it with Home Chef. Depending on your weight loss goal, you can select vegetarian, carb-conscious, or calorie-conscious meals that align with your health needs. On average, meals have 625 calories or fewer.

Many weight loss food delivery services provide either meal kits that require putting together a recipe or meals you have to reheat in the microwave. Home Chef offers both. But for those who enjoy the art of cooking, their meal kits offer recipes and pre-portioned ingredients, so you can feel inspired to craft fresh meals in the comfort of your kitchen.

Our product testers love how easy and quick it is to use these meal kits to whip up dinner without wondering what they’re going to eat or swinging through a drive-thru line. Whether you’re a cooking novice or a self-made chef, most recipes are easy to follow. Some meals take longer than 20 minutes to prepare, but Home Chef offers express meal kits that have recipes with fewer steps.

The meals are also easy to recreate on your own. One of our team product testers has been using Home Chef since 2022 and frequently revisits old recipes using store-bought ingredients.

She gave Home Chef 5 out of 5 stars for taste and meal variety and 4 out of 5 stars for ingredient quality.

Plus, Home Chef makes the ordering process easy to do because it takes you through a short set of questions to guide your meal picks. Our product testers like that Home Chef sends reminders each week to select their meals based on their preferences. The service has plenty of rotating options to choose from, and you can filter out specific foods you don’t want in your meals, like seafood.

You can customize your meal kits to yield two, four, six, or eight servings, depending on the size of your family. Portion sizes are excellent and satisfying.

“My husband and I both feel satisfied after finishing our Home Chef meals,” our product tester noted.

Aside from its user-friendly website, Home Chef outshines the competition by providing ongoing discounts to military workers, healthcare professionals, teachers, and first responders.

However, we recommend people with food allergies avoid Home Chef. The meals are made in facilities that handle common allergens, such as milk, shellfish, and tree nuts.

Furthermore, there are no guarantees that Home Chef will have meals on their weekly menu to accommodate various dietary preferences. If you follow a vegan diet, for example, consider another service that offers more customization.

What customers are saying

Home Chef has an average of 2.7 stars based on over 3,100 reviews on Trustpilot. The food itself earned positive reviews, but the packaging received negative feedback.

Another buyer named Angela F. said, “Good service and affordable. I used this meal service for quite a while. I canceled them because they use FedEx for their deliveries and my food started to be delayed and the boxes looked like they had been bounced around a lot and damaged or split open.”

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Best prepared meal delivery service for weight loss: Fuel Meals Weight Loss Plan

Why we like Fuel Meals Weight Loss Plan as best prepared

According to a 2020 review published in Physiology and Behavior , eating over 35 grams of protein in one sitting is effective at promoting fullness and less hunger, which may benefit weight loss. ( 4 ) Fuel Meals supply up to 60 grams of protein per serving in most of their meals to help you stay satisfied and focused on your goals. Individual meals range between 460 to 610 calories.

When you choose the weight loss plan, you have to indicate whether you’re a man or a woman. The male weight loss plan totals about 1,750 calories per day, and the female plan equals about 1,500 calories per day. Even if you want to lose weight, this may not be enough food for you—especially if you’re active.

After you select your gender, Fuel Meals auto-populates meals for you based on how many you want per week. You can select seven, 14, 21, or 28 meals per week. Fuel Meals will then prep and deliver all of the meals to your home.

Organic ingredients aren’t an option with this diet food delivery brand. As for flavor, the dishes left our product testers wanting more. Some meals needed additional sauces and seasonings to enhance the taste.

Editorial team member Kate Meier tried a variety of meals, including chicken quesadillas, shrimp quesadillas, salmon and broccoli, an egg white scramble, and a bison burger.

“The meals were all edible, and I would eat them again,” she commented. “But I kept feeling like I wanted something more. I would often add more vegetables to the meals or put my own spices on them.”

As such, Kate rated Fuel Meals 3.5 out of 5 stars for taste.

While you can filter for gluten-free and dairy-free options, there’s no way to filter other allergens, so it’s important to pay close attention to the ingredients in each meal.

As with any other meal delivery service, convenience is also a huge benefit of Fuel Meals. They take just a few minutes to reheat in the microwave, so you can enjoy your meal in no time.

Our product testers found that getting in touch with customer service wasn’t so easy. To contact the company, you must fill out a form. There are no live chat functions available, which are features that most other meal delivery companies offer.

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Best keto meal delivery service for weight loss: Factor75

Why we Like Factor75 as best keto

Factor75’s fresh, ready-prepared keto meals change weekly and offer plenty of variety with low amounts of carbohydrates. For instance, if you choose the Grilled Steakhouse Filet Mignon dish, you’ll get eight grams of net carbohydrates.

Factor75 displays all of their keto meals with a “KETO” tag under each meal photo. You can set your meal plan to be keto only and choose your meals from there. The user-friendly website that makes the ordering process a cinch.

Each week, you can order six to 18 meals and choose from 34 options, like Roasted Garlic Butter Salmon and Jalapeno Lime Cheddar Chicken. You can round out your order by adding snacks, shakes, and desserts.

You can expect to get protein, vegetables, and grains (for non-keto eaters) in the lunch and dinner meals. There’s no clean-up to worry about with Factor75—you just microwave your meal, eat, and toss the container into a recycling bin. Our staff gave them a perfect 5 out of 5 stars for convenience.

Dietitians are available to chat with you by phone if you have nutrition questions or just need some guidance on what meals to order. You also get ample portions of food, which one of our expert product testers—who’s also a triathlete—loved. She gave Factor75 4.5 out of 5 stars for portion sizes.

Nutrition information per meal is easy to view on Factor75’s website, and they also provide calorie-conscious meals with 550 calories or fewer.

However, some meals have over 830 milligrams of sodium, which is 36% of the daily limit for sodium according to the Food and Drug Administration. ( 5 ) Being mindful of your sodium intake can help keep your blood pressure in check per the American Heart Association. ( 6 ) If you have heart problems, you can seek some nutrition advice by booking a call with a registered dietitian on Factor75’s website.

Further, customer service responds quickly, which is helpful if you need to make any changes to your order.

What customers are saying

With close to 51,000 reviews on Trustpilot, Factor75 has an average of 3.9 stars. Customers enjoy the taste of the food, the quality of the meals, and the convenience of not having to cook.

However, some reviewers note the cost as a drawback. Factor75 costs around $13 per meal, which is on the high end for a meal delivery service.

“The meals are great, the convenience is amazing, however, the price is very much on the high side, and not doable for us long-term,” an anonymous reviewer wrote.

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Best frozen meal delivery for weight loss: Personal Trainer Food

Why we like Personal Trainer Food as best frozen

Personal Trainer Food is a weight loss meal delivery service providing pre-made, flash-frozen foods to jumpstart your weight loss journey. Entrees offer between 100 and 380 calories per meal, which may help put you into a calorie deficit for weight loss. ( 7 ) However, meals on the lower end of this calorie spectrum may not be so satisfying, and you may find yourself hungry soon after eating.

You’ll find options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner along with extra sides of vegetables and a few snack options of shakes and a meat bar. There are almost 100 menu items, with a variety of simple reheatable meals to choose from, including Beef & Lamb Gyros and Fajita Chicken. The company is transparent about which allergens are in their meals.

Personal Trainer Food mainly provides protein and vegetables and doesn’t have fruits, grains, or desserts on its menu, which can be restrictive for some.

The company also claims to help people lose weight quickly, which isn’t healthy and certainly not sustainable. Furthermore, rapid weight loss could result in loss of muscle. ( 8 )

Other parts of Personal Trainer Food’s website encourage healthy, long-term weight loss, which can send mixed messages to customers. Weight loss coaches are available to customers, but the website doesn’t mention whether registered dietitians are available, too.

With prices starting at $6.59 per meal, depending on which weight loss plan you choose and whether you’re a first-time customer, Personal Trainer Food is affordable for most.

What customers are saying

Trustpilot reviews are mostly positive. The company has an average of 4.4 stars based on over 3,100 reviews. Some reviewers mention the food being too salty, but for most frozen meals, reheating still maintains good flavor and texture overall.

Another verified customer, Angela Walker, says, “I’m surprised with how tasty the food is. After looking at the nutrition facts and sodium levels, I’m not sure how this food is healthy/good for you but it is working to help me lose weight.”

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Best vegan meal delivery service for weight loss: Purple Carrot

Why we like Purple Carrot as best vegan

Eating more plants may help promote weight loss and enhance your gut health , and Purple Carrot can help. ( 9 ) This plant-focused meal delivery service takes the best vegan spot since each delicious meal is 100% vegan. Purple Carrot gives you a chance to cook your own meals or order ready-made meals that require zero prep.

To boost their culinary skills, our lead product tester opted for the meal kits, which he said had fresh and great-tasting ingredients. He particularly loved making the sloppy joe, which used tofu instead of meat.

“I was quite impressed with how the meal turned out,” he said. “All of the ingredients were fresh and the entire dish tasted delicious.”

Our tester also noted the portions were generous, and he always felt full after finishing a meal. He gave Purple Carrot 4 out of 5 stars for portion size.

Being that Purple Carrot is a plant-based company, you may wonder if high-protein meals are available, and the answer is yes. Icons on the menu page allow you to see which meals are high in protein. The Black Bean Bowls, for example, offer 14 grams of protein per serving. According to Dr. Rob Wildman, an expert in human nutrition, this amount of protein can help to “meet daily protein needs, which tend to be higher during weight loss.”

Purple Carrot does a good job of offering dishes from different cultures, such as Crispy Sumac Brown Rice Bowls and Hoisin Glass Noodles. However, there may not be enough variety for some, and others may not be as adventurous with eating to try some of the dishes.

Difficulty finding the nutrition info was another drawback noted by our product tester. He only gave them 2 out of 5 stars here, noting:

Also, the meals offer at least two servings, so you’ll have to do a little math to determine the nutrition of a single serving.

What sets Purple Carrot apart from other weight loss meal delivery companies is their “Plantry” section, which allows you to stock up on plant-based pantry staples you may need during your busy weeks.

Additionally, customer service is just a live chat away, but you can also call, text, or email.

What customers are saying

Reviews on Trustpilot for Purple Carrot are positive, with the company averaging 3.8 stars based on 876 reviews. Most customers enjoy the flavors of the meals and have no complaints about the ingredient quality or freshness.

However, some reviewers mention issues with missing ingredients.

“We had at least our third meal today that had an ingredient missing,” commented one verified buyer referred to as CTD. “Tonight’s meal was cauliflower steaks and the cauliflower was missing. Really need more quality control on the meal ingredients to make sure all are included.”

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Best organic meal delivery service for weight loss: Green Chef

Why we like Green Chef as best organic

Green Chef is a certified organic meal delivery company providing 47 weekly meal options with sustainably sourced, organic ingredients with priority given to local farmers. While they don’t supply reheat-and-eat meals, Green Chef offers chef-crafted recipes and all of the ingredients and direction you need to pull your meal together at home. Our product testers appreciated that each recipe card plainly stated the instructions and gave a list of the kitchen equipment needed to prepare the meal.

You can easily filter out your lifestyle preferences, whether you’re looking for low-calorie foods or foods that support your mood by benefiting gut and brain health.

You do need some time to prepare Green Chef meals. You’ll also want to give yourself room for clean–up since it may take multiple pots and pans to get dinner on the table at the right time .

With this in mind, our tester gave Green Chef 3 out of 5 stars for ease of preparation.

Her top dinner choices were the Monterey Jack Cheese Smothered Chicken and Chicken Burrito Bowls. While the taste of the food was fantastic, she didn’t like the small portions. She gave Green Chef 3 out of 5 stars in this category as well, noting, “I could easily finish my portion and eat some of another portion. A single portion would never be enough for my husband, who’s an active, 6’2″ guy.”

Still, she appreciated that Green Chef provided nutrition information on the recipe card and made it visible on their website.

Her deliveries arrived on time, and it was clear that the company takes packaging seriously. They packed certain spices, dairy, and produce into singular bags and placed the meat at the bottom of the package under ice. All packaging is eco-friendly and recyclable, which tells us this company values sustainability.

What customers are saying

With close to 3,000 reviews on Trustpilot, Green Chef has garnered an average of 3.8 stars. Satisfied customers enjoy the easy-to-follow recipe cards and the freshness of the ingredients.

Other reviewers mention that customer service is poor and there are issues with skipping deliveries.

A verified buyer who referred to themselves as tsargent said, “When I would skip a week, sometimes the shipment would still come in. That was frustrating enough that I let it slide once or twice and then canceled today.”

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