HelloFresh Vs. Blue Apron: Which Brand Has The Best Meal Kits?

Sometimes, you just want a delicious, easy dinner that doesn't require scouring the supermarket for obscure ingredients and figuring out a new, intricate recipe. Sure, take-out is guaranteed to hit the spot, but it's pricey and usually unhealthy. Frozen dinners are a convenient option, but they always taste like they were made in a factory, completely ruining the wholesome dinner illusion. Enter meal kits: perhaps the most significant food delivery invention of the 21st century.

Meal kits provide a dinner solution that combines convenience with healthy, home-cooked wholesomeness — something no other weeknight-friendly dinner delivery can compete with. Among the plethora of popular meal kit companies that have come to prominence in recent years (although they've seen a decline in sales in the wake of the pandemic) are HelloFresh and Blue Apron; two fresh-produce-slinging, sustainable-meat-peddling superstars in the world of healthy, dropped-right-at-your-doorstep dinners.

I set out to give both HelloFresh and Blue Apron a try — having never tried either company's meal kits before —- for a tell-all, unbiased review. So, before you make the plunge and sign up for a food delivery subscription, join me in finding out which company has the freshest ingredients, best selection, and most beginner-friendly recipes of the two, so you can feel accomplished in the kitchen no matter your skill level.

Hello Fresh and Blue Apron are meal delivery companies that operate on a subscription-based model, delivering fresh, healthy dishes right to your doorstep. But, there's a catch: Instead of having pre-made meals shipped to your door, like Factor's microwave-friendly meals, HelloFresh and Blue Apron send ingredients, making you the home chef. Customers choose which meals they'd like for the week, and HelloFresh and Blue Apron send pre-portioned ingredients in specified serving sizes, along with clear instructions that are designed for those who may not be well-versed in the kitchen.

Blue Apron was one of the first players on the meal kit delivery scene, starting its operation back in 2012. It's since seen some serious competition, especially in the form of HelloFresh, which started around the same time, but has expanded to become the country's most prolific meal kit service (if you're a podcast listener, you've undoubtedly been bombarded with plenty of the company's ads). On paper, there aren't many differences between the companies. They both offer a vast selection of meals while boasting fresh, sustainable ingredients, and operate using a convenient subscription service. But under the guise of similarities, there must be some standout differences that makes one meal kit service shine above the other — right?

Of the two meal kit delivery companies, one of them stands out as the dominant force in the industry. At the time of writing, HelloFresh operates in a whopping 14 countries in North America, Europe, and Australia, after having started its journey in Berlin in 2011. The company is absolutely massive, with headquarters in eight major cities and about 7,000 employees, plus it maintains a presence on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange since 2017.

Blue Apron, on the other hand, is a much smaller business in comparison, although it may not seem so insignificant once you learn that it was acquired by virtual food hall giant Wonder Group to the tune of $103 million in 2023. Blue Apron, originally a New York-based company, operates strictly in the contiguous United States.

Both companies have similar pricing structures, with meals becoming gradually less expensive the more that you order for each week. Blue Apron offers an option of two to five meals per week, with either two or four servings per meal. Meals range in price from $7.99 to $11.99 each, with an additional cost added for certain meal choices. HelloFresh has a slightly wider range of portion and frequency options, with the choice of two to six meals per week, and an option to include two, three, four, or six servings per meal. Meals from HelloFresh cost between $9.99 and $11.50 each, for standard meals, making HelloFresh slightly more expensive than Blue Apron, in general. Both brands offer regular promotions and heavy discounts on your first week's order.

HelloFresh's Zesty Salmon and Guacamole Grain Bowl looks like the epitome of a healthy, filling, protein-packed dinner. It consists of Mexican-spiced salmon with lime crema, mixed grains (rice, bulgar, and barley), cilantro-lime tomato slices, and a hearty dose of guacamole. This meal was by far the easiest to prepare of the three HelloFresh meals that I made. It took about 15 minutes to season the fish, cook it, make the crema (which was just lime zest, water, and sour cream), and prepare the tomato salad, which just needed salt, pepper, cilantro, and lime juice. The grains were microwavable, making this meal extra speedy.

The farm-raised, sustainable fish was clearly high-quality and was easily my favorite part of this meal. I appreciate that HelloFresh leaves the skin intact, since the fish's skin is nutrient dense, crispy, and delicious. I had high hopes for the zesty seasoning, but despite looking bold and flavorful, it left me yearning for something a little spicier. The simple crema was tasty, but I could have easily used double the amount — I was able to make about three tablespoons of the crema for two meals. Perfectly-cooked, lime-drenched grains and juicy tomatoes added plenty of texture to the dish, and their bright, acidic zing was juxtaposed with mellow, creamy guac for a balanced dish.

Blue Apron's 15-Minute Chicken Grain Bowl consists of grilled chicken, arugula, pre-cooked farro, cucumber, tahini-based Caesar dressing, parmesan, and sweety drop peppers — otherwise known as pickled biquinho peppers. This meal was my favorite of the six, both flavor-wise, preparation-wise, and aesthetically. It came together in under 15 minutes, with very little prep required. Like with HelloFresh's grain bowl, the farro was designed to be microwaved in about 90 seconds. The chicken was pre-cut, so I didn't even need to whip out a cutting board and knife for this recipe.

This grain bowl was an absolute flavor explosion. Tahini-based Caesar dressing was similar to conventional Caesar, but earthier and less umami-forward, although the parmesan made up for the dressing's lack of savoriness. There was plenty of dressing, to the point where I had some left over. I enjoyed the mix of fresh greens and crunchy cucumbers with the grains, making this bowl like a cold salad-hot meal hybrid. The sweety drop peppers were almost literally the cherry on top, giving the dish a burst of juicy, sweet-and-sour flavor that highlighted the savoriness in all the other ingredients.

I'm a sucker for a sweet-and-spicy sauce, so I couldn't resist trying HelloFresh's Sweet 'n' Spicy Apricot Chicken. This dish has a little bit of everything: savory garlic rice, roasted broccoli, and juicy chicken breast with a sauce made from Sriracha, apricot jam, and fishy, citrusy ponzu sauce. The directions state that the meal takes about 25 minutes, but it took me closer to 35 minutes to have everything plated and ready to serve.

The sauce was the star of this dish, although — like the crema in the salmon bowl — I wished there was a little more of it. It was perfectly sweet and salty with a nice hint of spice, and it gave the already tender, juicy chicken even more of a moisture boost. The directions required that the sauce be spooned over the chicken, which I did for the first serving. For the second, I tossed the chicken with the sauce and it made the meat extra moist and flavorful.

The broccoli and rice were bland, only really flavored with salt and pepper. The kit came with just a single clove of garlic for the two servings of rice, which I find egregious, especially since the rice is deemed "garlic rice." The aromatic flavor was barely noticeable, but at least the rice cooked up nice and fluffy.

Creamy dill and salmon are a match made in dinner heaven. Blue Apron's Salmon and Creamy Dill Sauce is graced by a fresh side of lemony orzo mixed with thin-sliced red onion and asparagus. Blue Apron says that this meal takes between 25 and 35 minutes to prepare, but I had it ready in just under 20 minutes.

Like HelloFresh's salmon filets, Blue Apron's salmon was obviously fresh and high quality. The filets were a generous size, and the skin remained intact, for added texture and nutrients. The fish was seasoned with just salt and pepper, but the ample dill sauce made up for a lack of seasoning on the salmon. There was plenty of sauce to spread out between two servings, so every bite of fish had a hearty dollop of herby creaminess.

Although the orzo and veggie mixture was seasoned with a simple mix of just olive oil, lemon, salt, and pepper, that was all it needed. The fresh onion and asparagus gave the pasta mixture a bright punch of aromatic earthiness, while the lemon contrasted the veggies with sweet zing. This was a healthy, easy meal that I could easily enjoy once a week for the foreseeable future.

A pasta bake is a necessary occasional weeknight meal, especially come winter time. HelloFresh's Roasted Pepper and Mozz Cavatappi Bake aims to fill the comfort food void in your life with tender cavatappi, fresh cheese, marinara, chives, and red chili flakes, all topped with crispy panko.

Of all six meals I made for this meal kit taste test, this one was the biggest pain, which surprised me. It seemed like it would be a quick meal with minimal clean-up, with most of the cooking time spent in the oven. But I couldn't have been more wrong. HelloFresh claims that this meal totals about 5 minutes of prep and 35 minutes of cooking time, but the prep took much longer. It required roasting, then cutting the pepper, cutting chives, making a sauce, boiling pasta, then adding everything together and broiling for a few minutes. It doesn't sound like too much, but it resulted in lots of dirty dishes and lots of time spent monitoring different ingredients while they cooked.

Was it worth the effort? Mostly. This was an excellent cozy pasta dish, perfectly balanced with bright, sweet marinara and rich, fresh mozzarella. The slight crunch on top from the panko gave it a texture boost, while the bell pepper slices gave it a little extra substance and sweetness. Plus, there was plenty to go around — I got three meals from this two-serving dish. My only qualm is that the sauce could have been a little thicker and more herby to tame its tartness.

Blue Apron's Roasted Red Pepper Gnocchi Bake could not have possibly contrasted HelloFresh's pasta and pepper bake any more if it tried. This meal is made with tender gnocchi, plump grape tomatoes, and fresh spinach in a decadent sauce made from tomato paste, crème fraîche, roasted garlic pesto, and roasted red pepper pesto.

I expected plump chunks of roasted red peppers in this meal instead of tomatoes, based on its name, and not just a light bell pepper flavor from the sauce, but it was delicious nonetheless. The spinach added just the right amount of bitterness to balance out the tart sauce, and the gnocchi was soft, tender, and plentiful. The sauce was extra thick and coated each gnocchi dumpling and tomato with aromatic, sweet flavor. The bake produced enough for two hearty portions, with the potential for some minor leftovers.

Not only was this dish vibrant and flavorful, but the best part of this meal was how quickly it all came together. Blue Apron provides a recyclable baking tray, so there wasn't a single dish to wash, save for the spoon that I used to mix everything together in the tray. Once all the ingredients were thoroughly mixed, it just needed to be covered, baked, and voila! — a comfort food, one-pot meal is ready to be served.

Ultimately, the resulting meals from HelloFresh and Blue Apron's ingredients were mostly identical in their quality and portion size. I was thoroughly impressed by the freshness of both brand's ingredients — the greens weren't wilted in the slightest, the meat and fish was obviously of superior quality to budget grocery store meat, and the produce was vibrantly colored and packed with flavor. However, there were still a few reasons why I preferred one brand over the other.

Initially, I was a little disappointed with Blue Apron's excessive plastic packaging and impressed by HelloFresh's more sustainable packaging choices. However, the chicken from my HelloFresh box wound up leaking in my fridge, giving me a newfound appreciation for Blue Apron's seemingly-unsustainable packaging.

When it came to preparing the meals, Blue Apron exceeded HelloFresh in terms of streamlined efficiency and clarity of instructions. HelloFresh's instructions were slightly more convoluted than Blue Apron's, and I found a couple discrepancies in the instructions, like the need for extra cookware that wasn't listed in the recipe. Although the three meals that I tried from each company were similar, Blue Apron's meals resulted in faster cooking times and much less clean-up. I also noticed that Blue Apron's dishes included more unconventional ingredients compared to the meal's from HelloFresh, which could help introduce those new to cooking to flavors and ingredients they'd never think to incorporate into their diet. All told, both companies impressed me with their meals and ingredients (and I'll admit that I was really skeptical about meal kits before trying these out). But Blue Apron exceeded my expectations more than HelloFresh — and is a bit cheaper to boot — making it the top pick for the better meal kit.