Do they save you money?
Meal delivery kits, like Blue Apron, Sun Basket, and Hello Fresh, report savings of up to 70% over the grocery store. The promise of the company is simple; they will deliver all the ingredients you need to make dinner for your family of two or four, for the average cost of about $10 per person, per meal. The concept is interesting and does allow those new to cooking to try out exotic dishes right from the comfort of their own homes. Meal delivery systems can cut down on food waste, especially for single people or small families, but the real question is—“does it save you money?”
The Cost of Ingredient Delivery Services
Let’s look at the cold, hard numbers first. As of September, 2018, Blue Apron offers buyers the option to purchase meals for two or four people. If you are a two-person household, you will be prompted to pick between two and three meals per week at the cost of $9.99 per serving. The two-person/three meal plan will cost consumers $59 each week.
Hello Fresh, on the other hand, offers a two person/three meal plan at the cost of $7.99 per serving plus a $5.99 shipping charge. For this meal plan, you’ll receive three meals for two people for a total of about $54 per week.
Sun Basket, a more niche provider in the ingredient delivery services industry, offers a slew of different meal plans for all types of eating styles. The two-person/three meal plan costs $11.99 per serving, for a total of about $72 per week. Sun Basket allows participants to pick between paleo, gluten-free, diabetes-friendly, and vegetarian meal plans, among others.
Can You Shop Smarter In-Store than with Ingredient Delivery Services?
By and large, yes you can make meals for substantially cheaper than $11.99 per serving, or even $7.99 per serving. Someone who is dedicated to staying on their food budget will get more bang for their buck from a trip to the grocery store than they will from an ingredient delivery service.
According to the USDA, the average food budget for a family of two is $643 per month or $160 per week. Sure, that may seem way higher than plans offered by ingredient delivery services, but keep in mind that the figures from the USDA assume three meals per day, seven days per week. If you figure in the 42 servings per week that the USDA number implies, the average meal should cost about $3.80. That is much lower than any plan that the ingredient delivery services are offering.
Are Ingredient Delivery Services Good for Anything?
Absolutely. Ingredient delivery services can help you stay on your food budget in a couple of subtle ways. By utilizing a service that sends you the right amount of an ingredient for a dish, you’ll substantially cut down on food waste. If you go into a grocery store, you are unlikely to be able to purchase just a single sprig of mint. Instead, you buy a bunch, and the majority of it will go to waste. Avoiding food waste is especially helpful if you are planning on cooking up exotic dishes that call for ingredients you are unlikely to reuse before they go bad.
Ingredient delivery services also cut down on the amount of time you’ll spend in a grocery store, thus eliminating impulse shopping. The average shopper will spend extra money every time they are at the grocery store by purchasing items they did not originally intend to buy, whether that is because they were located by the cash register, or they were merely on sale.
The Bottom Line
Ingredient delivery services offer an exciting way to approach mealtime, and they are undoubtedly great for introducing home cooks to new and interesting ingredients, but they aren’t going to slash your food budget in half anytime soon. If you are a small family looking for a way to spice up dinner time, then ingredient delivery services are a good option, but they should be considered a splurge, rather than a routine way of saving money on your grocery bill.
* Independent Bank is not recommending a specific company, and the user is responsible for researching the privacy/security policies before utilizing the service of these or other similar companies.