How do you Know Which Meal Kit is Best? Comparison and Reviews of HelloFresh, Marley Spoon, Dinnerly and EveryPlate + Wine Discounts

Have you wondered if the meal delivery services of HelloFresh, Marley Spoon, Dinnerly, EveryPlate and other options were worth it?

Over the years, we’ve tried a few of them repeatedly to keep the information here current.

We’ve also used them in different locations throughout Australia, including Melbourne, Canberra, Shellharbour, Noosa and Fremantle.

So we know the quality through the different warehouses they use.

They did save time as we didn’t have to meal plan or grocery shop for our dinner.

This article covers 4 of the major meal kit options in order of least expensive to most expensive.

Plus get some freebies with your wine order at Good Pair Days or up to $100 off your order with NakedWines.

Disclosure, this post contains affiliate links.

Discounts

The first thing you probably want is the discount for each box. Here they are:

EveryPlate offers easy meals from $2.19 per plate with this discount. For new AND returning customers.

HelloFresh offers up to $200 off for new customers but it is now our least favourite option. Terms and conditions apply.

Dinnerly gives up to $140 spread across 5 boxes.

Marley Spoon has up to $220 off spread across a few boxes with your first box getting a 45% discount.

This post contains affiliate links and you can read my full disclosure here.

More Ways to Save on Groceries

These meal kits can be a way to save money on groceries. Be sure to also check out:
How to Reduce the Cost of Groceries in 2022
13 Ways to Reduce the Cost of Meat
How to Reduce Food Waste

Price

The prices of meal boxes are not as cheap as buying produce from the markets or supermarkets, unless you use deep discounts.

With meal kits, you are paying for delivery, recipes, the meals being planned, and the service.

For time-poor families or families who want to try new meals but don’t know where to start, these boxes are a great option.

We loved trying them and each had pros or cons plus we tried them recently to ensure this article is up to date and accurate. Here is what we thought.

EveryPlate: Australia’s Most Affordable Meal Kit Plus meals from $2.19 per serve.

One of the newer meal kit options in Australia, EveryPlate is proudly the most affordable.

This doesn’t mean the quality is any less or anything is compromised.

EveryPlate still has a wide variety of meals to choose from with quality ingredients, great service and of course, easy meals from $2.19 per plate with this discount.

They are simply the budget-friendly version of HelloFresh so you may find ingredients labelled HelloFresh in your box at times.

Price

Starting at $2.19 per plate, EveryPlate is extremely affordable.

The actual cost will vary depending on the plan you select. With the discount, the price drops significantly saving you even more.

EveryPlate also has budget options that are $1 less than others and more gourmet options if you want to spend a little more for steak or specific fish etc.

Allergies

EveryPlate will let you know about allergens but doesn’t offer a wide selection of allergy-friendly meals compared to other services.

They are always improving though and as the recipes are relatively simple, we can usually swap out something to make the meal gluten-free or dairy-free (the 2 allergies in my house).

Variety

International meals, chicken, beef, vegetarian and pork are all common.

Many of the meals are carb-heavy with rice, potatoes, noodles or pasta as the main ingredient.

Carrots feature in most recipes as well. For us, we got bored of the recipes pretty quickly but the flavours and seasonings they provide are delicious.

Quality

The quality of EveryPlate varied depending on where we lived. In Noosa, it was low compared to other meal options but in other areas, it has been great.

We do wonder if that is partially because it seemed people there preferred another option so the turnover wasn’t as high.

Whenever we had issues with quality and notified customer service, they rectified it quickly without any issues.

If you do have a quality issue, take a photo and contact them immediately. They’ll apply the credit to your account.

Size

The meal portions are average size, although, for my teens, they seemed a bit small. It felt more like 2 adults and 2 kids instead of 4 portions.

Delivery

In most places we lived, delivery was easy and done well.

In Noosa, there were issues with it being left in wet areas instead of dry, also boxes being split open or damaged as if they had been thrown around.

That has not been a problem anywhere else though and when we brought it up with them, they followed up with the logistics team.

It continued to happen there though so we stopped using it.

In Canberra, Melbourne and Wollongong, we did not have any issues with delivery.

There are quite a few delivery times and days to choose from which we like and it always comes on time plus you can track it.

The delivery driver where we currently live is lovely too which is always nice.

Packaging

EveryPlate has minimal packaging. Instead of meals coming in individual bags, all the ingredients are in the box and you sort it out yourself.

Our preference is to have minimal packaging for everything we do so we like this about EveryPlate.

Discount

If you want to try EveryPlate, make sure you use the discount and get easy meals from $2.19 per plate with this discount.

Dinnerly – Affordable and the Least Packaging

Dinnerly is owned by Marley Spoon so it is the same quality, just simpler meals.

The same way EveryPlate is owned by HelloFresh.

They still have healthy and dietary options, it’s simply cheaper with fewer steps.

Price

From only $5.49 per plate, Dinnerly is an incredibly affordable option. Get up to $140 off spread across your first few boxes here.

Allergies

The meals are simple so there are allergy-friendly options and the ones which weren’t allergy friendly were easy to change to suit our needs.

Dinnerly is constantly evolving so new recipes are added regularly and they are conscious of creating more options to suit everyone.

Variety

Originally, Dinnerly did not have much variety but over the past 3 years their selection has grown extensively.

I am quite surprised by how much they have changed and how many recipes they have added over the years.

Dinnerly even have vegan options, various fish options and a couple of budget-friendly ones which are $1 or more cheaper per serve so you can save even more.

We try to have fish each week so love that they have more recipes available now.

Quality

In our boxes, the quality was great, as was the quantity. Ingredients were fresh and packed well to reduce the chances of damage without loads of packaging though.

Compared to the other meal kits, we only had an issue with 1 box in all the years we used the different meal kits (almost 8 years now).

Size

Meal sizing is planned by nutritionists so the portions are the size you should be having.

We found the meal sizes to be enough for us but there were never any leftovers.

Realistically, most Aussies eat way too much so having the correct portion sizes can save your health as well as your wallet.

Delivery

They delivered to our front door and hid the box from the street which was good.

Every box came within the right timeframe and in good condition.

Packaging

We love that Dinnerly has minimal packaging, making it more sustainable.

There is enough packaging for produce to be kept fresh (such as ice packs) but that’s it.

Dinnerly doesn’t use recipe cards or unnecessary papers either.

Recipes are all available online and easy to use that way.

HelloFresh – Up to $200 off

HelloFresh used to be one of my favourites despite a few issues over the years. However, at the end of 2024, their customer service was appalling.

I thought I had paused my membership and was skipping it. They attempted to take a payment, then it did not go through but they delivered the box anyway.

So then I had to pay for it, which I did. However, they continued to text and email about the payment when I did not owe anything anymore.

I called customer service who confirmed I had no outstanding amount but could do nothing about the ongoing harassment.

HelloFresh was sending emails and SMS threatening that if it was not paid within 3 days it will go to a collections agency.

I owed NOTHING and the harassment continued so I deleted my account.

Price

From $8.25 per plate, HelloFresh is the second most expensive option.

There are various plans from classic to family and vegetarian for 3 to 5 meals. Get up to $200 off.

Allergies

HelloFresh has significantly more options for various dietary requirements than most of the other meal kits.

You can also swap the protein in various meals to make recipes more suitable.

Variety

With over 25 fresh recipes every week, HelloFresh has a huge variety of meals.

There is even a gourmet option (for an extra fee) and a dinner + lunch option (extra fee applies) as well as sides or other extras you can choose.

You can edit the protein in various recipes as well so you have control over the variety.

When it comes to variety, HelloFresh was one of our favourites.

Quality

Our experience with HelloFresh over the years has been mixed and at times it was the worst.

Issues included rotten capsicum, off herbs and spinach, the sauces so bloated they were clearly off, carrots were only as thick as our fingers but were meant to be full-size carrots.

A few years ago, there were issues, particularly with tomatoes and zucchini.

HelloFresh was better in Noosa but this time, we are disappointed.

In some boxes, we had mouldy or unusable items but they quickly credited it.

That happened in Melbourne, Wollongong and a few times in Noosa.

When it happens, take a photo, send it to them and they will credit your account.

We also don’t like HelloFresh or EveryPlate steak strips. They tend to be mushy and not cleanly cut.

Size

Our meal portions from HelloFresh were an average meal size but sometimes we had leftovers.

My family feels the meal sizes from HelloFresh were the best out of all of the meal kits.

Delivery

HelloFresh make it easy to know when your meal kit will be delivered and they take photos of where it is placed in case there are any issues.

If a payment doesn’t go through, they will still deliver and charge you for it.

Packaging

One of the things we dislike about HelloFresh is the packaging. There is so much compared to other meal kits.

Everything was in little plastic bags, brown bags, in a box and the cooler part with ice packs.

It kept the food fresh, but there was too much packaging and more papers in HelloFresh than other boxes.

However, the paperwork included discounts for elsewhere and sometimes they have freebies so that was ok.

Discount

Get up to $200 off with HelloFresh, spread across your first 6 boxes for new and returning customers. Conditions apply.

Marley Spoon – Fresh and High Quality

Marley Spoon is meant to be the premium option with more organic and fresher produce compared to others.

The meals are nice, customer service is easy to deal with and overall it’s good.

In our experience, Marley Spoon consistently has a wider variety and higher quality.

Price

Starting at $8.49 per portion, Marley Spoon is on the higher end but the options and quality are worth it. Get 45% off your first box and up to $220 total discounted across your first few boxes.

Allergies

They were the easiest to select allergy-friendly meals with, lots of options and all delicious.

Marley Spoon also caters beautifully to other dietary requirements such as low-carb, keto and similar.

Variety

With over 40 recipes a week, Marley Spoon has the largest variety of all the meal kits.

Select any recipes you like, stick to a specific diet with ease if you want and enjoy new options every week.

Quality

We tried Marley Spoon multiple times over the past 7 years and it has usually been the best quality out of the meal kits.

In all those years, we never had an issue we needed to contact them about.

Everything was delivered fresh, meat is definitely better quality than the other meal kits and the other produce is fresher.

Size

Meal sizing is planned by nutritionists so is the size you should be having.

It felt a little on the small side compared to other options though.

The bread which came in one of the meals was so tiny it looked like a mini serving.

Delivery

Marley Spoon will let you track delivery and text when it has been delivered, the same as the other companies.

Packaging

Marley Spoon, as with most of the meal delivery options, has so much packaging.

Little packets of everything, recipe cards and other papers, ice-packs etc.

Although they have reduced this over the years.

Marley Spoon often has items a little more prepared e.g. meatballs compared to other meal kits.

Which Meal Kit Was The Best?

It really depends on what you are after. For lower budgets but still interesting meals, Dinnerly and EveryPlate are your better options.

If you need to cater to dietary requirements or want more variety, HelloFresh and Marley Spoon are better.

45% off your first box with Marley Spoon and further discounts.

Up to $140 off Dinnerly, spread across your first few boxes.

EveryPlate offers easy meals from $2.19 per plate with this discount.

HelloFresh offers up to $200 off for new customers only.

Common Meal Kit Questions

Since writing this article a few years ago and updating it regularly, we have gotten a few regular questions.

Here they are but let us know if you have any others.

Does it stay fresh if I am not home to get the delivery?

All meal kits are packed well. Fruit and veg are in the boxes while meat, sauces, salads and similar are in cooler bags with ice packs.

In our experience, the food stayed fresh even if we couldn’t get it right away. We experimented with both nighttime and daytime deliveries and left them to see how they went.

Both night and daytime were fine. Obviously, on hot days in summer, it is not advisable to have it sitting in the sun.

When doing your order, you have the option of adding instructions to the driver for it to be placed somewhere so this isn’t an issue.

What if it gets stolen?

This hasn’t been an issue for me in any of the areas we’ve lived.

Even at one location where the whole front of my house was visible to the street, another we were in an apartment block and there was nowhere to place deliveries discreetly, we never had a box stolen.

If this is a concern where you live, we’d recommend looking at options such as a neighbour who is at home to get it or have it delivered to your workplace.

Are the meals easy?

Our kids found them easy so we figure if our kids can cook them from around age 9 on their own, then most adults should find them fairly easy.

Dinnerly and EveryPlate have easier recipes as they have fewer ingredients.

Will my whole family like the meals?

With so many recipes to choose from, you can easily select ones you know they will like.

There is a wide variety in each meal kit and you choose what you get so you can ensure they are family favourites.

Some of the meal kits have some solid family favourite recipes they let you know are popular to help you choose as well.

Have you tried meal boxes? What were your thoughts?

Discounts

The first thing you probably want is the discounts for each. Here they are.

HelloFresh offers up to $200 off with HelloFres h, spread across your first 6 boxes for new and returning customers. This is one of our favourites.

EveryPlate offers easy meals from $2.19 per plate with this discount from EveryPlate for new AND returning customers.

45% off your first box with Marley Spoon and further discounts.

Up to $140 off Dinnerly, spread across your first few boxes.