HelloFresh is a popular meal kit company based in Berlin that has operated in the American market for over a decade.
Since it was established in 2011, HelloFresh has provided fresh and exciting recipes and meals to home cooks and food enthusiasts weekly. Professional chefs and nutritionists create these recipes to ensure a diverse range of food options.
Continue reading our Hello Fresh review to learn about the advantages, drawbacks, and pricing. Find out if this affordable meal delivery service is the right choice for you.
Pros and Cons of Hello Fresh
Pros
- Many add-on options
- Fast, effective customer service
- Offers a wide variety of meals
- Delicious, fine-dining cuisine
- Recipe cards with clear instructions
Cons
- Potentially time-consuming meal preparations
- Meals are not always nutritious
Hello Fresh Review: Quick Verdict
HelloFresh provides the best diet plans for home cooks with a wide range of weekly meal choices and numerous extra add-ons.
The meals may seem intricate for customers new to cooking because they involve a lot of preparation, cooking, and cleaning. Nevertheless, the final result is usually a scrumptious and fulfilling meal.
Hello Fresh Review: What Is Hello Fresh?
HelloFresh is a company that delivers meal kits to your doorstep. These meal kits include the necessary ingredients and easy-to-follow recipes you need to prepare a meal.
HelloFresh provides recipe cards with detailed instructions and pictures to make cooking easier. The company also saves you the hassle of grocery shopping by delivering pre-prepared and portioned ingredients for your selected recipe.
The recipes typically require a cooking time of approximately 30 to 40 minutes. You can choose from nearly 30 different recipes for quick and easy meals, which are updated weekly.
You can simplify your meal planning by placing a single order for all your weekly meals. This way, all the weekly groceries will be delivered to you in a single shipment.
Hello Fresh Review: What Are the Hello Fresh Menus?
Hello Fresh provides a weekly menu comprising over 60 meal kit recipes. The menu is categorized into six sections, making it a hassle-free process to select recipes that cater to your preferences and lifestyle.
The six categories you can choose from include the following:
- Veggie
- Meat & Veggies
- Family Friendly
- Quick & Easy
- Fit & Wholesome
- Pescatarian
Once you have confirmed your order size and plan category and entered your payment information, you can select from various extras and sides available in the Marketplace.
HelloFresh offers a selection of dinners and a handful of ten-minute lunch options. Unfortunately, breakfasts are not available on the menu.
HelloFresh chooses recipes for you based on your selected plan. If you forget to pick your meals for a particular week, HelloFresh will ensure you receive your weekly delivery by selecting the meals for you.
The plan categories function more as organizers for the menu than as restrictions on the meal options available to you. You have the freedom to mix and match between plans any way you like.
Hello Fresh Review: How to Sign Up With Hello Fresh
Signing up with HelloFresh is hassle-free and straightforward. However, if you want to check out the menu before providing your credit card details, go to the “Our Menus” section on HelloFresh’s website.
You can easily register by following a few simple steps once you have decided to join.
- Click on “Our Plans”: Choose your preferred meal plan, whether you like Family Friendly, Quick & Easy, or Veggie. Pick the number of recipes you want per week for either two or four people. Afterward, click on the “Select This Plan” button.
- Create an account: To proceed, register your account by providing your email address. However, you can sign up using Apple, Google, or Facebook for a more efficient process.
- Add your address: You can view your delivery options and choose the days that work best for you.
- Input payment information: Provide your credit card or payment details to complete your sign-up process and become an official member.
Hello Fresh Review: Managing Your Subscription
HelloFresh offers great flexibility to its customers in terms of skipping weeks, canceling subscriptions, or modifying their orders. Making these changes is hassle-free and convenient for clients.
The deadline for submitting change requests is at 11:59 p.m. PST, five days before your upcoming order. If you comply with this deadline, you can modify your order by canceling or pausing your subscription, customizing recipes, adjusting delivery days, or changing other order details.
Simply click a button to skip a week or temporarily stop your subscription. To pause your subscription, you must log in to your account and access the settings menu.
You can also pick your preferred meals on the HelloFresh website. If you miss the five-day deadline to select your meals or pause your subscription, HelloFresh will send you a collection of meals aligned with your chosen meal plan.
Hello Fresh Review: How Meal Plans Work
HelloFresh offers its subscribers over 25 recipes every week, which can be found on its website under the section “Our Menus.” Non-subscribers can view the recipes, although only subscribers can click on the actual recipe to expand and obtain further details.
HelloFresh provides six plan preferences for you to choose from, including Veggie, Meat & Veggies, Family Friendly, Fit & Wholesome, Pescetarian, and Quick & Easy.
Once you have picked your food preferences, you can opt for a meal plan that caters to two to four individuals, offering two to five recipe options every week.
The cost of the meal plan depends on the number of servings and the type of plan you choose. For example, the Fit & Wholesome plan for two people with two weekly meals costs $12.49 per serving. If you opt for the plan that serves four people with four recipes per week, it will cost you $9.29 per serving.
Once you have registered your address, a delivery date will be automatically assigned to you, and the delivery time will be between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.
After successfully registering with HelloFresh, the platform generates meal options according to your preferences. Additionally, a banner at the top of the page notifies you of the remaining time when you can customize your meals for your upcoming delivery.
HelloFresh will send you a tracking email on the delivery day. The email contains information about the cooling technology used to keep your meals fresh in the box for up to 48 hours.
The service prompts you to keep all the necessary household ingredients, like olive oil, pepper, and salt, readily available.
Hello Fresh Review: Choosing Meals From Many Diverse Options
HelloFresh simplifies meal selection by automatically suggesting meals based on your preferences. You can customize your meals using the plus and minus tools and explore additional options by scrolling down.
As you adjust your meal plan, the existing recipes will not update automatically. This means you must manually search for the new recipes you have added.
HelloFresh does not currently provide specific dietary meal plans like keto or paleo. However, it offers various vegetarian options weekly, along with diverse cuisines and meal styles.
HelloFresh allows you to choose which meal suits your lifestyle and dietary requirements.
Each recipe icon includes different tags, including calorie smart, veggie, plant-based protein, take-out favorites, spicy, lightning fast, gourmet, and hall of fame.
A pop-up page displays essential information when you click on the recipe, such as the preparation duration, cooking level, calorie count, ingredients included in the box, allergens, ingredients not included, and a link to the full recipe. Clicking on the link takes you to a larger recipe page.
The page that contains the recipe provides all the details mentioned earlier, such as a meal overview, a comprehensive nutritional breakdown, and an ingredient list. It also features images that can be adjusted for two or four servings, a list of required utensils, and a set of instructions illustrated with pictures.
The package contains additional items, such as morning meals, midday sandwiches, and a section dedicated to pantry supplies.
Hello Fresh Review Packaging: Well-Organized
HelloFresh takes special care to ensure that your food stays fresh even after it’s delivered to your doorstep. The company uses cool packs and insulated liners in the packaging to ensure your food stays fresh after your scheduled delivery time for up to 24 hours.
When you receive and open your box, you will find a magazine relevant to the season, recipe cards, and some bonuses from its partners. The company ensures all items are packed in an insulated liner, which can be easily recycled with your household recycling.
HelloFresh packages each meal in a convenient paper bag that’s clearly labeled with stickers to help you keep track of the ingredients. Additionally, each bag features a QR code that links to a HelloFresh landing page for easy access to further information.
The big cardboard board includes a note reminding you to check beneath the ice packs for any perishable items.
Hello Fresh Review: How Much Does Hello Fresh Meal Kit Service Cost?
HelloFresh offers a flexible payment model where you can customize your servings every week.
Based on our Fit & Wholesome plan example, you can expect to pay around $12.49 per serving for two people and $9.29 per serving for four people.
Remember that the cost varies based on your preferred meal plan and number of weekly servings. Typically, you can save money by ordering more servings for more people every week. Additionally, there is a $10 shipping fee per box.
HelloFresh pricing is in the middle range when compared to its competitors. However, it leans more towards the affordable end, making it an excellent budget-friendly option.
As one of the cheapest meal delivery service alternatives, there are only a few meal kits available that are cheaper than HelloFresh. However, more expensive options offer gourmet ingredients, such as ahi tuna and ribeye.
Hello Fresh Review: Who HelloFresh Is Best For
HelloFresh is an excellent choice for individuals and families who enjoy cooking and want to satisfy their hunger with various mouth-watering and fulfilling dishes.
Hello Fresh Review: Who Should Consider Other Alternatives
HelloFresh may not be the best option for individuals or families with little time to dedicate to meal preparation and cleanup. Additionally, persons who prefer lighter and healthier food options may want to explore other alternatives.
If you prefer a senior-friendly diet, you may try other alternatives designed for older people, like the meal delivery service we discussed in our Nutrisystem review.
Hello Fresh Review: Add-Ons
HelloFresh provides multiple add-on options and supplements you can choose once you have selected your weekly meals.
Here are some additional items available:
- A prosciutto and Caprese sandwich that can be prepared in five minutes and serves one person costs $7.99.
- A package of Annie’s organic cinnamon rolls that can be quickly prepared for breakfast costs $5.99 and contains five rolls.
- A surf and turf protein duo that serves two people costs $21.99.
For just $9, you can donate “Meals with Meaning,” contributing towards feeding individuals in the community who need food.
Hello Fresh Review: Customer Service
HelloFresh provides its customers with a range of customer service options to choose from. These options include a chat, an FAQ section, and phone support with a live waiting time alert. Additionally, customers can report any ingredient or recipe errors through an online form.
Hello Fresh Review: HelloFresh vs. Home Chef
HelloFresh and Home Chef are meal delivery services that provide fresh weekly meals. Home Chef’s pricing is slightly lower than HelloFresh’s, starting at $6.99 per serving compared to HelloFresh’s starting point of $7.99.
While both companies offer quick meals, they also include more detailed recipes that may take almost an hour to prepare.
Home Chef provides many recipes that allow you to customize the protein according to your preferences. You can choose from various options, such as salmon, chicken, beef, or even Impossible Burgers, based on your mood.
They offer multiple recipe styles and cuisines, including vegetarian-based and calorie-conscious meals.
Hello Fresh Review: Methodology
When conducting our Hello Fresh review, we considered several important factors, such as the variety of meal options, cuisines, and meals that cater to specific dietary restrictions.
Additionally, we also took note of the cooking time and skill level required for each serving. Each option was evaluated based on its freshness, flavor, nutritional value, and overall quality.
Furthermore, the evaluation encompassed the frequency of servings offered every week and the pricing options for different alternatives.
The assessment also considered supplementary resources, such as recipe cards, product packaging, and the company’s commitment to sustainability.
Other crucial aspects include the order process, customer support, and the convenience of modifying or discontinuing a subscription.
Hello Fresh Review: Frequently Asked Questions
Still have unanswered questions about Hello Fresh? See if we answer them below.
Hello Fresh Review: What Is HelloFresh?
HelloFresh is a company that delivers meal kits to your doorstep, empowering you to cook delicious, family-friendly meals in the comfort of your own home.
The company’s offerings include various meal kits ranging from easy one-pot wonders to intricately crafted burgers and gourmet dishes inspired by different cultures worldwide. Learn more about the best weight loss products.
Hello Fresh Review: Which HelloFresh Plan Is Best?
HelloFresh provides its customers with six plans to choose from. Each meal plan is designed to cater to the unique needs and preferences of different individuals.
According to HelloFresh reviews, the Family Friendly plan is a great option if you have young children or selective eaters at home.
Alternatively, the Quick and Easy plan is considered a lifesaver if your life is hectic and you’re constantly on the go. Based on HelloFresh reviews, you have the flexibility to browse all available plans each week and combine dishes to suit your taste. Combine your Hello Fresh meal with one of the best natural fat burners if weight loss is your goal.
Hello Fresh Review: Are HelloFresh Portions Big or Small?
HelloFresh reviews note that the company provides customers with numerous meal options, including generous portions for many dishes.
While some meals labeled “Calorie Smart” may be smaller to fall under the 600-calorie range, there are also many heartier meal choices available.
HelloFresh reviews also note that there are currently no individual meal options available. However, at checkout, you can select how many portions you would like per recipe, ranging from two to six portions for either two or four people per week.
This allows you to decide how much you would like to receive for each recipe.
Hello Fresh Review: Are HelloFresh and EveryPlate the Same Company?
EveryPlate is a meal kit service under the ownership of HelloFresh, which also has Green Chef as a part of its portfolio.
On EveryPlate, you can explore a new menu every week and enjoy generous food portions. However, the meals are comparatively simpler since they have affordable pricing.
HelloFresh is reasonably priced, and it offers a wide range of meal options every week.
Hello Fresh Review: Is HelloFresh Good for Beginners?
According to HelloFresh reviews, the meal kit service can be a suitable choice for those who are new to cooking if they are willing to invest time to prepare meals. However, people who prefer quick and effortless meal preparation should look for alternatives that provide ready-to-heat food.
The HelloFresh website provides users with valuable details regarding the cooking level and expected preparation time for each meal. This information assists users in selecting the meals that best fit their requirements.
Hello Fresh Review: Is It Easy or Hard To Quit HelloFresh?
HelloFresh provides a hassle-free experience for users who want to cancel or modify their subscriptions. To make changes to upcoming orders, simply go to the “Plan Settings” section on the website.
Hello Fresh Review: Is HelloFresh Processed Food?
HelloFresh exclusively uses fresh ingredients and does not incorporate processed foods in its meal kit delivery service. According to HelloFresh reviews, subscribers receive fresh ingredients and prepare each meal at home themselves.
Hello Fresh Review: Does HelloFresh Actually Reduce Food Waste?
HelloFresh claims that its service can assist users in decreasing their food waste by a minimum of 25 percent. Nonetheless, the extent of the reduction may differ depending on the food preparation and grocery shopping habits of each subscriber.
Hello Fresh Review: Are HelloFresh Meals Healthy?
According to HelloFresh reviews, HelloFresh subscribers can customize their weekly menu by selecting the meals they want to prepare. However, HelloFresh.com reviews indicate that the nutritional content of each serving may differ from meal to meal.
If you have specific dietary preferences or restrictions, you can check if your weekly menu aligns with your needs by reviewing the nutrition information and details of each meal before making your selection. Learn more on how to eat flax seeds to reduce tummy fat.
Hello Fresh Review: Final Verdict
HelloFresh is a suitable choice for individuals with a genuine passion for cooking who enjoy creating and serving restaurant-level dishes.
According to HelloFresh reviews, the dishes may seem challenging for those who are new to cooking since they require complex preparation, multiple steps, and cleaning up. Nevertheless, the final results are usually mouth-watering and satisfying meals.
We hope our Hello Fresh review has helped you decide if this cost-effective meal kit service is the perfect solution for you.