How much does Blue Apron cost per meal?

Meal kits are sold per-recipe/per-person, with permutations that offer between two to four recipes and serve between two to four people, depending on the service you choose. You can look at the total price for the weekly subscription, but meal kit services first show you the price per serving. One serving is how much one person should eat, so each two-person meal recipe gives you two servings.

Every meal kit service offers a discount if you buy more recipes and serve more eaters, but the price drop isn't as great as you'd expect; generally a dollar or two per serving if you order extra meals. This adds up when you're feeding a large family, but if you order too much food and an entire meal sits in your fridge until the ingredients go bad, you've lost money and wasted food. Food kit meals last about a week, but some delicate ingredients wilt within a few days of arrival.

No matter which Blue Apron plan you choose, whether the new WW Freestyle plan, the classic meat and veg mix, or the vegetarian-only plan, the price is the same. Blue Apron charges $60 for a standard 2-person, 3-recipe meal kit. That works out to $10 per serving or $20 per meal.

There is a smaller box with only two recipes for $48 including the $8 shipping charge, so that's $24 per meal if you order less. However, if you order a 3-recipe box and you only get around to cooking two of the recipes, you've paid $30 per meal, and you've wasted food. It may sound reasonable to cook three times or almost every other night of the week, but as a single working parent I started with a lot of ambition and ended up wasting a meal or two every month.

Blue Apron was one of the earliest big players in the meal kit space, and the competition seems to be priced around the $10/serving price the company has established. Cheaper competitors like Hello Fresh offer meals around $8/serving, while organic and specialized options like Sun Basket and Green Chef cost up to $13/serving. These are all still cheaper than dining out on anything nicer than a fast food meal. Blue Apron offers a 50% price break on your first box if you want to give them a try.

Absolutely! I have used Blue Apron regularly and often had leftovers to eat. In a week with three recipes, I usually had enough food leftover for an entire meal for two. With a few pantry staples, it is also easy to stretch blue apron recipes to feed more people. Add more of your own rice to rice dishes, pasta to pasta dishes, or bread to sandwiches, or add beans and other vegetables to fill out other meal options. Blue Apron portions are large, so an extra vegetable side dish may help you divide that 2-person meal three ways.