For most families, food makes up a significant part of household expenses and is frequently a point of contention. Eating out is expensive and often unhealthy, but what if you lack the skills to craft and prepare a meal on your own?

That's where modern meal delivery services come in. These ship you either ready-prepared meals to enjoy, or kits with everything you need to make a great dish. They might be just what you need to start enjoying fresh, healthy food.

Here are the best meal delivery services for your consideration.

1. BlueApron

This well-known meal kit delivery service provides a variety of meal types. Once you sign up, you set your dietary preferences and pick from a variety of meals each week. The service will deliver you a box with all the ingredients you need, plus detailed cooking instructions, on a day of your choosing.

BlueApron offers two plans: one for two people and one for families that serves four people. You can select how many recipes to receive each week.

The company also offers a wine plan, plus blog posts and other food-related info. And all food comes from sustainable and high-quality sources.

Key points:

  • Delivers to the continental US.
  • Allows you to skip a delivery when needed.
  • Pricing as low as $7.49 per serving for a four recipe per week family plan.
  • Cancel anytime with no commitments.
  • Offers vegetarian and Mediterranean diet meals.

2. HelloFresh

HelloFresh is quite similar to Blue Apron. After signing up, you select a plan that's best for you and choose when to get your deliveries. They arrive on the day of your choosing in a refrigerated box, which means you don't have to be home right when it arrives.

The box contains everything you need to cook your meals, including ingredients, instructions, and nutritional info. If you need to manage your plan or skip a week, you can do so via the website or mobile apps.

Key points:

  • Choose from the Classic Plan, Family Plan, or Veggie Plan.
  • Tags like Egg free and Spicy make it easy to select meals you'll love.
  • Plans available for two or four people, as low as $8.74/serving.

3. HomeChef

Another meal kit delivery service, HomeChef offers a variety of meals to choose from each week.

Picking options that align with your dietary needs and preferences is made simple thanks to clear labeling. You'll see tags like Calorie-conscious and Carb-conscious for dishes meeting certain criteria, as well as allergen information. The service even offers comments from chefs on its website, plus a difficulty level and estimated prep time.

Supermarket Kroger announced in May 2018 that it will acquire Home Chef. After the deal completes, Kroger will begin carrying HomeChef meals in its stores.

Key points:

  • Choose from a selection of 15 recipes per week.
  • Pre-sorted portions help reduce waste.
  • Menus set five weeks in advance, allowing you to plan meals well ahead of time.
  • Meals are $9.95 per serving, with lunch options costing $7.99. Free shipping for orders over $45.

4. Plated

Plated offers yet another choice for deliverable meal kits. The service lets you pick from 20 recipes per week, including dessert. You'll find the standard seafood and vegetarian dishes available, as well as filters like Quick Prep and Stovetop only.

For those who want flexibility, you can even change your delivery date on a per-week basis. Choose between plans of two, three, and four servings per night, with 2-4 nights per week.

Key points:

  • You'll find what you'll need, such as pots, pans, and olive oil, on each recipe.
  • Offers a gluten-free filter.
  • Price per serving ranges from $9.95 to $11.95.

5. Terra's Kitchen [Broken URL Removed]

Terra's Kitchen is based on the principles of the Mediterranean lifestyle. It's similar to the above options, but allows you to build a more customized meal plan.

When signing up, you can choose from standard or vegetarian plans for two (one with leftovers) or four (three with leftovers). Instead of paying a flat weekly price and choosing a few meals from a selection, though, Terra's Kitchen lets you customize each delivery with different meals and additions.

Choose from over 50 items in categories like Snacks, Beverages, and Sides. Each one has a different price depending on the item. You can see how much room your delivery vessel has and choose exactly what you need that week. This allows you to save some money on food by only ordering what you need.

Related: What Is the Best Food Delivery App?

Terra's Kitchen offers the most filters for dietary preferences and proteins of these services. You'll find dishes that align with Whole30, Paleo, Dairy free, and more.

Key points:

  • Offers filters for various dietary plans.
  • Includes snacks, beverages, and more.
  • Plan start at $72 per week.

6. Freshly

So far, we've only covered services that deliver ingredients for you to make your own meals. But you'll also find services that deliver ready-made dishes if you don't want to cook.

Freshly is one such option. You get to choose from a variety of rotating meals each week and they arrive fresh, not frozen. It involves no cooking, so you simply need to heat your meal and eat when ready.

The company takes pride in its food, as it keeps a list of 85 banned ingredients, including refined sugars. Everything on the menu is gluten-free and peanut-free, reducing allergy concerns.

Freshly offers plans with four, six, nine, or 12 meals per week, ranging from $50/week to $108/week.

Key points:

  • Meals are delivered fresh and require no cooking.
  • Every dish is gluten-free.

7. Prepped

Prepped is another ready-made delivery service that brings fresh meals to your door. Select your meals for the week, pick a delivery date, and you'll receive them fresh and ready to heat in minutes.

The service offers breakfast and dessert in addition to the usual lunch and dinner dishes. If you're on a diet, you can sign up for specific Paleo or low-carb packages.

And if you live alone, Prepped offers a Singles category for meals that won't leave leftovers. The service doesn't offer a standard set-cost plan; simply order your meals each week. Just keep in mind the $55 minimum order to cover shipping.

Key points:

  • Plans for low-carb and Paleo diets.
  • No set plans aside from $55 weekly minimum.
  • Singles are great for those dining alone.

Healthy Meals Delivered Straight to Your Doorstep

This is just a sample of the meal prep delivery services available today. Most of them are quite similar, so you can decide which is best for you based on the pricing, available meals, and dietary options.

Most services target two people or families, so if you live alone, you'll probably end up with leftovers. But whether you prefer to cook on your own or want your meals to arrive already made, you can enjoy healthy and tasty food at home for a decent price.

Once you start eating better with one of these services, check out these websites that reward you for being healthy.