The keto diet, characterized by its high fat, moderate protein, and very low carbohydrate content, has gained immense popularity as a means to achieve weight loss and improve overall health. For individuals embracing this dietary approach, meal delivery services offering keto-friendly options can be a game-changer, simplifying meal planning and ensuring adherence to the strict macronutrient ratios required for ketosis. This article delves into the leading keto food delivery services available, highlighting their unique features, benefits, and considerations to help you choose the perfect fit for your needs.
Understanding the Keto Diet
The ketogenic diet centers around drastically reducing carbohydrate intake, typically limiting it to no more than 10% of total daily calories. This restriction forces the body to enter a metabolic state called ketosis, where it begins to burn ketones derived from fat as its primary fuel source instead of glucose from carbohydrates.
What to Look for in a Keto Meal Delivery Service
When selecting a keto meal delivery service, several key factors should be considered to ensure it aligns with your individual preferences and dietary goals:
- Cost: Evaluate the cost per serving, as well as any additional shipping or delivery fees.
- Customization: Determine if the service offers options to accommodate different dietary needs, preferences, and portion sizes.
- Ingredient Quality: Inquire about the source and quality of the ingredients used, prioritizing services that utilize fresh, organic, and sustainably sourced produce and proteins.
- Nutritional Information: Verify that the service provides comprehensive nutrition labels that comply with keto dietary guidelines, including macronutrient ratios and net carb counts.
- Personal Experience: Consider reading reviews and testimonials from other customers to gain insights into the taste, quality, delivery, and overall satisfaction associated with the service.
Top Keto Meal Delivery Services
Factor
Factor stands out as a top choice for individuals seeking convenient and delicious keto-friendly meals. Their keto meal delivery plan includes a diverse menu of breakfast, lunch, and dinner options, all meticulously crafted to be low in carbohydrates and high in healthy fats.
- Why Factor is liked: Factor offers a keto meal delivery plan for customers who are looking to follow a low-carb diet. The Factor keto meal delivery plan includes breakfast, lunch and dinner options that are all low in carbohydrates and high in healthy fats.
- Who it's best for: Factor's weekly keto menu features fewer bold recipes and flavors and more comfort-style food such as burgers, grilled chicken and meatloaf, making it a good choice for picky eaters or those with a less adventurous palate. All of Factor's keto meals are made with mostly organic, non-GMO ingredients and are free from gluten, soy and artificial preservatives. In addition to a low carb count, Factor keto meals are also designed to be low in calories to aid in weight loss.
- Who should not get it: These keto meals are 15 grams of net carbs or less, so if that is not the keto diet you're following, another service might be better. Also, Factor 75 only offers single servings, so couples or families should choose a different service.
- How Factor's Keto Meal Delivery Works:
- Pick Your Keto Diet Plan and Meals: Choose from a new menu of 100+ dietitian-designed meals and add-on options every week, including up to 15 keto meals per week.
- Keto Home Delivery Meals, Cooked to Perfection: Our gourmet chefs take care of the prepping and cooking, to offer keto meal delivery that’s tailored to your lifestyle.
- Heat, Eat & Enjoy Our Keto Meal Delivery: No prep. No mess. Our keto meals arrive ready to heat and eat in minutes.
Factor is also known for Calorie Smart, vegan, vegetarian, and Protein Plus options as well as keto meals.
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Green Chef
Green Chef is another excellent option, particularly for those prioritizing organic and high-quality ingredients. Their keto meal plan features a variety of chef-created recipes, with at least four keto options available each week.
- Why it's liked: Green Chef is one of the healthiest meal kit delivery services and caters to an array of designer diets including a keto meal plan for folks looking to cut carbs. With a Green Chef meal kit subscription, you'll find creative keto meals.
- Who it's best for: A bevy of chef-created recipes -- at least four keto options per week -- coupled with Green Chef's high-quality, mostly USDA organic ingredients make for a pricier subscription, but Green Chef is worth it for those seeking healthy meal kits delivered each week.
- Who should not get it: Green Chef's keto meals are 20 grams or less of net carbs, so another service may be better if that's too high for your diet. The company also doesn't offer single servings and you can only get up to four meals per week.
- How Our Keto Meal Delivery Service Works
- Choose Your Keto-Friendly Meals: Select our Keto meal plan and choose delicious keto-friendly dishes that fit your dietary preferences from our menu of 80+ weekly options.
- Receive Keto Meal Kits at Your Door: Enjoy the convenience of fresh, pre-portioned keto ingredients delivered straight to your doorstep.
- Cook and Enjoy Keto Dinners: Follow our easy recipes to prepare and savor healthy, satisfying keto dinners.
Green Chef is committed to sustainability, offsetting 100% of our delivery emissions and plastic in every box.
Pete's Real Food
Pete's Real Food caters to those who prefer a paleo-aligned approach while still offering keto-friendly options. Their prepared meals emphasize quality, paleo-friendly ingredients and thoughtful preparation.
- Why it's liked: The paleo and keto diets have a lot in common, but there are some important distinctions too. If you're more inclined to keep to a paleo plan that allows for healthy foods that may also have a high carb count, like carrots and sweet potatoes, then I'd recommend Pete's Real Food prepared keto meals. You can still order plenty of low-carb, keto-friendly meals through Pete's Real Food, but it's not the foundational diet plan for this meal delivery service.
- Who it's best for: I would recommend Pete's Real Food for those who are more inclined to keep a paleo diet. For those looking to save time on cooking, these prepared meals are also great because they require about 3 minutes in the microwave.
- Who should not get it: Pete's Real Food is expensive at $13-18 per serving with shipping around $40 (depending on your location). You can also only get five meals per week on the keto diet with only a single serving available. No dietary certifications are listed.
Home Chef
Home Chef provides the most keto-friendly meal kits among the services, making it ideal for those who enjoy cooking at home. Their Carb Conscious meal plan offers a wide selection of recipes with less than 15 grams of carbs per serving.
- Why it's liked: If you're looking to make keto dinners at home, Home Chef has the most keto-friendly meal kits of any service I tried, and that makes it an excellent choice for those keeping to a low-carb keto diet.
- Who it's best for: One great feature Home Chef offers is that you can swap or double the protein in any meal and since keto diet followers are all about that protein, it makes finding the right low-carb meals each week that much easier. Home Chef also has oven-ready keto-friendly meal options. The company offers up to six servings and six keto-friendly meals per week, making it great for families.
- Who should not get it: If 15g of net carbs or less is not part of your keto diet, this service is not for you. Some meals also have a longer prep time of 60 minutes, but that's not the case for all.
HelloFresh
HelloFresh offers a Carb Smart menu that makes eating meals with fewer carbs fun.
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- Why you’ll love HelloFresh:
- More Carb Smart Recipes to Enjoy: HelloFresh offers a Carb Smart menu that makes eating meals with fewer carbs fun. Just wait for your first box to arrive and try delicious alternatives that are lower in carbs and higher in enjoyment.
- Carb Smart Eating Made Easy: Following a Carb Smart meal plan is easy with HelloFresh. Your Carb Smart meal kit will be delivered straight to your door, and preparing your meal will take 30 minutes or less. With pre-measured ingredients, waste is minimal and portion sizes are perfect
- Carb Smart Meals are Flexible: Choosing HelloFresh for Carb Smart meals means you’re never restricted. You can change your delivery day, alter the number of meals you receive, and add extra snacks or desserts when you need a treat. Our goal is to make Carb Smart eating fit your lifestyle.
- Carb Smart Meal Planning Made Easy: Choose meals that are lower in carbs the easy way with our Carb Smart recipes! Weekly, biweekly, or monthly, you'll get a meal kit delivery sent to your door with fresh ingredients and easy-to-follow recipes that make being carb-conscious so much easier.
Comparing Keto Meal Delivery Services
| Brand | Meal type | Meals per week | Price per serving | Servings available | Diets | Dietary certifications | Delivery frequency | Shipping cost | Prep time range | CNET score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Factor 75 | Prepared | 6-18 | $11-$14 | Single | High protein, calorie smart, keto, carb conscious, fiber-filled, GLP-1 support, flexitarian | Dietician-approved | Weekly | Free for the first delivery, then $10.99 | 2 minutes in microwave | 8 |
| Green Chef | Meal kits | 3-4 | $12 | 2-6 | Keto, Mediterranean, protein-packed, calorie smart, plant-based, quick and easy, gluten-free, gut and brain health | CCOF-certified organic, USDA organic, Gluten-Free Validation through the Gluten Intolerance Group | Weekly | Free for the first delivery, then $10.99 | 30-45 minutes | 8.4 |
| Pete's Real Food | Prepared | 5 | $15-$21 | Single | Paleo, keto, autoimmune protocol (AIP), chef curated | n/a | Every 1-4 weeks | Around $40, but depends on location | About 3 minutes in microwave | 9 |
| Home Chef | Meal kits | 2-6 | $10 | 2-6 | Protein-packed, calories-conscious, carb-conscious, fiber-rich, keto-friendly, Mediterranean, gluten-smart, pescatarian, vegetarian | n/a | Weekly | Free for the first delivery, then $10.99 | 15-60 minutes | 8 |
Additional Considerations
- Meal Format: Decide whether you prefer meal kits that require some preparation and cooking or prepared meals that are ready to heat and eat.
- Keto Strictness Level: Determine your desired level of carb restriction and choose a service that aligns with your specific macronutrient goals.
- Dietary Certifications: If dietary certifications such as USDA organic or certified gluten-free are important to you, ensure the service you choose offers these options.
- Meals Per Week and Frequency: Consider how many meals you need per week and choose a delivery frequency that suits your lifestyle and schedule.
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