Best meal delivery services & kits in Canada in 2023

There are two types of people in this world: those who enjoy cooking and those who would rather fire up DoorDash than any of their appliances.

Whether it’s for lack of time, skill or general interest, a meal kit or meal delivery service can save you time in the kitchen and cut down on your weekly grocery shopping.

Meal kits vs. meal delivery services

At this point, you’ve likely heard of meal kit companies like HelloFresh and Goodfood. A meal kit contains pre-measured ingredients and a recipe card to follow at home. If you want to further simplify your meals, there are prepared meal kits. In these types of subscriptions, the customer is given pre-cooked meals that only need require a microwave or oven to heat up.

Are meal kits cheaper than groceries?

Meal kits are expensive; however, grocery costs have also spiked. In Canada, food inflation is at its highest level in more than 40 years, hitting pantry staples like pasta, coffee, meat and fresh produce. The cost of groceries saw record levels in 2022, and they’re expected to rise even further in 2023.

To draw a cost comparison, we looked at this Creamy Garlic Shrimp and Herby Roasted Salmon recipe from HelloFresh and compared the price of a meal kit with ingredients found on Voilà by Sobeys, a grocery delivery service.

If you made this meal with HelloFresh, it would cost you between $24-$37, depending on your weekly meal plan (not including butter, oil and…