Here, we’ll talk about the best meal kits for college students in online colleges. We understand if you think that meal kits are unnecessary for online students.
After all, online students enjoy the benefits of flexible schedules, self-paced study, and asynchronous classes. In short, they have more time on their hands than on-campus students. Why have meal kits delivered to their homes when they can prepare homecooked meals instead?
You’ll be surprised by the benefits of meal kits for online students. Keep in mind that many online students are also working professionals, adults with small children, and other non-traditional students. Even traditional online students will enjoy the benefits of meal kits for these reasons:
Featured Programs
- Affordability: Meal kits are an affordable option in the long term. You can save money because you’re not ordering takeout and dining out as much as before. There’s less food waste in your life, too, thanks to pre-portioned meals. You’re saving money on groceries, too, especially in these inflationary times. Meal kit delivery services also offer promotions that result in money savings. You can get bundle deals and discounts, among others. Bundle deals can include freebies and add-ons, seasonal bundles, and bulk meal kits.
- Healthy Options: Meal kits are available in balanced, regular meals and meals for individuals with dietary restrictions. In both cases, you’ll get healthy, balanced, and flavorful meals. You can customize your meal plans, too, based on your dietary restrictions. Vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, nut-free, low-carb, and keto are popular options. There’s also a strong emphasis on using fresh and organic ingredients. Meal kits also come with pre-portioned ingredients. You’re less at risk of overeating, which, in turn, promotes a healthy weight and body.
- Convenience: Yes, some meal kits must be cooked first. But these usually come with pre-portioned ingredients (i.e., chopped) and step-by-step instructions. No complicated cooking techniques and equipment needed either (e.g., sautéing and frying only). There are also meal kits that only need to be assembled and heated. Many meal kits are in ready-to-eat form, too. Whatever the case, meal kits are more convenient than making dishes from scratch. You’ll spend less time and experience less stress, too.
The bottom line: Online students should consider affordable meal delivery services. You’ll save time, effort, and money once you do.
Why Meal Kits Are Ideal for Online Students
Here are more benefits that come with subscribing to healthy meal kits on a budget.
Save Time
Online students usually juggle work, family, and academic responsibilities. But even with flexible schedules and convenient access, challenges remain.
Work schedules and demands can change suddenly. Family members can get sick. Readings and assignments must be completed through all these challenges.
Meal kits can address time-related challenges among online students by:
- Allowing them to prepare their meals in a short time. The dining process, from grocery shopping to washing dishes, can take more time than necessary. With meal kits, you can eat as soon as these are delivered or in 20-30 minutes of prep time.
- Empowering them to make healthy food decisions without spending too much time on it. Meal kits are also planned well ahead of time. You can then focus on other things.
Extensive meal planning is one less thing to worry about.
Complement Your Online Schedule
Meal kit deliveries can also be scheduled based on your online learning schedule. You can also prepare and eat your meals at your own convenience. Between classes, after your work shift, and during a study break are examples.
But you should ideally adopt a regular meal schedule for health reasons. Healthy meals not only feed your body but boost your mental capacity.
Key Features to Look for in a Meal Kit Delivery Service
There’s no one-meal-kit-delivery-service-fits-all. You must choose based on your unique budget, dietary preferences, and schedule.
Furthermore, here are key features that the best budget-friendly meal subscriptions offer.
Affordability and Student Discounts
Affordability is a priority for college students when considering meal plans and kits. This isn’t surprising as college students spend $570/month, on average, on food. Unless you’re loaded, choose an affordable meal kit subscription.
Then, consider the student discounts, bundle deals, and other promotions offered. The more freebies and savings you get, the better for your pockets.
Flexible Subscription Options
The best meal kits for online students match the flexibility of their schedules, so to speak. Look for customizable plans where you can change meal preferences, skip days, and pause deliveries. These flexible options mean you don’t have to pay for meal kits you won’t eat.
Availability of Healthy and Dietary-Specific Meals
True or false: Cheap meal delivery options are inferior in quality and variety. False, but you must be careful when choosing from among meal kit delivery services.
Look for a meal kit delivery service that delivers on:
- Balanced and healthy meals, in general
- Use of fresh ingredients, preferably organic ingredients, too
- Different meals for different dietary preferences or restrictions
- Reliable information about the ingredients and nutritional value in their meals
Check with the meal kit delivery services for your dietary preferences. The best ones usually cater to vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, low-calorie, low-carb, and keto diets. But if you have specific preferences, you should be able to work on customized meal kits.
Top Meal Kit Delivery Services for Online College Students
EveryPlate
EveryPlate is among the best meal kit services for students because of its affordable, easy-to-make, and healthy meal kits. Prices start at $2.99 per serving with discounts.
Of course, the amount per serving will depend on factors like recipe, box size, and number of people. The affordable prices are possible because EveryPlate uses simple ingredients and less packaging. There are also discounts, such as 50% off on your first box.
You can select your box size (i.e., number of people 2, 4, and 6) and meals per week (i.e., 3, 4, and 5). EveryPlate makes it easy to skip deliveries (i.e., pause or cancel) without penalties.
There are more than 20 flavorful and healthy meals to choose from, too. Rice bowls, steak dinners, and pasta are among the choices. You can choose from plant-based dishes, too, as well as whole grains and lean proteins.
Dinnerly
If you’re looking for affordable college student meal plans delivered to your home, consider Dinnerly. You can choose from at least 100 recipes every week. Steak dinners, quesadillas, and chicken dishes are among the wide array of choices.
Dinnerly offers meal kits for students with dietary restrictions, including:
- Gluten-free friendly
- Low-calorie meals
- Low-carb dishes
- Picky eater-approved meals
- Vegetarian, vegan, and plant-based meals
You can pause and cancel your orders at any time.
Prices start at $7.99 per person. Discounts and other cost-saving promotions are available, too. Grab the $140 discount on your first five boxes.
HelloFresh
Yet another excellent company that delivers affordable and quality meal kits for busy students is HelloFresh. Prices start at $9.99 per serving. You must decide the number of people on your feeding list (2, 4, and 6) and the number of meals per week (2 to 6 meals).
There’s a Hero Discount Program that offers a 55% discount on the first box and free shipping. For 51 weeks, it’s 15% off, too.
You can pause or cancel your orders, too, but within a reasonable time.
HelloFresh offers over 100 weekly recipes and market items. Every box comes with fresh produce, step-by-step recipe cards with nutritional information, and customizable add-ons. You’ll also get up to 10 free meals and a high-protein item for life.
There are vegetarian options. If you have dietary restrictions, you’ll find recipes that meet them, too.
Home Chef
Based in Chicago, Home Chef delivers meal kits on a weekly basis to customers across the United States. Standard meals cost $9.99 per serving, on average. But prices differ depending on your menu choices, shipping fees, and other factors.
Every new customer creates a Taste Profile that Home Chef uses for menu suggestions. You can choose from over 20 recipes every week, and each week features new recipes. Home Chef allows changes to meal orders but before its menu closes (Friday, noon CT).
Every meal kit contains pre-portioned, fresh, and quality ingredients. There are step-by-step recipe cards, too.
Home Chef offers two plans:
- The Home Chef Plan features traditional meal kits that allow you to cook your food from start to finish.
- The Family Plan has affordable and convenient meals for larger groups.
If you have dietary preferences and restrictions, you can customize your meal kits, too. Home Chef has a Customize It tool for this purpose.
Green Chef
As a USDA-certified organic company, Green Chef uses organic ingredients, including meats and seafood, in its meal kits. Green Chef allows its customers to mix and match recipes. This results in more variety in your food choices and more balanced meals.
If you have dietary restrictions, Green Chef delivers specialized dietary menus, too. There are eight meal plans, including keto, gluten-free, plant-based, Mediterranean, and protein-packed. Both regular and specialized menus come with pre-measured and prepped ingredients for more convenience and less food waste.
The base price is about $104 per week or about $13 per serving. Add the shipping cost of about $10 per week. Discounts for new and repeat customers are available.
Green Chef delivers nationwide except in Hawaii and Alaska. You can choose the number of servings per meal (2, 4, or 6) and meals per week (2, 3, or 4).
Blue Apron
Founded in 2012, Blue Apron has since grown in size, among other ways. Today, it’s among the best affordable meal kits and grocery delivery services.
Prices start at $8.39 per serving (two servings/meal, two meals/week). You can also choose four servings per meal and three, four, or five meals per week. Discounts are available. If you’re a new customer, you can get 30% off on your first five weeks of deliveries.
Blue Apron offers more than 100 recipes per week, too. There are several categories to choose from, so there’s one for every palate and dietary restriction. These include Vegetarian, Wellness, Premium, Prepared & Ready, and Breakfast, Carb Conscious, and 600 Calories or Less. Desserts, such as flourless chocolate cake, are available.
Meal kits come with pre-portioned and prepared ingredients. You can also cancel your orders without penalties.
Tips for Choosing the Right Meal Kit for Your Needs
Effective online college meal planning demands time and effort. Keep these tips in mind when choosing the best meal kit delivery service for yourself.
- Determine the cost per meal against your food budget. Consider the serving sizes, too. Choose the more affordable option, such as EveryPlate.
- Look for flexibility in the delivery schedules. You should be able to choose the days of your delivery, particularly when these align with your schedule. Look for easy skip and pause options, too.
- Check for special student discounts and other promotions. Referral bonuses and promotional deals are also cost-saving measures.
Making Meal Kits Work for Your Budget
- Take full advantage of discounts, bundle deals, and coupons, among others. Think of the money you can save.
- Choose from the weekly meal plans based on your needs. You may want more meals this week and less next week, for example.
- Split the cost with your friends or roommates. You can order two servings and split the cost. Combine your orders, too, for more variety in your meals at less cost.
- Mix meal kits and homecooked meals using pantry staples to stretch your food budget.
Conclusion: Simplify Your Life with Meal Kits
If you’re an online student with a modest budget, consider meal kits. You’ll agree that these are affordable, convenient, and healthy. The time and money you save on grocery shopping, cooking, and cleaning up are worth the cost of meal kits. Indeed, you can simplify your life with these delicious meals.