ButcherBox
ButcherBox also includes only humanely raised pork and wild-caught seafood in its monthly boxes. If you’ve held a package of wild-caught salmon up next to a filet of farmed salmon, you’ve probably noticed the stark difference in color and quality — but also price.
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ButcherBox salmon is all wild-caught.
” image-credit=”ButcherBox” image-alt-text=”package of butcherbox salmon” image-filename=”screenshot-2023-07-25-at-1-08-49-pm.png” image-date-created=”2023/07/25″ image-width=”1442″ image-height=”1252″ image-do-not-crop=”false” image-do-not-resize=”false” image-watermark=”false” lightbox=”false” edition=”us” class=”c-shortcodeImage u-clearfix c-shortcodeImage-large c-shortcodeImage-hasCaption”>
ButcherBox costs $146 for the cheapest plan. If you have a big crew, you can save more per pound with the monthly Big Box.
ButcherBox/Screenshot by CNET
ButcherBox also has two sizes for each subscription: regular and large. The regular box is 8 to 11 pounds of meat per month, while a large order is exactly double that — 16 to 22 pounds. The regular-sized curated box costs $146 while the Big Box is $269.
Shipping is free or, more accurately, built into the subscription price.
How I did the math
For this exercise, I chose ButcherBox’s curated subscription and used the smaller box (8 to 11 pounds of meat each month.) To compare ButcherBox prices with those of a typical grocery store, I used my local supermarket, Wegmans. Wegmans is not a budget supermarket, but it’s also not the most expensive option in my neighborhood. I chose Wegmans both because it’s where I shop when I shop in person, but also because it has a sprawling selection of quality meats, including grass-fed beef, organic chicken and wild-caught seafood.
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Organic chicken thighs cost $7.89 per pound at Wegmans.
” image-credit=”ButcherBox/Screenshot by CNET” image-alt-text=”organic chicken thighs from wegman’s website” image-filename=”screenshot-2024-02-07-at-12-44-01pm.png” image-date-created=”2024/02/07″ image-width=”1748″ image-height=”788″ image-do-not-crop=”false” image-do-not-resize=”false” image-watermark=”false” lightbox=”false” edition=”us” class=”c-shortcodeImage u-clearfix c-shortcodeImage-large c-shortcodeImage-hasCaption”>
ButcherBox has rotating promotions for new subscribers that make the savings even more pronounced.
ButcherBox
In addition to the items sent in ButcherBox’s custom plan, I also included the ButcherBox free promotional gifts when calculating the total grocery store cost. New subscribers to ButcherBox receive a gift of meat or fish in their monthly deliveries for a full year. In some cases, the gift is included for the entirety of your subscription.
Right now, the gift for new subscribers is a choice of 2 pounds of grass-fed beef, 3 pounds of organic chicken thighs or 1 pound of premium steak tips. Three pounds of organic chicken thighs at Wegmans costs $23.67, so I included that in each month’s total.
ButcherBox vs. grocery store: Which is cheaper?
When I averaged out the three months of itemized list purchased at the grocery store plus the free gift included in each delivery, the total for meats when purchased at Wegmans was $170.72. Compare that to ButcherBox’s monthly cost of $146 and about $23 cheaper per month if you use the subscription service.
If you exclude the free gift that expires after a year, then the savings drop down to just $1, but ButcherBox is still the more cost-effective option.
For the Big Box, ButcherBox savings are even, well, bigger. To double the meat at Wegmans would cost about $341 versus ButcherBox, which costs $269 for a double order of the curated plan. That’s a total savings of $72 per month with ButcherBox.
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","
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","
"],["December 2023 items","Cost at Wegmans"],["Burgers (2 lbs) ","$16.78"],["Premium steak tips (2 lbs)","$45.38"],["Ground pork (2 lbs) ","$24.38"],["Boneless pork butt (3.5 lbs)","$36"],["Drumsticks (5 lbs) ","$21.45"],["Gift: 3 lbs organic chicken thighs (first year only)","$23.67"],["Total:","$167.66"],["
","
"],["January 2024 Items","Cost at Wegmans"],["Ground beef (2 lbs) ","$16.78"],["Stew beef (2 lbs) ","$34.98"],["Pork chops (2 lbs) ","$22.19"],["NY strip steak (1.25 lbs) ","$38.86"],["Chicken breast (3 lbs)","$29.37"],["Gift: 3 lbs organic chicken thighs (first year only)","$23.67"],["Total:","$165.85"],["
","
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Cost of ButcherBox items at a grocery store
|
|
| November 2023 items |
Cost at Wegmans |
| Pork chops (2 lbs) |
$22.19 |
| Chicken breast (3 lbs) |
$29.37 |
| Ground beef (2 lbs) |
$16.78 |
| Ribeyes (1.25 lbs) |
$54.73 |
| Sirloin cap (1.5 lbs) |
$31.93 |
| Gift: 3 lbs organic chicken thighs (first year only) |
$23.67 |
| Total: |
$178.67 |
|
|
| December 2023 items |
Cost at Wegmans |
| Burgers (2 lbs) |
$16.78 |
| Premium steak tips (2 lbs) |
$45.38 |
| Ground pork (2 lbs) |
$24.38 |
| Boneless pork butt (3.5 lbs) |
$36 |
| Drumsticks (5 lbs) |
$21.45 |
| Gift: 3 lbs organic chicken thighs (first year only) |
$23.67 |
| Total: |
$167.66 |
|
|
| January 2024 Items |
Cost at Wegmans |
| Ground beef (2 lbs) |
$16.78 |
| Stew beef (2 lbs) |
$34.98 |
| Pork chops (2 lbs) |
$22.19 |
| NY strip steak (1.25 lbs) |
$38.86 |
| Chicken breast (3 lbs) |
$29.37 |
| Gift: 3 lbs organic chicken thighs (first year only) |
$23.67 |
| Total: |
$165.85 |
|
|
| Average of three months: |
$170.72 |
