Dinnerly Meal Kits Start at $6 a Serving. We Tested the Budget-Friendly Service in 2026

When our resident meal kit expert, David Watsky, tested Dinnerly, he found the recipes were mostly tasty, with fresh ingredients, though they were a bit basic. In our latest 2026 test, CNET’s Wellness Editor Anna Gragert, a vegetarian for 21 years who regularly cooks and eats vegan fare, gave Dinnerly a try. She was wholly impressed by its delicious, thoughtfully crafted (albeit sometimes salty) plant-based recipes.

Yes, Dinnerly recipes are still on the simpler side, with uncomplicated instructions and few ingredients, making them great for those new to cooking, yet rarely lacking in flavor or freshness.

Here’s everything you need to know about the affordable meal kit service in 2026.

Meal kits, prepared meals and market items

While your credit card information is required before you can select your meals, you can still see Dinnerly’s menu up to three weeks in advance.

When choosing your meals, you can select from additional dietary preferences, such as vegan, Mediterranean diet and high fiber. You can also choose the cook time, protein, meal type, price category, allergens, dish type and cuisine. Along with meal kits, Dinnerly offers prepared meals and market items, like appetizers, cookies, snacks, beverages, baking kits and Splendid Spoon soups.

For future deliveries, Dinnerly will suggest recipes based on your taste profile, but you can adjust and swap them in your account up to seven days before your next delivery.

If you prefer to use an app, Dinnerly also has one.

Your subscription is easy to edit, pause or cancel

Once you have a Dinnerly account, you can cancel, pause or edit your subscription on the Orders page. However, you will have to make these changes before the cutoff date, which is the day before your order is billed. The billing date is five to six days before your delivery date. You can also see how many days you have left to edit your box on the Orders page.

Each week, Dinnerly will send you an email reminder before that cutoff date so you know when to make any changes.

How much does Dinnerly cost?

Dinnerly costs between $6 and $11 a serving. Shipping is an extra $12. Market items cost extra and range from $2 to $22.

Dinnerly pricing as of April 2026

Are Dinnerly meals healthy?

Depending on the meal, Dinnerly’s recipes can be healthy, but the company makes it hard to tell. On its recipe cards, a few nutrition facts are available, such as calories, fat, carbs and protein per serving. When you try to find more information on the Dinnerly website, you might find one or two more nutrition facts, such as sodium, but there is nothing about the percent daily value, which shows how much a dish’s nutrients contribute to an overall daily diet.

If you have specific health concerns, you’ll want to look at each individual recipe you order to see if the available nutrition facts align with your current diet.

Broiled Southwestern tilapia with broccoli: This simple, low-carb meal was another basic one. The Southwestern rub gave the fish good flavor, and it all tasted fresh.

French onion soup with cheesy croutons: This soup base for this light meal was made from a packet of beef stock and some sauteed onions. Overall, it had very little flavor. 

Bean and cheese tamale pie: This vegetarian, kid-friendly recipe was delicious and filling — especially with the cornbread crust and melted cheese on top. However, it contains a whopping 2,220 milligrams of sodium per serving, which is almost 100% of the daily recommended value of 2,300mg.

Grilled Mediterranean Impossible sliders: This was one of Anna’s favorite vegan Dinnerly recipes, so much so that she plans to recreate it herself. Plus, it includes 34g of protein despite being plant-based. Even though she doesn’t have a grill pan, Anna was still able to get a lovely char on the zucchini and bell pepper in her stainless steel pan. The garam masala added to the Impossible sliders was also a tasty, thoughtful touch.

Sofrito tofu tacos: Sometimes vegan recipes that include tofu can be bland, but Anna found this one incredibly flavorful thanks to the taco seasoning. Yet it did taste quite salty, and upon looking at the nutrition facts online (the recipe card didn’t list it), Anna found that it contains 1,290mg of sodium per serving, which is over half the daily recommended amount.

Who is Dinnerly good for?

Dinnerly is one of the best meal kit services if you’re looking for a cheap, easy way to get dinner on the table a few nights each week. With over 100 meals per week, this is a good meal kit service for families with kids or picky eaters. However, Dinnerly only offers up to six servings, making it best for families of up to six people.

While vegetarians will fare well with at least 22 weekly meals, vegans only get up to five meals per week. While Anna, our plant-based tester, found her vegan meals tasty, those looking for a more robust vegan meal delivery service may want to try one like Purple Carrot, which is dedicated solely to vegan recipes.

Environmental friendliness and packaging

Because Dinnerly ships all its meal kit ingredients in one box without individual meal kit packaging, there is less single-use plastic than other services we’ve tried.

The box your ingredients arrive in can be recycled. Depending on your location and climate, you may receive one of two box liners: paper liners, which can be recycled, or foil pouch liners, which can only be recycled at centers that accept No. 4 plastics. The tray that contains your ingredients is made from sustainably sourced paper fiber, which is recyclable.

As for the ingredients themselves, they tend to come individually wrapped. Plastic jars, clamshells and bottles can typically be recycled curbside, while film and bags must be taken to a recycling center or supermarket that accepts No. 1 and No. 4 plastic. Overall, you’ll want to check what your recycling provider accepts.

During testing, Anna also noted that she ended up with extra ingredients, such as spices. She would have preferred it if they came in the exact amount required for the recipe, to negate any extra waste.