EveryPlate Alternative: Even Cheaper Meal Planning

EveryPlate is the budget king of meal kits. At around $5 per serving, it's HelloFresh's answer to people who loved the concept but couldn't stomach the price. Simpler recipes, fewer fancy ingredients, lower cost. If you want a meal kit that doesn't feel like a luxury purchase, EveryPlate is the obvious pick.

But here's the uncomfortable truth: even at $5/serving, you're paying 2–3x what those same ingredients cost at your grocery store. Add the $10/week shipping fee and the reality that EveryPlate only covers 3 dinners, and the "budget" label starts looking less convincing. There's a way to eat planned meals every night for a fraction of even EveryPlate's prices.

It's still more expensive than grocery shopping. EveryPlate's $5/serving sounds cheap next to HelloFresh's $10 — but compare it to buying groceries yourself. A home-cooked meal using grocery store ingredients costs $1.50–3.00 per serving. EveryPlate is double that, plus $10 shipping per box. For a couple doing 3 dinners/week, that's $70/month vs. $35–50 if you just bought the ingredients yourself.

Extremely limited variety. This is the real cost of being the budget option. EveryPlate offers just 8–10 recipes per week — compared to 30+ at HelloFresh. Within a month, you've seen most of their repertoire. The meals are deliberately simple (think pasta, tacos, sheet pan chicken), which is fine at first but gets monotonous fast.

No dietary filters. Unlike even HelloFresh, EveryPlate has no keto, vegan, or allergy-specific plans. If you have dietary restrictions, you're manually scanning each week's menu and hoping 2–3 options work. For anyone with allergies, this is a dealbreaker.

The box problem persists. Budget pricing doesn't mean less packaging. You still get the insulated box, ice packs, individual ingredient bags, and plastic liners every single week. The environmental cost is identical to any meal kit.

If you chose EveryPlate because you wanted the cheapest way to eat planned meals, the logical next step is eliminating the box entirely. What's For Dinner generates a personalized weekly meal plan with complete recipes and a consolidated grocery list — delivered to your inbox every week for $7.99/month.

You shop at whatever store you want (Aldi, Walmart, Costco, your local market), buy ingredients at retail prices, and cook from the recipes. The planning and decision-making is done for you. The ingredient markup is gone.

What you get:

• AI-personalized meal plans — breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks for the entire week
• Original recipes every week — no rotating menu, no repeats
• A consolidated grocery list tailored to your plan
• Full dietary support: keto, vegan, gluten-free, halal, FODMAP — anything
• Shop at any store, at regular grocery prices
• $7.99/month — less than the cost of two EveryPlate servings

What you give up:

• Pre-portioned ingredients (you buy and measure yourself)
• Not having to grocery shop (you go to the store, but with a list)
• The convenience of ingredients showing up at your door

If you're already budget-conscious enough to choose EveryPlate over HelloFresh, you're the exact kind of person who'd benefit from cutting out the middleman entirely.

Price: EveryPlate costs ~$5/serving + $10 shipping/box ($70/month for a couple, 3 dinners/week). What's For Dinner is $7.99/month + groceries at regular prices (~$2–3/serving).

Personalization: EveryPlate offers 8–10 rotating recipes with zero dietary filters. WFD generates unlimited original meals tailored to your exact needs, preferences, and allergies.

Dietary support: EveryPlate has none — no keto, no vegan, no allergy filters. WFD supports any dietary restriction, including cultural and medical requirements.

Convenience: EveryPlate delivers ingredients to your door (you still cook ~30 min). WFD requires a grocery run + 20–30 minutes cooking, but covers your entire week.

Environmental impact: EveryPlate ships insulated boxes with ice packs and plastic bags weekly. WFD generates zero extra packaging.

Coverage: EveryPlate covers 3–5 dinners/week. WFD covers every meal, every day.

If you're comparing budget options, a few other services are worth knowing about:

• Dinnerly — Another budget meal kit at $5–7/serving with simpler recipes. Very similar to EveryPlate in concept and price. See our Dinnerly alternative comparison.
• HelloFresh — EveryPlate's parent company. More variety at $9–12/serving but significantly pricier. Read our HelloFresh alternative breakdown.
• Budget Bytes — Free recipe site with cost breakdowns, but no meal planning or grocery lists. See our Budget Bytes alternative.