Trying to decide between Sun Basket vs Hello Fresh? I’ve got you covered in today’s post!
You guys know efficiency is my love language. Running my business keeps me pretty busy during the week, so between that and all of life’s other responsibilities, grocery shopping, and cooking seem like such a hassle—that’s why I have opted for meal delivery kits!
In the market of meal kit delivery services, there are so many different meal plan options, but in my opinion, the best ones are Sun Basket and HelloFresh. If you’re here, you’re probably an efficiency freak too, and you just want to know which one is better. So today I’m going deep into this Sun Basket vs Hello Fresh review.
Both offer meal kits with different meal options that vary per week, but only Sunbasket has ready-made meals that don’t require prep/cooking. They also both have great customer service and offer family-friendly options and options for varying dietary preferences.
Psst, before we get into my Sun Basket vs Hello Fresh review, you should know I have discount codes for you!
Sign up for Hello Fresh and get 18 free meals and your first box ships free!
Sign up for Sunbasket here and get $90 off across your first four deliveries!
Sun Basket vs Hello Fresh Review
Overview
Hello Fresh is a meal kit delivery service that provides you with recipes and ingredients to cook yummy dinners. None of the meals come precooked, and while the portions are sized out, none of the veggies are precut.
The recipe card shows an estimated “prep time,” but I add at least 15 minutes to get a more accurate estimate of how long I’ll be in the kitchen.
Sunbasket has two options in its meal delivery service. Similar to Hello Fresh, they also provide meal kits with recipes, but I prefer their oven-ready meals!
Sun Basket also offers options for specific dietary needs, such as vegetarian and gluten-free, and even has organic meal kits too.
Menu
Hello Fresh Menu
Hello Fresh has a rotating menu of about 30 recipes. Your box includes a meal card for each recipe and a paper bag filled with all the ingredients needed for that dinner.
The time spent on each meal varies, but I like that I have 30 recipes to choose from so that I can pick dinners that suit my schedule for the week.
Hello Fresh offers calorie-smart, carb-smart, and vegetarian options. You can choose between 2 and 6 recipes a week for either 2 or 4 servings, although I’ve definitely found that their serving sizes are on the small side for me and Omied—we can devour 4 servings for dinner between the two of us.
Sunbasket Menu
Sunbasket has a rotating menu of around 17 meal kit options and 16 oven-ready entrees. Their oven-ready meals provide quality food with no prep time for the busy gal on the go.
You also have two options for their ready-made meals and can either heat them up in the oven or the microwave. I always opt for the microwave because it’s fast and easy and turns out great.
Personally, I love that I don’t have to cook the ready-made meals and prefer that over Hello Fresh’s meal kits. Sunbasket just feels like max efficiency!
Their meals include options that are low-calorie, gluten-free, veggie, paleo, and diabetic-friendly—truly a meal for everyone!
Like Hello Fresh, you can choose how many recipes and serving sizes you want too. We usually do six meals, delivered on Mondays.
Cost
Hello Fresh meals start at $8 a serving, and this cost lowers the more servings you buy.
Sign up for Hello Fresh and get 18 free meals and your first box ships free!
Sunbasket meal kits start at $11.49 per serving, and oven-ready meals start at $9.99 per serving.
Sign up for Sunbasket here and get $90 off across your first four deliveries!
Yumminess Rating
When choosing a meal kit service for us, I wanted options that were tasty, satisfying (for us that means it has plenty of protein), and healthy. Meal kits tend to skimp on more expensive ingredients like meat to save costs, so I was definitely on the lookout for that when comparing Sunbasket vs Hello Fresh.
In my experience, Sunbasket meals are a good size, and I’m always satisfied (and so is Omied which I was def wondering if that would be the case when we first tried Sunbasket because he can eat a lot).
When comparing the quality of ingredients that I receive, Sunbasket for sure wins. I find that sometimes the Hello Fresh ingredients will be about ½ through their life before I even get them.
I would say that Hello Fresh provides more hearty comfort food, whereas Sunbasket is healthy, organic food but still with a great taste!
Especially because we try to be health-conscious during the week, Sunbasket’s lower-calorie options have been a great fit for us.
We definitely have a few Sunbasket options that we’ve tried in the past and didn’t love/order again (like their jerk chicken—it just has kind of a strange texture and flavor), but I’d say we’ve had an 80% win rate with them.
Pros / Cons
HelloFresh
Pros
- More budget friendly
- Less food waste than traditional grocery shopping—ingredients come premeasured
Cons
- Veggies aren’t always the freshest
- Not organic
- Lots of prep/cook time required
- Time spent in the kitchen can be longer than expected
- Not allergen friendly
- Small portion sizes
Sun Basket
Pros
- Fresh, organic ingredients
- Meal kits and oven-ready meals available
- Variety of meal options for different dietary needs
- Satisfying portion sizes
- No prep or cleanup time needed for oven-ready meals
Cons
- Slightly more expensive
- Limited family-friendly food options
Final Thoughts
After looking at Sun Basket vs Hello Fresh, it is clear that Sunbasket is my top pick! Who could say no to healthy yet still tasty meals that I can just toss in the microwave? Even though it’s slightly more expensive per serving, it’s absolutely worth it to me to pay a few dollars more in order to save a ton of time.
Hello Fresh is my second favorite option as these meals require more time in the kitchen and more cleanup too, but they do have some really delicious options.
With Sunbasket, I have a tasty dinner ready for me and Omied with zero cleanup or prep time! Literally the dream.
Have you tried either of these meal kit services? Comment below to let me know which is your favorite.
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FAQs
I love Sun Basket! I love that I have the option to order oven-ready meals that require no prep or cleanup, or order meal kits if I have a slower week.
Yes, but I think it is worth it because you are paying for the quality of your food and zero prep time.
While it is on the pricier side, it offers healthy organic ingredients which are delicious, while also still cutting down on the time and effort required in the kitchen. If you are looking for specific meals to match your dietary needs or are just looking for a healthier option altogether, you should try Sunbasket.
Elise Armitage is an entrepreneur and founder of What The Fab, a travel + lifestyle blog based in California. At the beginning of 2019, Elise left her corporate job at Google to chase her dreams: being an entrepreneur and helping women find fabulous in the everyday. Since then, she’s launched her SEO course Six-Figure SEO, where she teaches bloggers how to create a passive revenue stream from their website using SEO. Featured in publications like Forbes, Elle, HerMoney, and Real Simple, Elise is a firm believer that you can be of both substance and style.
