Best Vegetarian Meal Kits in 2026, Tested and Reviewed
Quick summary
Meal kits can be such a game-changer when you want to eat healthy without spending your whole weekend planning meals and grocery shopping. But if you’re vegetarian, finding a service with enough genuinely delicious and filling meat-free options often takes a little more digging.
As a registered dietitian, health writer, and longtime vegetarian, I’ve tried my fair share of meal kits, so I wanted to see which ones actually lived up to the hype.
For this roundup, I ordered and tested a variety of vegetarian and vegan meals, paying attention to everything from flavor and protein to prep time, portion sizes, ingredient quality, and overall value.
After trying them all, I narrowed it down to seven vegetarian meal kits that stood out most. Here are my picks for the best vegetarian meal kits, with options for everything from easy weeknight meals to high-protein and budget-friendly picks.
Best vegetarian meal kits at a glance
| Meal Kit | Price per serving | Shipping | Vegetarian Options | Vegan Options | Prep Time | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Purple Carrot | $9-$14.25 | $12 (free over $120) | ~25/week | yes, 100% plant-based | ≤30 min | best overall |
| Marley Spoon | $8.99-$12.99 | $10.99 | 20+/week | yes | 20-40 min | high-protein vegetarian meals |
| Hungryroot | ~$9–$15 | $6.99 (free over $70) | 75+/week | yes | 7–12 min | easy weeknight meals |
| Green Chef | $12.99 | $11.99 | 10+/week | yes | 25-40 min | organic ingredients |
| HelloFresh | $9.99-$12.99 | $10.99-$12.99 | 15+/week | yes | 20-40 min | variety |
| Blue Apron | $7.49-$15.49 | $11.49 | 5-10/week | limited | 20-40 min | budget-friendly meals |
| Thistle | $9.50-$15.49 | $4.95 (1-2 deliveries per week) | 25+/options | yes | Ready to eat | prepared meals |
How I picked the best vegetarian meal kits
To find the best vegetarian meal kits on the market, I ordered and tested each service firsthand, paying attention to more than just the number of meat-free recipes available. I evaluated each meal kit based on the overall experience, including the food, convenience, nutrition, and value.
Here are some of the key factors I considered:
- Vegetarian variety: I looked at how many vegetarian options were available and whether there was enough variety to keep meals interesting week after week.
- Taste: I evaluated the flavor, seasoning, and texture of each meal.
- Nutrition: As a registered dietitian, I considered the overall nutritional quality of the meals, including protein, fiber, vegetables, and other nutrient-dense ingredients.
- Protein: I paid particular attention to whether meals provided satisfying sources of plant-based or vegetarian protein.
- Ease of preparation: I considered how easy the recipes were to follow, how much prep was involved, and whether the actual cooking time matched what was advertised.
- Ingredient quality: I looked at the freshness and quality of the ingredients, particularly the produce.
- Portion size: I considered whether the portions were filling enough for a typical meal.
- Value: I compared the cost per serving with the quality, portion size, and convenience provided.
- Packaging and delivery: I also considered how well the ingredients were packaged, organized, and kept fresh during delivery.
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Best vegetarian meal kits
I tested a lot of vegetarian meals to narrow this list down, and not every meal kit made the cut. These are the services that stood out to me for flavor, nutrition, convenience, variety, and value.
Best overall: Purple Carrot
- Price: $9-$14.25 per serving
- Shipping: $12 per box on orders under $120
- Vegetarian options: about 25 plant-based meal kits per week
- Vegan options: 100% plant-based
- Prep time: most meals take 30 minutes or less
- Best for: plant-based variety and flavorful meals
Purple Carrot is my top pick for the best vegetarian meal kit because it offers a wide variety of flavorful, entirely plant-based meals, so you don’t have to hunt through a menu for vegetarian options.
When I tested the service, I found the recipes easy to follow, relatively quick to prepare, and satisfying.
I also love that Purple Carrot offers filters for things like high-protein, high-fiber, and meals under 30 minutes, making it easier to find options that match your needs.
The biggest downside is the price, which can be higher than some other meal kits.
I also wouldn’t choose Purple Carrot specifically for its prepared meals. I tried two, and while they were convenient and had better textures than some other prepared meals I’ve tested, I didn’t find them nearly as enjoyable as the meal kits.
Best for high-protein vegetarian meals: Marley Spoon
- Price: $8.99-$12.99 per serving
- Shipping: $10.99 per box
- Vegetarian options: 20+ vegetarian options available weekly
- Vegan options: yes
- Prep time: varies by recipe, mostly around 20-40 minutes
- Best for: high-protein vegetarian meals
If getting enough protein is a priority, Marley Spoon is a solid option.
When I tried the service, I found plenty of vegetarian meals that packed a solid protein punch, including recipes built around satisfying protein sources like beans, lentils, tofu, and meat substitutes.
You can also filter the extensive menu by both Vegetarian and High Protein, making it easy to find meals that fit your needs.
The meals I tested were also genuinely delicious, with creative flavors and tons of variety.
The main downside is that some recipes require more prep work and pantry staples than other meal kits I’ve tried.
Some of the meals are also a little high in calories, though it depends on which options you pick.
Best for easy weeknight meals: Hungryroot
- Price: About $9-$15 per serving
- Shipping: $6.99 per box, or free for orders over $70
- Vegetarian options: 75+ vegetarian choices per week
- Vegan options: yes
- Prep time: about 7-12 minutes
- Best for: quick, low-effort weeknight meals
Hungryroot earns the top spot for easy weeknight vegetarian meals because it takes a lot of the work out of cooking.
Hungryroot is a little different from a regular meal delivery service because it combines grocery items with simple meal kits, so instead of receiving a box of pre-portioned ingredients that you cook entirely from scratch, you get a mix of ready-to-use ingredients, groceries, and easy recipes.
You can follow Hungryroot’s suggested recipes or mix and match individual ingredients to create your own meals.
That flexibility is a big part of what makes Hungryroot stand out, but the real selling point for me was the convenience.
I tested five meals, and every single one took just 7-12 minutes to prepare, with no chopping or measuring required. Most of the work is already done for you, but the finished meals still feel more like something you put together yourself than a fully prepared meal.
The tradeoff is that you’re paying a premium for all that convenience, and Hungryroot relies heavily on pre-cooked and prepared ingredients. So while it’s a great choice for busy weeknights when you want a home-cooked meal (without actually doing much cooking), it may not be the best fit if you enjoy cooking from scratch.
Best organic meal kit: Green Chef
- Price: $12.99 per serving
- Shipping: $11.99 per box
- Vegetarian options: 10+ vegetarian meals per week
- Vegan options: yes
- Prep time: about 25-40 minutes
- Best for: organic ingredients and flavorful, diet-friendly meals
If organic ingredients are high on your list, Green Chef is hard to beat.
The service puts a big emphasis on organic produce and high-quality ingredients, while still giving you plenty of vegetarian and vegan options to choose from.
It also offers a rotating menu of about 40+ meals per week, with filters for preferences like plant-based, high-protein, Mediterranean, and more.
I tested four of Green Chef’s plant-based meals, and I genuinely loved all of them. The recipes were also straightforward to follow, although most took a little longer than some of the other meal kits I tested.
The biggest drawback is that Green Chef is definitely a splurge. At $12.99 per serving plus shipping, it’s one of the pricier options on this list.
But if organic ingredients, interesting recipes, and a more premium meal kit experience are worth paying a little extra for, I think it can be a great choice.
Best for variety: HelloFresh
- Price: $9.99–$12.99 per serving
- Shipping: $10.99–$12.99 per box
- Vegetarian options: 15+ options each week
- Vegan options: yes
- Prep time: around 20-40 minutes
- Best for: variety and flexibility
With 100+ recipes to choose from each week, HelloFresh has one of the biggest menus I’ve come across, and that includes a surprisingly good selection of vegetarian and vegan meals.
When I first opened the menu, I was honestly a little overwhelmed by all the choices, but I quickly decided that’s a pretty good problem to have.
I tested six vegetarian and vegan meals and loved the variety of flavors and cuisines. The recipes were also easy to follow and beginner-friendly, although they do require more hands-on cooking than some of the quicker meal kits on this list.
My one hesitation for vegetarians is that some of the meals felt like meat-based recipes with the meat removed rather than meals intentionally built around vegetarian protein.
Still, if your biggest priority is having lots of meals to choose from every week, HelloFresh might be worth a try.
Best budget-friendly vegetarian meal kit: Blue Apron
- Price: $7.49-$15.49 per serving
- Shipping: $11.49 per order
- Vegetarian options: 5-10 options each week
- Vegan options: some, but limited
- Prep time: about 20-40 minutes
- Best for: affordable, flexible meal kits
If you’re trying to keep the cost of a meal kit reasonable, Blue Apron is one of my favorite budget-friendly picks.
It offers a large rotating menu with 50+ meals each week, including several vegetarian options, and its meal kits start at just $7.49 per serving.
I tested four vegetarian meals and was impressed by how easy they were to prepare. The ingredients came pre-portioned, the recipes included some helpful time-saving shortcuts, and most of the meals were genuinely tasty.
I also love that Blue Apron doesn’t require a subscription, so you can order when you want rather than committing to weekly deliveries.
The caveat is that the vegetarian and vegan selection isn’t as extensive or specifically curated as some other meal kits on this list. But if price and flexibility matter most to you, Blue Apron is a great choice.
Best vegetarian prepared meals: Thistle
- Price: $9.50-$15.49 per meal
- Shipping: starts at $4.95 per shipment
- Vegetarian options: 25+ weekly options, depending on location
- Vegan options: yes, fully plant-based options available
- Prep time: ready to eat; some hot meals require skillet reheating
- Best for: fresh, nutritious prepared meals
Thistle is technically a prepared meal delivery service, meaning everything arrives fresh and ready to eat rather than as a box of ingredients you have to cook. However, I still think it’s worth including because if your idea of the perfect vegetarian meal kit involves little to no prep work, Thistle is worth a look.
The service focuses heavily on plant-based, nutrient-dense meals, and I was genuinely impressed by the nutritional value.
Even the fully plant-based meals I tried typically had 20+ grams of protein and at least 9-10 grams of fiber, thanks to ingredients like tofu, legumes, nuts, and seeds.
Taste was a pleasant surprise, too. The hot meals were my clear favorites — they were flavorful, filling, and had much better texture than I expected from a prepared meal. The salads and snacks were more hit-or-miss for me, but your mileage may vary depending on your preferences.
The biggest drawback is the price. Clocking in at up to about $15.49 per meal plus delivery, Thistle is definitely a splurge.
However, if you want fresh, plant-forward meals without the shopping, chopping, cooking, or meal prep, it’s a convenient option that’s very strong from a nutrition standpoint.
Vegetarian meal kits vs. prepared meal delivery
Meal kits and prepared meal delivery can both make vegetarian eating easier, but they’re designed for very different levels of convenience. Meal kits send you the ingredients and recipes, while prepared meal services do the cooking for you.
Here’s how they compare:
| Meal kits | Prepared meals | |
|---|---|---|
| What you receive | pre-portioned ingredients and recipes | fully prepared meals |
| Cooking required | yes | little to none |
| Prep time | usually 15-40+ minutes | usually just a few minutes to heat |
| Variety | lots of recipes to choose from | more limited weekly menu |
| Customization | more flexibility to adjust ingredients | less flexibility |
| Best for | people who enjoy cooking but want to save time | people who want maximum convenience |
So which is better? It really comes down to how much (or how little) you want to cook. If you enjoy making dinner but don’t want to plan recipes or grocery shop, a meal kit is probably the better fit. If even 20-30 minutes of cooking sounds like too much after a long day, a prepared meal service may be worth the extra cost.
How to choose the best vegetarian meal kit for you
The best vegetarian meal kit for you will depend on what you want from the service. Before signing up, think about how much you want to cook, what types of meals you enjoy, and which features matter most to you.
Here are some of the biggest factors to consider:
- Vegetarian variety: Look for a service with enough meat-free options to keep you from getting bored, especially if you plan to order regularly.
- Protein: If you want meals that keep you full, look for recipes built around protein-rich ingredients like beans, lentils, tofu, tempeh, eggs, and dairy.
- Prep time: Consider how much time and effort you realistically want to spend cooking each night.
- Flavor and variety: A good meal kit should make it easier to try different cuisines, flavors, and ingredients rather than giving you the same few vegetarian meals on repeat.
- Dietary preferences: Check whether the service offers filters or meal plans that fit your needs, such as vegan, gluten-free, high-protein, or high-fiber.
- Price: Compare the cost per serving, but don’t forget to factor in shipping and any minimum order requirements.
- Ingredient quality: If organic produce, minimally processed ingredients, or specific sourcing practices are important to you, check what the company offers before ordering.
- Flexibility: Look for services that let you skip weeks, change your delivery frequency, or cancel easily if you don’t want another box.
FAQ
More firsthand meal kit reviews
Green Chef Review 2026: I Tried It for a Week & Here’s My Honest Take
Thistle Review (2026): A Dietitian’s Honest Take on Taste, Nutrition, and Cost
Hungryroot Review: I Tried It to See If It’s Worth the Hype
Sunbasket Review 2026: What I Loved (and Didn’t) as a Dietitian
Blue Apron Review: A Dietitian’s Look at This Popular Meal Kit Service
HelloFresh Review: Is It Worth It? A Dietitian Answers
Splendid Spoon Review 2026: Is This Plant-Based Meal Delivery Worth It?
Marley Spoon Review: I Tried It—Here’s What I Thought
Purple Carrot Review 2026: My Honest Take After Trying It for a Week
Conclusion
After trying these meal kits myself, I don’t think there’s one clear winner for every vegetarian.
Purple Carrot is my top choice overall, but Marley Spoon, Hungryroot, Green Chef, HelloFresh, and Blue Apron each have their own strengths depending on what you’re looking for.
Whether your priority is protein, convenience, variety, organic ingredients, or keeping costs down, there’s a vegetarian-friendly meal kit that can make getting dinner on the table a whole lot easier.
