EveryPlate or Dinnerly for affordable family meals?

If you are trying to keep family dinners affordable without planning every meal from scratch, both EveryPlate and Dinnerly are worth comparing. They focus on simple meal kits rather than premium ingredients or fancy cooking. The better choice depends on your family size, weekly meal needs, recipe variety, and the total box price after shipping.

EveryPlate or Dinnerly for Affordable Family Meals?

For most families focused on predictable, low-cost dinners, EveryPlate is the stronger value if you want a simple family meal kit with a straightforward menu and easy recipes. Dinnerly can be a better fit if your family values a much larger weekly menu and more choices. Current advertised prices and promotions change, so compare the full box total, including shipping, before ordering.

The short answer

Both services are designed to keep meal-kit costs below many premium competitors. But they use different approaches.

• EveryPlate: Better for families that want simple, familiar meals and an easy weekly routine.
• Dinnerly: Better for families that want a much larger menu and more recipe choices.
• Best for a tight budget: Compare the actual weekly box total, not just the advertised price per serving.
• Best for picky families: Both have kid-friendly choices, but the exact menu matters from week to week.

How EveryPlate and Dinnerly Keep Family Meals Affordable

Meal kits usually cost more than cooking the cheapest possible meal from groceries. You are also paying for portioned ingredients, recipe planning, delivery, and convenience.

EveryPlate keeps its prices down by using simple recipes, less packaging, and pre-portioned ingredients. Its current site lists plans for 2, 4, or 6 people, with 3–5 meals per week. Most recipes are designed to be prepared in about 30 minutes or less.

Dinnerly also focuses on simple meals and low prices. Its current menu advertises more than 100 recipes each week, with filters for things such as kid-friendly meals, cooking time, dietary preferences, allergens, and cuisine.

That creates an important difference: EveryPlate emphasizes a simple, affordable family routine, while Dinnerly puts more emphasis on choice.

EveryPlate vs. Dinnerly: Family Value Compared

Factor	EveryPlate	Dinnerly
Main strength	Simple, affordable family meals	Large menu and variety
Family plans	2, 4, or 6 people	2 or 4 people
Weekly meal choices	About 35 recipes currently advertised	100+ recipes currently advertised
Cooking style	Simple, familiar meals	Simple meals with lots of variety
Kid-friendly choices	Yes	Yes
Recipe information	Recipe cards and online information	Digital recipe information
Shipping	Additional shipping can apply	$10.99 on current standard orders
Best for	Families wanting an easy routine	Families wanting more choices

Dinnerly’s current help center lists 2- or 4-person plans with 2–6 meals per week. Its listed prices range from $45.96 for two meals serving two people to $191.76 for six meals serving four people, before the $10.99 shipping fee.

EveryPlate currently advertises plans starting at $5.99 per serving, while introductory offers can temporarily reduce the first-box price. Its promotions also state that shipping fees can apply, so the promotional per-meal price should not be treated as the normal long-term cost.

Which Is Better for a Family of Four?

For a family of four, both services can work, but Dinnerly has a clear advantage in menu size.

Dinnerly currently advertises 100+ recipes each week. Many are labeled kid-friendly, and the menu includes familiar choices such as burgers, tacos, pasta, chicken, rice dishes, and casseroles.

EveryPlate also has a family-focused menu. Its current site highlights a Family Faves category designed around family-friendly dinners and picky eaters.

For example, a hypothetical family of four with two picky children might prefer simple meals such as tacos, burgers, pasta, or chicken with potatoes. Either service can provide those types of meals. The better choice may come down to which company’s menu has enough meals your family will actually eat that week.

Which One Is Better for Picky Kids?

EveryPlate gets a slight edge if simplicity is your main concern.

EveryPlate specifically promotes Family Faves meals for picky eaters. Its current family page says its family-friendly recipes are designed around familiar meals that children are more likely to enjoy.

Dinnerly also has many kid-friendly recipes. Its current menus label meals as “Kid friendly,” including options such as turkey burgers, tacos, pasta, quesadillas, and chicken dishes.

The key is not simply choosing the brand with the most recipes. A family should check the upcoming menu first. A huge menu does not save money if only two or three meals appeal to everyone at the table.

Which One Has More Variety?

Dinnerly is the clear choice for variety.

Dinnerly currently advertises more than 100 recipes each week. Its menu covers many cuisines and meal types, and you can filter recipes by cooking time, protein, dietary preference, allergens, and other factors.

EveryPlate currently advertises 35+ weekly recipes, with categories such as Meat & Veggies, Quick & Easy, Vegetarian, Nutrish & Delish, and Family Faves.

This matters if your family gets bored eating similar meals every week.

A family that wants burgers one night, tacos another night, and a vegetarian pasta or international dish later in the week may find Dinnerly’s larger menu easier to work with.

Which One Is Easier for Busy Parents?

Both are built for busy households, so there is not a huge difference here.

EveryPlate says most meals take around 30 minutes and uses simple recipe steps. It also offers Quick & Easy recipes designed for 30 minutes or less.

Dinnerly also focuses on short, simple recipes. Its current menu includes many meals that take 15–30 minutes, although some recipes take longer.

If your biggest problem is deciding what to cook, either service can help. You still need to cook the meal, clean up, and handle basic kitchen work.

What About the Real Cost of a Family Meal?

The advertised price per serving is only part of the calculation.

Suppose a family sees a meal advertised at a low per-serving price. The final amount can be higher after shipping, taxes, premium meal charges, add-ons, or other extras.

Dinnerly’s current standard shipping fee is $10.99 per order.

EveryPlate also states that shipping fees apply to deliveries, although current introductory promotions may include free shipping on a first order or other temporary discounts.

So before deciding which service is cheaper, calculate:

Total box price + shipping + optional extras ÷ total servings

That gives you a more useful number than looking only at the headline meal price.

A simple family budget example

Imagine a family orders 3 dinners for 4 people.

That creates 12 servings for the week.

If the food portion of the order were $72 and shipping were $10.99, the real delivered cost would be $82.99.

That works out to about $6.92 per serving.

This is why shipping matters more on smaller orders. A fixed shipping charge gets spread across fewer servings when you order a small box.

Can Meal Kits Actually Save a Family Money?

They can, but it depends on what you are comparing them with.

If your alternative is ordering takeout several nights a week, a meal kit can make it easier to stay within a dinner budget.

If your alternative is buying inexpensive staples in bulk and cooking from scratch, groceries may still cost less.

Meal kits can also reduce some types of food waste because ingredients are portioned for specific recipes. EveryPlate specifically promotes pre-portioned ingredients and less packaging as part of its affordability approach.

But a family should not assume that every meal-kit box is automatically cheaper than grocery shopping.

The biggest value may be convenience plus predictable portions, rather than the absolute lowest possible food cost.

When EveryPlate Makes More Sense

Choose EveryPlate if most of these statements sound like your household:

• You want straightforward family dinners.
• Your children prefer familiar foods.
• You do not need hundreds of weekly recipes.
• You want a simple meal-planning routine.
• You like having family-friendly recipe categories.
• You want the option of plans for up to six people.
• You want recipes that are generally quick to prepare.

EveryPlate currently supports plans for 2, 4, or 6 people, which can be useful for larger households.

When Dinnerly Makes More Sense

Dinnerly may be the better choice if:

• Your family gets bored with repeated meals.
• You want a very large weekly menu.
• Different family members want different types of food.
• You want to filter meals by dietary preferences or cooking time.
• You want plenty of kid-friendly options.
• You want more flexibility when selecting weekly dinners.

Dinnerly’s current menu provides more than 100 weekly choices and includes several useful filters, which gives families more control over what goes into the box.

Two Family Situations to Consider

A family with two young kids

Imagine two parents and two children who mostly like tacos, burgers, chicken, pasta, rice, and potatoes.

For this household, EveryPlate may be the easier pick if the weekly Family Faves menu contains enough meals everyone will eat. There is little value in paying for a large selection when the kids reject most of it.

A family with older kids and different tastes

Now imagine four people who all want different meals. One person likes vegetarian food, another wants chicken, and someone else wants something spicy.

In that situation, Dinnerly may have the advantage because its much larger menu gives the household more choices. Its current menu includes vegetarian, low-carb, kid-friendly, low-calorie, and other tagged meals.

How to Choose Without Overpaying

Before you sign up for either service, use this simple check:

1. Look at the current weekly menu.
2. Count how many meals your whole family would actually eat.
3. Select the plan that matches your household size.
4. Add the shipping fee to the advertised meal cost.
5. Check premium meals and add-ons before checkout.
6. Compare the normal price, not only the first-box promotion.
7. Check the next few weeks of menus if possible.
8. Make sure the cooking time fits your family’s schedule.

This approach is more useful than choosing based only on which brand advertises the lowest introductory price.

The Bottom Line

For affordable family meals, EveryPlate and Dinnerly are both strong budget-focused choices, but they fit different households. EveryPlate is a good match for families that want simple, familiar dinners and an easy routine. Dinnerly stands out for families that want far more weekly choices.

If your family is small, picky, and routine-focused, start by checking EveryPlate’s current Family Faves menu. If your family has varied tastes and wants more choices, check Dinnerly’s much larger menu. Most importantly, compare the full delivered box price, not just the promotional price per serving.

FAQs

Is EveryPlate or Dinnerly cheaper for a family of four?

There is no single winner for every family because plan prices, promotions, meal counts, and shipping affect the final total. Compare the complete weekly checkout price for the same number of servings before deciding.

Is Dinnerly good for families with picky eaters?

Yes. Dinnerly currently offers many meals marked as kid-friendly, including familiar options such as burgers, tacos, pasta, chicken, and rice dishes.

Does EveryPlate have family meal options?

Yes. EveryPlate currently offers family-focused meals and plans for 2, 4, or 6 people. Its Family Faves category is aimed at family-friendly dinners and picky eaters.

The practical tip is simple: choose the service with the most meals your family will actually eat, then compare the final delivered price. A slightly higher box price can be the better deal if it prevents wasted ingredients, unwanted meals, or extra takeout.