As a busy working professional and a self-proclaimed foodie, I’ve always struggled to find a balance between convenience, cost, and taste in my meals. That’s when I discovered meal kit services. In my quest for the perfect meal kit service, I tried both Dinnerly and Marley Spoon. In this article, I will share my experience with these two popular meal kit providers, comparing their pricing, health ratings, convenience, customer support, packaging, range of recipe options, website ease of use, delivery options, and overall value for money. Let’s dig in!
| Comparison Point | Dinnerly | Marley Spoon | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing Range | $5.49-$9.85 | $8.49-$13.49 | Dinnerly |
| 3 Meals for 4 People | $94.37 | $142.37 | Dinnerly |
| Menu Range | 61 meals | 62 meals | Marley Spoon |
| Menu Type Variety | 7/10 - Several Options | 8/10 - Many options | Marley Spoon |
| Delivery Days | 6 Per Week | 6 Per Week | Tied |
| Packaging Info | Loose in Box | Individually Bagged Meal Ingredients | Marley Spoon |
| Quality of Ingredients | 6/10 - Occasionally damaged in transit. | 8/10 | Marley Spoon |
| Customer Service | 8/10 | 8/10 | Tied |
| Convenience | 5/10 - Good website but no recipe cards is a bit of a pain, and you do have to stay on top of pantry items. | 9/10 - Easy ordering, easy to follow instructions, few pantry items required. | Marley Spoon |
| Overall Winner... | Marley Spoon |
Pricing
Both Dinnerly and Marley Spoon offer a variety of meal plans to suit different household sizes and budgets. Dinnerly offers plans with 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 meals per week for either 2 or 4 people, while Marley Spoon offers plans with 3, 4, or 5 meals per week for 2 or 4 people.
When it comes to pricing, Dinnerly is the clear winner. Their meals start at just $5.49 per serving for the largest box, compared to Marley Spoon’s starting price of $8.49 per serving. If we consider our standard pricing measurement (3 meals for 4 people, including delivery), Dinnerly costs $94.37, while Marley Spoon costs $142.37. That’s a significant difference if you’re trying to stick to a budget.
| Criteria | Dinnerly | Marley Spoon |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing Range | $5.49 – $9.85 | $8.49 – $13.49 |
| Cost for 3 meals for 4 people (including delivery) | $94.37 | $142.37 |
Winner: Dinnerly
Health Ratings and Recipe Options
Both Dinnerly and Marley Spoon offer an impressive range of meal options, with Dinnerly boasting 61 meals (51 without the “PLUS” meals) and Marley Spoon offering 62 meals (52 without the “PREMIUM” meals). Both services cater to different dietary preferences and needs. Dinnerly offers recipes such as Fan Fave, Comfort Food, Kid-Approved, Reduced Carb, Balanced, 15-Min, and Feed a Crowd. Marley Spoon offers recipes like Family Fave, Fast, Climate Smart, Dairy-Free, Low-Calorie, Low Carb, and Vegetarian.
In terms of health ratings and recipe options, it’s really a tie between Dinnerly and Marley Spoon. Both services offer a huge variety of meals to cater to different tastes and dietary requirements.
Winner: Marley Spoon (By a Smidge)
Convenience and Website Ease of Use
When it comes to convenience, both Dinnerly and Marley Spoon shine. Dinnerly saves costs by not printing recipe cards and instead offers interactive recipe cards on their app. While this is a great way to save money, I found it a bit inconvenient since I like to watch YouTube while cooking. Marley Spoon, on the other hand, provides printed recipe cards in their paper bags, making it easy to follow the instructions while cooking.
As for website ease of use, both websites are user-friendly and easy to navigate, but Marley Spoon has a slight edge due to the convenience of printed recipe cards.
Winner: Marley Spoon
Delivery Options
Dinnerly and Marley Spoon both offer excellent delivery options, with six delivery days per week in Melbourne (days may vary by location). Dinnerly delivers from Tuesday to Sunday, while Marley Spoon delivers from Monday to Saturday. Both services charge a flat rate of $10.49 for shipping, regardless of the box size.
In terms of delivery options, it’s a tie between Dinnerly and Marley Spoon, as they both provide flexible and convenient delivery schedules for their customers.
Winner: It’s a tie – both offer delivery 6 days a week for ultimate flexibility.
Packaging
Both Dinnerly and Marley Spoon emphasize sustainable packaging. Dinnerly uses recyclable packaging for their ice packs and cool storage, while Marley Spoon uses paper bags to separate different meals and recyclable packaging for ice packs and cool storage as well.
In terms of packaging, Marley Spoon are a clear winner thanks to individually bagged recipes.
Winner: Marley Spoon
Customer Support
In my experience, the customer support teams for both Dinnerly and Marley Spoon have been helpful and responsive when I’ve encountered issues with ingredient quality or missing ingredients. However, I did reach out to Dinnerly customer support more frequently due to some minor issues, which is understandable given that they are the more budget-friendly option.
Overall, both Dinnerly and Marley Spoon offer good customer support, but Marley Spoon has a slight edge in terms of ingredient quality overall.
Winner: It’s a tie – while Marley Spoon’s quality overall was higher, their customer service is on par with Dinnerly.
Value for Money
When it comes to overall value for money, it really depends on what you’re looking for in a meal kit service. If cost is your primary concern, Dinnerly is the clear winner with its lower prices and competitive meal plans. However, if you’re willing to spend a bit more for higher ingredient quality and the convenience of printed recipe cards, Marley Spoon might be the better option for you.
Winner: Dinnerly – by a mile.
Conclusion
In the battle of Dinnerly vs. Marley Spoon, the winner ultimately depends on your personal preferences and priorities. Dinnerly is the more budget-friendly option, offering a greater variety of meal plans at lower prices. Marley Spoon, on the other hand, offers higher ingredient quality and the added convenience of printed recipe cards.
On paper, Marley Spoon has come up trumps when stacked next to Dinnerly, however, both services provide a wide range of meal options, excellent delivery options, sustainable packaging, and good customer support.
If price is big part of your reason to look at delivered meal kits, Dinnerly may be the better choice for you in this instance. If price isn’t a big part of your decision making, Marley Spoon is the winner.
