10 Best Meal Delivery Services in Cincinnati 2023 (Updated)

Games at Cincinnati Stadium, concerts at the Cincinnati Music Hall, cramming for classes at U. of Cincinnati’s medical school – it’s hard to find time to plan, shop, and prep meals. A meal delivery service can not only save you time and effort, but it might even help you save money too!

To find the best meal delivery services in Cincinnati, I’ve worked with our team and compared the prices, checked ratings, and tested the menus against a range of food preferences and dietary needs.

Of all the companies in my round-up, Home Chef stood out, thanks to its easily customized menus, easy-to-follow recipes, and fast oven-ready meal options. What's more, as a customer, you can take advantage of regular offers, such as free shipping or a reduced cost per serving.

Find out how to eat healthy and affordable meals and save time with my list of the 10 best meal delivery services in Cincinnati!

The Best Meal Delivery Services in Cincinnati Reviewed

1. Home Chef – Best Customizable Meal Delivery Service in Cincinnati

Key Features

• Meal kits and oven-ready recipes

• 25+ unique recipes per week plus extras

• Dietary options include carb-conscious and calorie-conscious

• Current deal: 75% Off Your 1st Box + 60% Off Your 2nd and 3rd Boxes!

Home Chef stands out from the crowd because its menu is endlessly customizable. You can swap proteins (using the Customize It tool), spice things up with options from the Extras section, and choose the type of meal kit that best fits your time availability.

Plus, you can let your taste buds explore new flavors and textures by trying out new cuisines and recipes. The Home Chef menu is varied and includes options from cuisines such as Asian, Mexican, and French as well as traditional American dishes. Check out my colleague’s deep dive into the Home Chef menu for more.

Overall, Home Chef offers a great deal of flexibility for couples and families and is quite affordable ($6.99 per serving). While other meal delivery services might be better at catering to specific dietary needs and allergies, Home Chef can be an ideal dinner solution if you’re a cook that likes great variety at a reasonable cost.

2. Blue Apron – Best Gourmet Meal Delivery Service for Cincinnatians

Key Features

• Heat & Eat and Meal Kits

• 19+ unique recipes per week plus add-ons

• Dietary options include diabetes-friendly, vegetarian, and health conscious

• Current deal: Enjoy $130 off across your first 6 orders

Blue Apron’s target audience is made of people who enjoy cooking sophisticated recipes and are courageous enough to undertake the preparation of a meal that requires skill in the kitchen (such as Hoisin Pork Belly and Miso Ramen). Plus, some of the recipes are crafted in collaboration with nutritionists to provide a healthy and well-balanced diet.

But, as you can see from our well-researched Blue Apron review, you don’t have to be an experienced chef in order to prepare these meal kits. It’s enough to have basic cooking skills and some knowledge of food preparation.

So, if you enjoy gourmet food, why not take advantage of this amazing opportunity and learn how to cook these meals for yourself? After all, once the ingredients are prepared and portioned, it’s easy to follow the recipes provided by Blue Apron!

3. HelloFresh – Best Way to Prepare Fresh, Delicious Food at Home

Key Features

• America’s most popular meal kit service

• 60+ fresh recipes per week

• Dietary plans include vegetarian, pescatarian, and calorie smart

• Current deal: Get 25 free meals + free shipping + 3 surprise gifts

If you like culinary diversity, you have to try out the HelloFresh menu! The company focuses on creating easy recipes using high-quality ingredients and inspiration from some of the most creative chefs.

While it only offers meal kits, everything is carefully prepared and packaged to make the cooking experience as fun and enjoyable as possible. Plus, as my colleague came to appreciate while working on our HelloFresh review, the instructions come printed on cards that can be saved for later use.

Due to its simple, fast, and delicious meals, HelloFresh works well for beginners in the world of meal delivery services. However, the sheer menu diversity is perfect to keep users loyal to the brand for months to come. With so many recipes readily available each week, it’s difficult to get bored!

4. Green Chef – Excellent for Gluten-free and Keto/Paleo Dieters

Key Features

• A certified organic company

• 30 unique recipes per week

• 6 dietary options including keto, vegetarian, and gluten-free

• Current deal: Get $250 Off + Free Shipping

Green Chef offers healthy organic vegetables, lean meats, and lighter sauces to help you enjoy the benefits of a healthier diet. Plus, the menu has a good variety of gluten-free and paleo/keto-friendly options, which attracts many dieters.

You also need to check out the extensive selection of vegetarian and vegan recipes! The recipes are appealing to everyone, including regular meat-eaters, and are well-balanced, so you’ll feel satisfied after each meal.

If you check out our Green Chef review, it’s easy to see why so many people following a strict diet find this service impressive. Plus, Green Chef’s pre-prepped and sorted food will make your cooking experience easier, which works great for beginners and people on a tight time schedule.

5. Fresh and Easy – Cincinnati’s Easiest Meal Delivery Service

Key Features

• Possibility to exclude common allergens from the menu

• 14+ unique recipes per week

• Dietary options include calorie-conscious, and carb-conscious

• Current deal: Get 16 Free Meals!

If you’re looking for ready-to-eat, delicious, and well-balanced meals, you must check out the Fresh and Easy menu! With this service, you get the Home Chef quality packed in extremely easy-to-prepare and cook meals.

The menu isn’t large (especially compared to Home Chef’s), but the options are impressive in terms of speed and simplicity. You get to choose from Oven-Ready or Grill-Ready dishes, Fast & Fresh meals, entrėe salads, or 15-minute kits. Learn more from my colleague’s in-depth Fresh and Easy review.

Overall, Fresh and Easy’s mission is to make eating delicious meals at home easy. And I think it’s a resounding success, considering that it’s quite popular among users all over the US.

6. Purple Carrot – The Best Option for Vegetarian Cincinnatians

Key Features

• Meal kits and prepared meals

• 16+ unique weekly recipes (meal kits and prepared) plus add-ons

• 6 dietary options including gluten-free, soy-free, and vegan

• Current deal: Get $30 Off with code carrot30

Even though Cincinnati doesn’t have any veggie-forward classics, nowadays, many denizens look for ways to integrate more vegetables into their diet. If you’re one of them, make sure to try out Purple Carrot’s interesting menu!

Purple Carrot’s meals are all meat-free, and dairy free, and many are gluten free. And, as you can read in our well-detailed Purple Carrot review, the menu is packed to the brim with interesting flavors and ingenious recipes.

Plus, the company invested time and effort to create veggie-forward takes on classic dishes such as Mac n’ Cheese with Thyme Roasted Mushrooms and Tomato Cream or Italian Sausage Grinder with Giardiniera Aioli and Herb Roasted Potatoes. So, it’s easy to see why both vegetarians and meat-eaters are attracted to this brand’s offer.

7. EveryPlate – Most Affordable Meal Delivery Service

Key Features

• Around 35 minutes preparation time, on average

• 25 unique recipes per week plus add-ons

• Dietary options include veggie-forward meals

• Current deal: $1.39/meal On Your 1st Box

With a staggering price of $1.49 per serving, you might be tempted to think EveryPlate’s only advantage is the good price. And yet, according to my colleague’s deep dive into EveryPlate’s menu, there’s more to it than good deals.

The meals are filling and tasty, and all the recipes are ready to eat in six steps or less. Plus, the menu is inspired by several different cuisines, such as Asian, American, or Mexican. Also, don’t forget to check out the Premium options – these are a bit pricier than the rest of the menu but include premium ingredients.

The secret behind EveryPlate’s affordable offer stands in fewer options for specialized diets. The company aims to attract a wider audience by making the menu more general, so while vegetarians may find a couple of options, vegans may not find anything at all. Kids will enjoy the family-friendly menu so if you’ve got a family to feed or a tight budget then give EveryPlate a try.

8. Factor – Great for Easy and Nutritious Meals

Key Features

• The meals are designed in collaboration with a dietitian

• 29+ unique recipes per week plus add-ons

• Dietary options include vegetarian, calorie-smart, keto, high-protein, and vegan

• Current deal: Up to $276 Off!

If you like ready-to-eat meals and also like diversity, then you must check out Factor’s rich offer! The company is focused on creating delicious meals that fit various dietary needs and only need a few minutes in the microwave/oven.

As you can see in our well-detailed Factor review, the menu is varied and includes a good selection of options for vegetarians, vegans, and keto diet followers. This is often not the case when it comes to ready-to-eat meals, but Factor manages to provide for a wider range of needs.

I was also impressed by the add-ons section, where you can spice up your weekly menu with smoothies (you have to try the Mango smoothies!), juices, keto sweets, proteins, wellness shots, and more. Overall, Factor is well-prepared to provide its customers with delicious and nutritious recipes that support a healthy lifestyle.

9. Dinnerly – Best Option for a Tight Budget

Key Features

• Recipes with 6 ingredients per dish

• 50+ meal kits and prepared meals per week plus extras

• Dietary options include low-calorie, vegetarian, and low-carb

• Current deal: Get up to $142.75 off 3 orders, from $1.29 per portion!

There aren’t many places in Cincinnati where you can eat a nutritious, chef-cooked meal for as little as $2.12 per serving. Luckily, you don’t have to browse the city for the cheapest restaurants – you can have Dinnerly deliver the meals straight to your door!

According to my colleague’s findings, while working on our stellar Dinnerly review, the company does cut some corners to keep prices low, but not where it matters. For instance, the recipe cards are digital, the packaging is simple, and the recipes use fewer ingredients (without compromising on the taste or nutritional value).

Dinnerly does have a small selection of prepared meals but you’ll need to do the cooking if you choose meal kits. Don’t worry though because the instructions are easy to follow, and the recipes are quite simple. I honestly would recommend you test Dinnerly’s delicious American classic meals even if you’re not looking for a budget-friendly service.

10. Grubhub – Cincinnati’s Best Food Delivery Service

Key Features

• Easy access to all cuisines in the Cincinnati area

• A wide range of cuisines including Asian, Mediterranean, and Mexican

• Access to 24h food delivery services

• Current deal: null

Grubhub offers many options for Cincinnati’s hungry. With a few clicks on your phone, you can get anything from Skyline chili to sashimi. It’s a bit more expensive than cooking your own meals, but if you’re pressed for time or working late in the office, Grubhub can be a meal delivery lifesaver.

Through the app and website, Grubhub provides a list of restaurants that’ll deliver to your address. You can search by cuisine, restaurant name, or even menu items. If nobody is delivering chimichangas or Mongolian beef to your door, Grubhub also provides a list of pickup restaurants near you.

Eating out can be expensive (and sometimes unhealthy with all the fast food available), but Grubhub features plenty of healthier options, too. Grubhub also eases the financial burden of ordering food with frequent coupons and special deals.

Quick Comparison Table

Tips for Choosing the Best Meal Delivery Services in Cincinnati

Cincinnati is a big city with many culinary options, so it can be difficult to choose a meal delivery service that works for you all the time. To give you a hand, here are some of the criteria I used in choosing the candidates for this best meal delivery services list:

• Know your skill level in the kitchen: One reason I enjoy trying various meal delivery services is the culinary adventure. You get to cook and taste recipes that may not have come your way otherwise. Still, if you don’t know how to boil an egg, it’s best to stick to ready-to-eat meals or choose a service that offers meal kits and microwave dinners.

• Avoid boredom: It’s easy to get bored when you eat the same things over and over again. So, pay attention to the size of the menu and if it includes recipes from a variety of cuisines. Also, consider how often (and if) the menu rotates.

• Price isn’t the most important factor: Of course, this is only true when you’re not on a tight budget. Still, there are options even when the funds are low (check Dinnerly and EveryPlate’s offers). In most cases, you should have a few different options that fit within your budget, so make sure you know your dietary needs.

• Try out different services! One of the advantages of living in a city like Cincinnati is easy access to a wide range of meal delivery services. So, if you can’t decide, narrow down your list to the top three services, and try all of them.

Bottom Line: Are Meal Delivery Services in Cincinnati Worth It?

The best meal delivery services in Cincinnati are all worth the price. They save you the hassle of grocery shopping and the headache of weekly meal planning. Plus, meal delivery services can help you start a new diet plan or encourage you to stay on your current one with tasty and healthy meals delivered to your door.

So don’t hesitate to try out a service like Home Chef (my top choice) if you feel you’re ready to start this adventure! Home Chef is also the top choice on this year’s best meal delivery services list, as ranked by our experts.

FAQ

What is the most affordable meal delivery service in Cincinnati?

Dinnerly and EveryPlate are the most budget-friendly meal delivery services on the list. However, at $2.12 per serving, Dinnerly is the one that’s the best fit if you’re on a really tight budget.

Which Cincinnati meal delivery service is best for picky eaters?

HelloFresh has the widest selection of family-friendly meals for picky eaters, especially children. If your picky eater has a serious allergy or requires a specialized diet, Green Chef might be better suited to their needs.

What is the best healthy meal delivery service in Cincinnati?

Blue Apron’s Wellness menu offers tasty, reasonably priced, nutritionist-approved recipes with fresh produce, high-quality proteins, and natural sweeteners. Many of the Wellness recipes are also WW-approved for those following a Weight Watchers diet.