Diet-to-Go vs. Factor 2023: Fully Prepared Diet-Based Meals

Finding the right meal delivery service to support your desired diet can be challenging,  especially considering the multitude of options. I researched diet-based meal delivery services to find ones that best support various dieting journeys. Find out what I discovered in this comprehensive Diet-to-Go vs. Factor comparison.

Factor and Diet-to-Go are similarly focused on making it super easy to follow your diet. I’ve considered meal variety and add-on options, pricing, user-friendliness, ingredient quality and selection, and much more. Both services offer fully prepared, heat-and-eat meals that are ready in 2 to 3 minutes – so read on to find out exactly what the key differences are.

Overall, Factor wins this comparison by a country mile. It offers more meal variety and better ingredient quality – but that’s not all. It offers what I consider to be the gold standard of meal delivery customer support – an iOS- and Android app and 24/7 live chat support with readily available and friendly agents.

At a Glance: Who Won Each Category?

Menu Variety

Winner: Factor

Both services provide fully prepared, individually packaged, microwave-ready meals. However, Factor wins the menu variety category thanks to its overall wider and larger selection of meals. This includes main dishes, add-ons, and extras.

With Factor, you’re looking at a solid 32+ meals and around 45 add-ons and extras every week. As a matter of fact, I recently tried out Factor for myself, which you can read all about in my full review.

Factor’s Menu is filled with lots of different meals from all around the world. You’ll find options for Mediterranean, Asian-inspired, Indian-influenced, Mexican, Cajun, and some Classic American recipes.

Every meal includes protein, carbs, and fresh veg – think Blackened Salmon with Smoked Gouda Cauliflower “Grits” and Broccoli or Chile-Roasted Chicken with Purple Cabbage and Roasted Zucchini.

Another of Factor’s unique selling points is its collection of lower-calorie meals. Though some meals contain as many as 700 calories or more, the vast majority fall somewhere between 400 and 600. This makes Factor a great meal delivery service for those looking to lose or maintain their weight.

It offers 6 diet and health-specific meal plans:

• Keto

• Calorie Smart

• Protein Plus

• Vegan & Veggie

• Flexitarian

• Chef’s Choice

Meal plans are also super flexible. It doesn’t matter which one you choose, as you can easily mix and match meals from any plan at any time.

In terms of add-ons and extras, I mentioned that there are tons to choose from. These include smoothies, fresh-pressed juices, juice shots, meal sides, extra proteins, and keto desserts. I’d say that around 70% of extras and add-ons are ready-to-eat – and the rest are microwave-ready, just like its prepared meals.

On the other hand, Diet-to-Go's menu functions a little differently than Factor's yet still offers decent variety. The menu is on a 5-week rotation of recipes that includes about 15 breakfasts, 20 lunches, and 20 dinners.

You can choose from 5 meal plans with Diet-to-Go: 

• Balance

• Balance-Diabetes

• Keto-Carb30

• Mediterranean

• Vegetarian

The cuisine variety is mostly Classic American, with some Mediterranean and Mexican-inspired dishes across each diet plan. Plus, its menu rotates every 5 weeks instead of each week.

What you can’t do with Diet-to-Go, however, is mix and match meals across plans. Whatever plan from above you choose, you’re stuck with it.

Special note: Any food in the world can either help or hamper your weight loss efforts. It doesn’t matter whether you’re eating broccoli, chicken breast, or fluffy, cream-filled dessert pastries.

It all boils down to a concept known as Calories In, Calories Out (or CICO). Think in terms of the number of calories you take in vs. the number your body burns every week. This applies to both losing weight and treating type II diabetes mellitus.

In that vein, I think Diet-to-Go takes itself a little too seriously in the weight loss space. I believe this is why it doesn’t allow you to mix and match your meals. The company believes in treating 1 ailment at a time with 1 specific diet, which doesn’t really make much sense to me.

Mixing and matching keto meals with diabetes-friendly meals doesn’t make a lick of a difference in the real world – so I’d really prefer to see Diet-to-Go allow this. Having more options is always better than having fewer. So, if you value the flexibility to order whatever you want, go with Factor. The company certainly realizes what I’ve just outlined.

That said, most Diet-to-Go plans are meat-heavy, so having a vegetarian option is great for vegetarians who want to try a low-calorie meal plan. These plans aren’t suitable for vegans, as most meals include cheese and eggs.

Diet-to-Go meals are selected for you, but you can substitute each one if you wish. This means that if you want to eat Chicken Fontina for every dinner and have Cinnamon Walnut Cereal 3 times a week, you sure can. Diet-to-Go currently doesn’t offer any extras other than the prepared meals.

Diet-to-Go offers meals based on a daily calorie count of 1,200 to 1,400 calories per day, with the average per meal hanging out at around 250 to 500 per meal. You can double-check the calorie count for each meal on both sites and on each meal sleeve.

There’s a lot of talk on Diet-to-Go’s website about meals being “science-backed” and “dietitian-designed,” but little information regarding the science and design. Customer service also doesn’t have information about this for either service.

The company doesn’t prioritize sourcing as much as Factor does. According to my chats with various customer service agents, Diet-to-Go’s ingredients are “normal grocery store foods”. Some foods in Diet-to-Go’s meals are highly processed, like sausage patties, premade sauces, and canned tuna.

Both services are great if you want the most hassle-free way to follow your desired diet plan. All meals are single-portioned, so these plans are best for individuals with extra cash who are willing to invest in their diet journey. Big families would find subscribing to this meal plan inconvenient and pricey. More on pricing later.

Sample Meals

Factor

I just found the Factor menu to be way more intuitive, interesting, appealing, and informative. There are no menu filters, but every recipe has colored tags to help you identify if it aligns with your dietary needs. Here are some of my favorite dishes from Factor that I think you may enjoy:

• Best keto dish: Artichoke & Spinach Chicken with Roasted Zucchini & Tomato Butter

• Best high-protein meal: Mexican Style Beef & Refried Beans with Jalapeño-Cilantro Crema

• Best plant-based meal: Vegetarian Green Chile Tostada Bake with Corn Salsa & Sour Cream

• Best keto breakfast: Keto Sausage & Egg Skillet with Turnip-Pepper Hash & Chile-Garlic Crema

Diet-to-Go

The Diet-to-Go menu is pretty bland, features low-resolution imagery, and just isn’t very exciting. However, here are some of the standout meals I think you’ll like:

• Best Balance meal: Penne Pasta with Turkey Meat Sauce

• Best Balance-Diabetes meal: Herbed Baked Salmon with Veggie Blend

• Best Keto-Carb30 dish: Chicken Parm over Ratatouille

• Best Vegetarian meal: Stuffed Shells with Spinach Sauce

Meal Customization

Winner: Factor

Factor wins this category simply because of the flexibility to order whatever you want. For instance, with Diet-to-Go, once you select Balance-Diabetes, you’re stuck with that. But with Factor, you can order a few meals from any plan at any time for any of your orders.

Neither service allows ingredient swapping, upgrading proteins, or portion changes of ingredients in specific recipes. However, you can order extra proteins, sides, and more with Factor's extras to increase meal portions. This makes sense as both services offer meals that are already prepared, so this would be impossible.

Diet-to-Go's only exclusion option is excluding seafood in its Balance and Keto-Carb30 plans. Otherwise, it doesn't cater to any allergies.

If you have zero food allergies and are happy with these service's menus – great! If you have any serious food allergies or dietary concerns and want to exclude certain ingredients, you'll have to read through the ingredient lists on each service's website carefully.

Both services cater to specific dietary requirements, but Factor comes out on top again with its vegan offerings. Diet-to-Go has it’s Vegetarian menu, but none of these are suitable for vegan dieters. You’ll find at least 3 vegan meals on the Factor menu every week.

Ingredient Quality and Nutrition

Winner: Factor

Again, Factor wins this category. The service only sources from local farms that sustainably and humanely raise animals.

Factor prioritizes ingredient quality and ensures that you know what’s in your food. There are far fewer processed ingredients in Factor’s meals, and each recipe includes more detailed recipe lists on the website and on each meal sleeve.

The beef is grass-fed, pork is pasture-raised, poultry is antibiotic-free, and eggs are all cage-free. Fish is also sourced from Canadian farms that follow the Global Aquaculture Alliance's Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP), an international certifying agency.

Factor also only uses olive oil, salt, pepper, herbs, and spices to prepare meals. There are zero artificial flavors, preservatives, or fillers in any foods. All meals are made-to-order, then individually packed and vacuum-sealed to ensure freshness upon arrival. On the ingredients page, the nutritional information is also clearly displayed.

Both services list ingredients on website recipe cards and on each meal sleeve. However, Diet-to-Go doesn't include complete ingredient lists on its website, recipe cards, or meal sleeves.

There are also more processed foods in Diet-to-Go's meals, so this may be problematic for ingredient-conscious people. Diet-to-Go does display its nutritional information in detail for each meal.

Ordering, Delivery, Unboxing

Winner: Factor

Factor wins because you can choose your delivery day. It also has an app and excellent 24/7 live chat customer support. Having good customer support makes the whole ordering and delivery process much more seamless.

If any issues arise with your order or delivery, there’s super-accessible customer support, which makes the biggest difference. More on Factor’s customer support in the next section.

Ordering

Ordering with both services is easy. All you have to do is choose your meal plan and the number of meals you want each week.

Factor’s minimum order is 6 meals per week, and the maximum order is 18 meals. So, you can order enough for 3 meals per day, 7 days per week. The website initially offers a maximum order of 18 meals, but once you confirm your payment details and start choosing your meals, you can double up on some meals until you reach 24 meals for your order.

Diet-to-Go’s minimum order is 10 meals per week, and the maximum order is 21 meals. Similar to Factor, you can fill your entire menu with hassle-free, heat-and-eat meals, making menu planning super easy.

It’s important to note that both services automate a weekly subscription once you’ve confirmed your order. To make any order changes, track your delivery, skip weeks, or manage other delivery details, please ensure you do so before each service’s weekly change request deadline.

Factor’s change request cutoff is Wednesday at 11:59 pm CT, 1 week before delivery. Changing or canceling an order is super easy with Factor’s 24/7 live chat and via the app, as long as you make changes before the deadline.

To cancel your entire subscription, you’ll have to log in to your account and cancel there. You can log in via the app or the website. If you have any cancelation questions – just reach out to customer support via the 24/7 chat!

Diet-to-Go change requests must be done by 12 pm ET on the cutoff day in your account. Cutoff days are different for each zip code since delivery days are different. To see your cutoff date, you’ll have to log into your account, where you’ll see your change request cutoff date for each week’s order.

Delivery

Both services deliver to the contiguous 48 states. Once you confirm your order for either service, your first order will arrive within about 1 week.

Delivery days are decided based on your zip code for both services. Diet-to-Go delivers later in the week (I couldn’t find exact days on the website), while Factor delivers Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday, depending on your zip code.

Diet-to-Go offers 2 delivery options – Home Delivery and Fresh Home Delivery. Home Delivery is Diet-to-Go’s standard delivery and is available in all zip codes to which it delivers. 

The Fresh option is only available in certain zip codes in and near Washington DC (including Northern Virginia and Southern Maryland), Baltimore, New Jersey, and Los Angeles.

For Home Delivery, all orders are shipped in Styrofoam boxes with dry ice in an amount according to the length of shipping time and the estimated temperature in your zip code.

The unfortunate feature of Styrofoam is that it’s only recyclable in certain zip codes. You’ll have to research your zip code to see if Styrofoam recycling locations are available in your area.

The Fresh Home Delivery option is basically the same thing as Factor’s regular delivery since all meals arrive fresh and never frozen. Your food arrives cool, not frozen, on Tuesdays and Fridays.

However, while your food arrives fresh and not frozen, some of it may have been previously frozen – like sausage patties, a variety of proteins, and even some veggies.

Unboxing

Unboxing is simple for both services since meals arrive individually packaged in microwave-ready trays. Each meal is labeled with a sleeve that also provides ingredient and nutrition information, use-by dates, and heating instructions.

You should place meals in the fridge as soon as possible. This is because Factor’s meals and Diet-to-Go’s Fresh Home Delivery meals arrive fresh. You can heat and eat within the week or according to the use-by date on the meal sleeve.

You’re welcome to freeze your Factor meals – but keep in mind that the service doesn’t officially recommend doing so. Therefore, there’s no information available on the website in terms of how long your meals can stay frozen, so just use your best judgment.

Factor’s add-ons all have different storage instructions and will be clearly labeled on each item container. Some items are shelf-stable, some require refrigeration, and some can be frozen, like smoothies and juices, if not consumed within a week.

Diet-to-Go’s Home Delivery meals arrive frozen or partially frozen. Place meals in the fridge that you plan on consuming within the week, and the rest of your meals in the freezer.

All you have to do for both services is ensure you have enough freezer and fridge storage for your order – especially if you choose to receive a full week’s worth of meals.

Both services offer reusable ice packs and microwavable trays, plastics that are recyclable according to your city’s guidelines, and cardboard that’s curbside recyclable. Insulation for both services is post-consumer recycled but not recyclable. Plus, you’ll have to take a few extra steps to recycle the Styrofoam box if you choose Diet-to-Go’s standard Home Delivery option.

Meal Prep

Winner: It's a tie

Both Factor’s and Diet-to-Go’s meals take the same amount of time to prepare. Just heat the meals up in the microwave for 2 to 3 minutes.

Actually, when I tried Factor myself, I heated my meals in the oven at 350°F for about 45 minutes (from frozen). I was gone for a few days, so I had to get my family members to place my meals into the freezer.

Even from frozen, my Factor meals all turned out delicious. You can read more about my experience in my full Factor review.

Factor's and Diet-to-Go's fully prepared meals arrive in microwave-safe trays. Heating in the oven is also an option once you place your meals in an oven-safe tray.

Factor's add-ons also arrive fully prepped, so the only "cooking" you'll have to do is choosing which ingredients you want to heat for your meal. If you choose smoothies for your meals, all you'll have to do is grab and go. If you're receiving Diet-to-Go's meals via Home Delivery, some of your meals will still be frozen upon arrival.

Diet-to-Go recommends thawing meals completely before heating them. You can do this by placing your meal in a bowl of lukewarm water for about an hour or leaving it in the fridge overnight. Once thawed, you should eat the meal within 1 week or by the use-by date labeled on each meal's package.

When my colleague ordered from Diet-to-Go, she found that her meals were somewhat bland. Veggies were watery, and she couldn't taste much difference between each veg. She also found that the chicken and salmon were somewhat dry. Overall, Diet-to-Go meal flavors were lacking in flavor.

Aside from the Balance-Diabetes plan, this meal service primarily focuses on weight loss and calorie counting. The blandness is likely due to the lack of fatty flavors to avoid calories and the lack of added preservatives and salt.

Feel free to season your food, add grass-fed butter or olive oil, and heat your meals in a pan. This will help you get the most out of your meal’s flavors. For those of you who are more adventurous, feel free to add a dash of monosodium glutamate (MSG) for even more enhanced flavor.

Just remember to add the fat calories properly! A tablespoon of olive oil contains 120 calories, and a tablespoon of butter contains 100 calories. If you’re adding these to your meals, the overall calorie count can add up quickly if you aren’t careful.

Customer Support

Winner: Factor

Factor knocks customer service out of the park with 24/7 live chat. Agents are friendly and responsive. Factor also offers a super easy-to-use app, chatbot, phone line, and email support. There’s an updated FAQ page, but I found asking the chatbot questions much more informative.

When using the Factor live chat, you’ll first be connected with a chatbot called Basil. If your questions are related to an existing account, the bot will take you through several question-and-answer exchanges to determine whether it can fulfill your requests before it sends you to a live agent.

I was always connected in about a minute, and agents answered my questions in 30 seconds to a few minutes. I was connected to an agent on the phone in 1 to 2 minutes as well. The phone line is available from 6 am to 11 pm ET Monday to Friday and 7 am to 7 pm ET on Saturday and Sunday.

If you want to bypass the bot and get a real human being, just type in live agent and hit enter. That way, you don’t have to deal with the bot and will immediately be connected with a proper human (not AI!). Yay for that in this day and age…

Factor’s app is compatible with iOS and Android devices. You can manage every detail of your subscription through the app – including skipping weeks, changing what meals you receive, and canceling your entire subscription.

Diet-to-Go, on the other hand, offers support from Monday to Friday 8 am to 5 pm ET, though it’s a bit behind the times. It only offers phone lines and email. I called several times to confirm plan information and was connected with a friendly agent in under a minute each time. Each agent was able to answer most questions I had about Diet-to-Go’s meal plans.

I don’t recommend contacting Diet-to-Go’s customer service via the email form, and I don’t recommend using the FAQ for diet-specific and ingredient questions. You’re much better off calling and asking directly since the FAQ isn’t completely updated.

Registered Dietitian Consultation

Both services offer a free consultation with a Registered Dietitian (RD).

Factor offers a free 20-minute consultation with one of its 8 Registered Dietitians to determine which Factor meals are right for you. You can speak with the RD even before you order. This is an excellent service because you can discuss whatever concerns or needs you have in your diet and whether you can find Factor meals that are good for you.

Few food delivery services offer a consultation with an RD before ordering. In fact, Diet-to-Go only offers a consultation with an RD after you’ve placed your order. Plus, there’s only 1 RD on-call instead of 8.

Diet-to-Go’s RD consultation is more so that you can discuss whether you’ve had a bad reaction to the food you’ve ordered. For example, if you ordered the Balance-Diabetes plan and are having blood sugar spikes, you can schedule a call with the RD to determine which meals you might need to replace.

Pricing

Winner: Factor

The truth is that both services offer competitive pricing, but Factor’s is inadvertently lower when you consider both services’ shipping fees.

Factor’s meals are cheaper, though per-serving prices decrease as you order more meals. The same can be said for both services.

Factor offers 5 meal plans of 4, 6, 8, 12, 18, or 24 per week, with shipping applied to each delivery. The minimum meal order of 4 meals per week is $15 per meal, and per meal prices are $11 when you choose 18 or more meals per week.

Factor’s shipping is standard at about $10 or $11 per order, depending on your zip code. You can also use our discount code (Get 50% OFF your 1st box + 20% OFF the next 4 boxes!) to knock down the starting price further to $6.19 per serving.

Diet-to-Go meal plans all have slightly different prices, depending on which meal type and amount of meals you choose. You can order 10, 14, 15, or 21 meals per week, with shipping applied to each delivery. 

Per-meal prices for 21 meals start at $9.71 and rise to $13.89 for 10 meals. You can see prices update as you toggle between meal plans at checkout. If you use our discount code (Save 50% Off), per-meal prices are even lower and start at $4.60.

It’s important to consider that Diet-to-Go charges $19.98 per week for delivery. For Fresh Home Delivery and for some zip codes using standard Home Delivery, Diet-to-Go will ship to you 2 times per week.

If you receive 2 deliveries per week, you’ll be charged $9.99 per delivery. If you receive a single delivery per week, you’ll be charged the full $19.98. This is a significant shipping fee to consider since it adds up to almost $80 per month!

Diet-to-Go vs. Factor – Quick Overview

And The Winner Is: Factor

Factor stands out as the superior choice. This service boasts an impressive meal variety, a diverse range of snacks and add-ons, and multiple cuisines. What's more, it provides the flexibility to mix and match meals from any available plan.

Factor is also more affordable which is another strong point. Not only does it offer competitive prices, but when factoring in shipping costs, it presents great value. Based on my personal experience, I can attest that Factor offers excellent quality and service.

The quality of ingredients sets Factor apart. The company prioritizes high-quality ingredients, such as grass-fed beef and cage-free eggs. These minimally processed, whole foods ensure you receive meals that are not just tasty but also nutritious.

Factor guarantees freshness upon delivery. When you receive a meal from Factor, it's always fresh, ensuring you can consume it within the week or opt to freeze it for later consumption.

Compared to Diet-to-Go, Factor has a clear edge. All the benefits highlighted, from meal variety to ingredient quality, position Factor as a leading contender in the meal delivery market.

FAQ

What is the downside to Factor meals?

The downside is that the cost can add up quickly. It’s not known to be the absolute most budget-friendly service – however, that’s generally only the case if you order fewer meals every week. I recommend ordering the largest number of meals per week to get a better price.

Has anyone lost weight with Factor?

Lots of people have lost weight eating virtually any food known to man. It’s not a matter of “what” food you eat – rather, it’s about how many calories you’re eating every week. Fortunately, Factor’s meals help you control this by stating the number of calories for each of its meals and add-ons. Factor’s meals average about 600 calories, making it easy to lose weight.

Is Diet-to-Go expensive?

Yes. When you factor in the costs per serving along with shipping fees, it’s easy to see how the cost of Diet-to-Go can get out of control quickly. However, there’s a method to the madness – the more you order at a time, the lower your overall costs will be. Find out about the real pricing breakdown so you can make a more informed decision.