Freshology provides prepared meals that help you lose weight, but you might be wondering if this is a healthy strategy. Many people find the journey to weight loss challenging since weighing food and tracking calories can be overly complicated. Overall, this can derail your weight loss goals in the long run.
I've researched dozens of meal delivery services – including Freshology. I delved deep into its offerings to understand the range of diets it supports, scrutinized the calorie content of each meal, and assessed the taste and quality of its microwaveable options. What I found was pretty impressive, and I want to share the results of my findings with you.
Freshology’s prepared meals take the guesswork out of calorie counting and portion sizing, which makes weight loss far more effortless.
It also offers several specialized weight loss diets including Mediterranean, Vegetarian, Keto-Carb30, Balance-Diabetes, and more. It also has a weekly rotating menu of breakfasts, lunches, and dinners if you tend to get bored with your weight loss meals.
Pros | Cons |
Covers breakfast, lunch, and dinner | Average ingredient quality |
Weekly rotating menu | Meals aren’t customizable |
Caters to a range of specialized diets | Can’t choose shipping days |
Current deal – Save 50% Off Your First Week |
The cuisine is primarily standard American throughout all menus. There’s a small smattering of Mediterranean and Italian dishes, too, which I found interesting.
Most Freshology plans are meat- and fish-heavy. This means you’ll find plenty of turkey, chicken, salmon, shrimp, and beef. None of Freshology’s meal plans are suitable for vegans since most meals include cheese and eggs.
You can exclude meals that contain these items, but the remaining options will be far too limited to have a satisfying experience with this service.
The Balance plan is Freshology’s basic low-calorie plan without a specific dietary focus. Freshology offers the option to exclude seafood in its Balance and Keto-Carb30 plans but otherwise doesn’t cater to any allergies.
The Balance-Diabetes plan is meant for people who are Prediabetic or have Type 2 Diabetes. Meals follow the American Diabetes Association’s guidelines for daily intake of complex carbs, lean proteins, and veggies.
A low-calorie diet may harm some people with serious health conditions. Consulting a physician or healthcare professional about your specific needs is the best route to determining whether following the meal plans of either service will work for you.
Diet | Is Freshology Good For This Diet? |
Ketogenic | Not exactly – the Keto-Carb30 meals still contain more than 20 g of carbs |
Vegetarian | Yes, there are plenty of options |
Diabetes-friendly | Yes, you can get this special diet |
Vegan | No, there aren’t any plant-based options |
Mediterranean | Yes, this diet is also an option |
Freshology’s menu has a set list of recipes for breakfasts, lunches, and dinners on a 5-week rotation. Meals are selected for you once you pick a plan. However, swapping recipes within a meal plan is easy.
You’ll see several substitutions for each meal, so you can continue eating the same thing or change it up. If there’s a meal you don’t want or a meal you’d like to repeat a few times, you can simply choose from the list of recipe substitutes within that rotation. If you want to eat Chicken Fontina every dinner and Cinnamon Walnut Cereal for breakfast 3 times a week – you sure can.
Swapping meals is super easy, but the rotating menu can still get boring. I’ve watched Freshology’s menu rotate through several cycles, and I noticed that many recipes repeat within each 5-week rotation and between different meal plan menus.
The Balance plan and the Mediterranean plans share several recipes each cycle, like the Harissa Salmon, Shrimp and Rice, Blackened Turkey Loin, and other dishes. They sometimes even share all the same recipes for a whole week, and this is true for several plans.
This isn’t an issue if you don’t have allergy concerns and are happy with your menu. However, if you have many allergy concerns and want to exclude certain ingredients, Freshology probably isn’t for you.
If you dislike a particular ingredient, your only option is to exclude the entire meal. Double-check each meal ingredient list before confirming your purchase! The downside of excluding entire meals is that your recipe choices are significantly reduced if your selected plan has a lot of the ingredients you don’t want.
Freshology delivers individually packaged and labeled fully prepared meals. Use-by dates are labeled on each package, so you can freeze or thaw depending on when you’re ready to eat each meal.
Meals can be left in the freezer for up to 1 year. It’s recommended that you consume them 5 to 7 days after thawing, or simply according to the use-by date on the meal package.
Freshology offers 2 types of delivery – Home Delivery and Fresh Home Delivery. The recyclability of packaging depends on which delivery option you choose. You’ll either receive a cardboard box with reusable gel packs (Fresh Home Delivery), or a styrofoam box with dry ice (Home Delivery).
The website states that you can recycle all meal trays like most plastics, but that styrofoam isn’t recycled in all zip codes.
Other recycling details are sparse on the website, so you’ll have to call customer service or research recycling in your area to ensure all packaging materials are recyclable. More on that in the Shipping & Delivery section below.
All food arrives fully prepared and frozen, so all you have to do is heat and eat. Meals only take a few minutes to heat in the microwave. Ultimately – if you have a microwave – meal prep is around 2-10 minutes, depending on whether you undertake extra seasoning.
You can also heat meals using a toaster, convection, or conventional oven. If you don't have a microwave, make sure to plan ahead by defrosting your meal first and then heating it in the oven.
Freshology recommends thawing meals before heating them. Once thawed, meals should be eaten within a week or by the use-by date labeled on each meal's package. When my colleague ordered from Freshology, she found that her meals were somewhat bland. Veggies were watery, and she couldn't taste much difference between each veg.
Overall, meal flavors were lacking in flavor. She also found that the chicken and salmon were somewhat dry, and that there were several processed foods, including sausage patties, low-fat yogurts, cheeses, and Eggo-ish waffles.
This meal service primarily focuses on weight loss and calorie counting. This explains the blandness, as it’s likely due to the lack of fatty flavors to avoid calories and the lack of added preservatives and salt.
If sodium and fats aren’t a concern – feel free to add salt or herbs, spices, and olive oil to enhance flavors! It’s not a major step in meal prep and won’t take up too much time. Enjoying your meals by flavoring them to suit your palate is an excellent way to stay on track with your healthcare professional's diet recommendations.
Freshology meals can be left in the freezer for up to 1 year. This does make me question what preservatives or additives are included in the packaging process. I asked customer service and didn’t receive a clear answer, as the agents couldn’t find updated information.
Shortlist of My Favorite Meals
Starting From | Order Size and Price (Before Shipping) | Shipping Fee |
$13.90 per portion | lunches and dinners for 5 days per week for women; $138.99 | $19.98 per week |
$10.87 per portion | breakfasts, lunches, and dinners for 5 days per week for women; $162.99 | $19.98 per week |
$13.25 per portion | lunches and dinners for 7 days per week for women; $185.59 | $19.98 per week |
$9.71 per portion | breakfasts, lunches, and dinners for 7 days per week for women; $203.99 | $19.98 per week |
$14.76 per portion | lunches and dinners for 5 days per week for men; $147.59 | $19.98 per week |
$11.53 per portion | breakfasts, lunches, and dinners for 5 days per week for men; $172.99 | $19.98 per week |
$14.21 per portion | lunches and dinners for 7 days per week for men; $198.99 | $19.98 per week |
$10.76 per portion | breakfasts, lunches, and dinners per day for 7 days per week for men; $225.99 | $19.98 per week |
Pricing for men and women is different. The men’s meals will be more expensive since you’re getting up to 1,600 calories per day. The women’s plans include only 1,200 calories per day.
The price per meal also decreases, the more you order. The 7-Day plan is cheaper per meal than the 5-Day plan, and choosing 3 meals per day is cheaper than ordering 2 meals per day. Before you checkout, you can view the total cost per week.
Below is a breakdown of per-meal prices for each Balance-D option.
Freshology offers 2 delivery options – Home Delivery and Fresh Home Delivery. For Home Delivery, food arrives frozen in a styrofoam box with dry ice in an amount according to the length of shipping time and estimated temperature in your zip code.
The Fresh Home Delivery option is a unique meal delivery service feature and better ensures fresher food than the Home Delivery option. Your food will arrive cool and not frozen on Tuesdays and Fridays.
However, while the food arrives fresh, some of it may have been previously frozen. This includes sausage patties, a variety of proteins, and even some veggies. I spoke to several different customer service representatives to get more details about this, but I couldn’t get a clear answer.
The Fresh option is only available in certain zip codes. This includes areas in and near Washington DC, including parts of Virginia and Maryland. It’s also in option in New Jersey and Los Angeles. Standard Home Delivery is available in the contiguous United States.
Freshology isn’t as environmentally friendly as most meal delivery services. The unfortunate feature of styrofoam is that it’s only recyclable in certain zip codes, and you’ll have to do some research to see if styrofoam recycling locations are available for you.
Unfortunately, you can’t choose a preferred delivery day. To start your order, type in your zip code, and you’ll be notified which days Freshology delivers to you followed by a shipping price.
Freshology will then provide you with email updates about when your order will arrive. The first order typically takes 2 to 4 days to process and arrive at your doorstep. If you need to make any changes to your order, you can do this through your online account. Make sure to make any changes before 12 PM EST on your cut-off day (you can find this on your account).
Setting up your subscription is straightforward and only takes 5 to 10 minutes.
Enter your zip code to see if Freshology delivers to you, then click the View Meal Plans button.
Screenshot of Freshology's notification of whether it delivers to a zip code.
Choose your plan and the number of meals. Choose how many days you want to receive meals and how many meals per day you want. Note that the more meals you order, the lower the cost per meal.
Enter your address. Enter the address to which you want your order shipped.
Enter your payment information and discount code: You can pay with a credit or debit card. If you signed up through one of our links, this coupon will automatically apply: Save 50% Off Your First Week
Freshology is a weekly delivery service with weekly meal plans. Your order will automatically ship each week unless you change or cancel your order via the website or customer service.
You can start choosing your meals after picking a plan and adding payment details. Once you enter your payment details and confirm your order, you’ll receive a shipping confirmation email with your FedEx delivery tracking information. Your order should arrive in 2-4 days.
You have to log in to your account and contact customer service to make any changes. I wish it were a little more convenient to pause or cancel your Freshology subscription. Change requests must be made by 12 PM ET on the cutoff day shown on your account.
Freshology’s customer service isn’t up to par with meal other delivery services. There’s no app to manage your subscription, email responses are slow, and there’s no live chat. However, the call service is more responsive, and there’s an FAQ page, too.
I was quickly connected to a customer support agent every time I called. Each agent was friendly, but I got limited information when I asked about ingredient sourcing, shipping practices, and other important questions. The FAQ wasn’t any more helpful for finding this info.
Customer service’s phone line has limited hours. It’s strictly available from Monday to Friday 8 AM to 5 PM Eastern Time. There’s no live chat feature, which I found odd, as almost every other service I’ve reviewed has this option.
I don’t recommend contacting Freshology’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.
Customer service agents aren’t healthcare professionals, dietitians, or nutritionists. However, they’re well-versed in the calorie-restricted diet ADA guidelines for the Balance-D menu, macro counts for the Keto-Carb30 Plan, and are happy to help you manage your subscription.
Freshology offers a free consultation with a board-certified, registered dietitian after you’ve paid for your first order. However, it only has a single registered dietitian who is meant to be available should you have some difficulty with the food you’ve ordered.
The dietitian can consult with you to find better meal options. The first consultation is free, and you can have a follow-up appointment or 2 if necessary. However, that’s the unimpressive extent of Freshology’s consultation and “diet coaching” options.
Freshology vs. Factor: Factor stands out for its emphasis on nutrient-rich prepared meals that focus on fitness (and weight loss). The meals are crafted by culinary experts, and it offers a wider variety of meal plans. These cater to diverse dietary preferences and restrictions, including keto, paleo, and more. Its commitment to hormone-free, antibiotic-free, and GMO-free ingredients also appeals to those prioritizing “clean eating”.
Freshology vs. Nutrisystem: Nutrisystem is a viable option for those seeking a structured, long-term weight loss program. With its prepackaged, portion-controlled meals and snacks, it removes the guesswork from dieting. Nutrisystem also includes support resources like dietitian consultations, which may be preferable for those wanting more comprehensive weight loss guidance compared to Freshology.
Freshology vs. BistroMD: BistroMD is a weight-loss-focused service started by a doctor. It offers frozen prepared meals designed by dietitians that limit calorie intake to around 1,200 to 1,400 calories per day. It has a range of programs for different diets and health concerns, including Vegan, Heart Healthy, Keto, and Gluten Free programs.
Freshology’s meal plans can jumpstart your weight loss journey. If you’re comfortable with a calorie-restricted, medium-carb heavy, low sodium version of the standard American diet, have zero allergy or other dietary restrictions, and can afford the price, Freshology is a solid option.
Each plan offers a convenient menu of 3 meals per day, 7 days per week. However, Freshology’s core philosophy is weight loss via calorie restriction. Before signing up for this plan or making any major diet decisions, please consult your healthcare professional.
Low-calorie prepared meal delivery services offer portion-controlled, fully prepared meals. Meals are delivered directly to your home or might be available for pickup depending on the delivery service.
For instance, Freshology’s easy weight loss plans contain a total daily calorie intake of 1,200 to 1,600, depending on whether you’re male or female.
However, low-calorie diets are difficult to sustain and aren’t recommended for long-term weight loss maintenance. Speaking to a healthcare professional, registered dietitian, and nutritionist is the best option to determine what weight loss plan best fits your unique needs.
If you opt for 3 meals a day, then the 7-Day plan costs between $185 to $225 per week. If you opt for 3 meals per day, the 5-Day plan costs between $140 to $165 per week.
Yes. The only difference is the name. Freshology’s recipes, plans, prices, and service – including the customer service agents – are all the same.