Green Chef vs Blue Apron 2023

Green Chef provides three different plans: Keto + Paleo, Balanced Living, and Plant-Powered. The first contains diversified meals that are suitable for anyone who follows the Paleo or Keto diet, aims to eat few carbs and focuses on protein and natural ingredients. A meal in this plan usually costs $12.99 per serving. You can pay less if you order for 4 or 6 persons. The Balanced Living plan is the most comprehensive one; it contains all sorts of meals including meat and fish, a meal costs $11.99. The Plant-Powered plan targets vegetarians. The meals cost $11.99 per serving. 

Blue Apron offers four meal plans: Signature, Signature for 4, Vegetarian for 2, and Wellness for 2. The Signature plan allows you to choose from a variety of meals containing meat, fish, vegetables, and other essential ingredients. The meals are WW-approved, diabetes-friendly, and balanced. A serving costs $8.99 if you purchase 3 or 4 meals weekly and $9.99 if you only order 2. The Signature for 4 menu is dedicated to families, a serving can cost as little as $7.49 if you order 4 meals per week. The vegetarian menu contains meat-free meals. You can purchase 2 or 3 recipes per week for $9.99 or $8.99. respectively. The Wellness for 2 plan includes meals created with a holistic approach. They are balanced and nutritionist-approved and cost $8.99 per serving for 3 weekly recipes. 

Both services offer healthy and balanced meals, however, we prefer Blue Apron for its variety and affordability.

Green Chef offers a variety of meals, however, other similar services offer more options. At the moment of writing this Green Chef vs Blue Apron comparison, there are 10 meals in the company’s Keto + Paleo plan. There are slightly more meals in the Balanced Living menu – 12 and the Plant-Powered plan includes 9 vegetarian recipes. The preparation time varies according to each recipe. On the website, you can clearly see how much time each meal requires. You can spend anywhere between 20 and 40 minutes preparing a meal. Green Chef uses a wide range of different ingredients, including meat and fish. The recipes change regularly and the diets the service covers include Keto, paleo, vegetarian, omnivore, and pescatarian. Their ingredients are carefully selected and many of them are organic. 

Blue Apron offers a wider variety of meals compared to Green Chef. However, they mainly cater to families and people who don’t follow a specific diet such as Keto. They offer balanced meals that are low in carbs, fat, sodium, and calories. Some of their meals are Weight Watchers (WW) approved. There are many meals inspired by the Mediterranean diet, as well as recipes that are suitable for people who suffer from diabetes. The meals require a preparation time of 20-40 minutes. The company uses fresh, non-GMO ingredients they get from more than 100 family-run farms. Compared to Green Chef, they use a limited number of organic ingredients. 

In this round of the Green Chef vs Blue Apron competition, we choose Green Chef as it specializes more in specific diets including Keto, Paleo, or vegan, whereas Blue Apron is more generic.

Green Chef is a subscription-based service, so you need an account to be able to order. The order process is fast and simple, and you can view the menu for the following 3 weeks. You can cancel or skip meals at any time. For cancellations, you should make the request up to 5 days before your next scheduled delivery. You can order meals weekly, every two weeks, or once a month. Most of the packaging is recyclable and the company offers plenty of details in this regard in their FAQ section. 

It’s not difficult to order meals from Blue Apron either after you choose a plan, but you can’t do this unless you create an account. However, you can view the menu on the website even without having an account.  After you create an account, you can choose your meals and frequency, and place an order in less than 2 minutes. Most of the packaging Blue Apron uses is curbside recyclable. You can skip or cancel meals at any time, but you must do this 5 days before the next order is processed. 

Both services offer similar order and packaging options. It’s a tie.

Green Chef delivers across the continental United States, except for Alaska, Hawaii, and parts of Louisiana. Delivery times can be customized. The company ships from Monday through Saturday, from 8 AM to 8 PM. They offer reliable customer support by phone or live chat. The live chat support option is available Monday through Sunday, from 9 AM to 7 PM EST. Shipping usually costs $9.99, but free delivery is also available during promotions. 

Blue Apron delivers meals to the contiguous United States. Delivery times depend on your location. To view your delivery window, you need to log into your account and access the Upcoming page. After the delivery ships, you receive an email with the order’s tracking information. Blue Apron’s shipping fee is also $9.99, and just like Green Chef, they sometimes offer promotional shipping discounts. The company offers support by email and phone. 

We choose Green Chef this time as it offers more flexibility in terms of shipping as you can choose which weekday you want your meals delivered, depending on your location.

Green Chef’s meals are accompanied by detailed instructions. The nutritional information is also present, as well as the time required for the preparation. The full list of ingredients, their quantity, and calories per serving is also available. To prepare most meals, you need around 30 minutes. The difficulty level varies based on the recipes you choose. 

Blue Apron also offers detailed instructions, with clear and easy-to-follow steps that are also accompanied by pictures. You can see the full list of ingredients and their quantities. Nutritional information is only available once you create an account.

Both services offer in-depth information on how to cook the meals and what each recipe contains, however, we choose Green Chef as it displays the nutritional information without requiring an account.