Green Chef vs. Blue Apron: How Do They Compare?

Here’s a quick overview of the basics for each program.

Blue Apron

Blue Apron is a meal kit company that delivers preportioned ingredients and delicious, easy-to-follow recipes each week.

You can choose from one of four plans:

• Signature: contains a variety of dishes with two servings each
• Signature for 4: contains a variety of dishes with four servings each
• Vegetarian for 2: includes meat-free dishes with two servings each
• Wellness for 2: provides nutritionist-approved recipes with two servings each, including carb-conscious dishes and items approved by WW (formerly Weight Watchers)

Most plans provide two to four recipes per week. Recipes are labeled with the cooking time and whether they’re vegetarian or WW-approved.

Green Chef

Like Blue Apron, Green Chef is a meal delivery service that provides recipe cards and premeasured ingredients to help streamline meal prep.

You can choose from one of three meal plans:

• Keto + Paleo: protein-rich meals with healthy fats; note some single meals in this plan contain 30–35 grams of net carbs, which could limit a strict keto dieter’s other two daily meals
• Balanced Living: includes a variety of meals with meat, seafood, and vegetarian options
• Plant-Powered: provides plant-based options for vegans and vegetarians

For each plan, you can select two, four, or six servings each and choose either three or four meals per week.

Here are some of the meals you can enjoy with Blue Apron and Green Chef.

Blue Apron

Blue Apron offers a rotating weekly menu with a variety of options.

In particular, the company’s Signature menu includes 11 unique recipes each week with a range of seasonal ingredients. Blue Apron also provides vegetarian, low calorie, and WW-approved dishes.

A few meal examples include:

• Couscous-Stuffed Poblano Peppers with Spinach, Raisins & Tahini Dressing
• Mango Chutney Grilled Cheese with Apple & Romaine Lettuce Salad
• Seared Steaks & Thyme Butter with Oven Fries & Lemon Aioli

Each recipe includes detailed information on ingredients and nutritional value.

Green Chef

Green Chef provides several options on each of its menus, many of which feature organic and locally sourced produce.

Typically, each weekly meal plan offers nine recipes. A few of the meals you can enjoy include:

• Apricot-Glazed Tofu with Rosemary-Roasted Potatoes and Salad with Radishes & Carrots
• Sesame-Ginger Beef Patties with Broccoli, Red Bell Pepper, & Cabbage Stir-Fry with Cashews
• Zesty Salmon with Wasabi Crema, Sesame Carrot Fries, and Basmati Rice with Scallions

Vegan, gluten-free, and heart-healthy selections are clearly labeled on the company’s menu. You can also view the nutritional information, ingredients, and cooking time for each recipe online.

Here’s a breakdown of how much each meal delivery service costs.

Blue Apron

Blue Apron varies in cost depending on which plan you select, though prices are fairly standard when calculated per serving. Here’s how much each plan costs per serving:

• Signature: $9.99 per serving
• Signature for 4: $7.49–$8.99 per serving
• Vegetarian for 2: $9.99 per serving
• Wellness for 2: $9.99 per serving

Most plans include free shipping, but there’s a delivery fee of $7.99 for the Signature, Vegetarian for 2, and Wellness for 2 plans if you only order 2 recipes per week.

Blue Apron is available throughout the contiguous United States.

Green Chef

Green Chef offers three meal plans catered to different dietary restrictions. Here’s how much each plan costs:

• Keto + Paleo: $12.99 per serving
• Balanced Living: $11.99 per serving
• Plant-Powered: $11.99 per serving

In addition to the prices listed above, there’s a flat delivery fee of $8.99 per box. Shipping is available within most of the continental United States.

Blue Apron offers low calorie and WW-approved meals that may promote weight loss.

Although Green Chef doesn’t have a low calorie meal plan, several of its plans may also aid weight loss.

Blue Apron

Blue Apron offers several recipes each week that are designed to support weight loss.

What’s more, its WW-approved options contain lean proteins and are low in calories, saturated fat, sodium, and added sugar.

Blue Apron also labels all recipes that contain fewer than 600 calories per serving. Reducing your calorie intake is an effective strategy to help bolster weight loss (1).

What’s more, Blue Apron makes it easy to prepare healthy meals at home by providing preportioned ingredients, which may benefit weight management.

In fact, research links eating more home-cooked meals to improved diet quality and decreased body fat (2, 3, 4).

Green Chef

Unlike Blue Apron, Green Chef doesn’t offer a meal plan specifically for weight loss. Furthermore, Green Chef has limited low calorie recipe options, with most meals ranging from 600–1,200 calories per serving.

Still, the company can help you add more nutrient-rich whole foods to your diet, which may support long-term weight loss and overall health depending on your calorie needs and physical activity level.

Like Blue Apron, Green Chef encourages preparing more healthy meals at home, a practice that’s associated with improvements in diet quality and body composition (2, 3, 4).

Additionally, studies show that some of the eating patterns that Green Chef caters to, including keto, paleo, and plant-based diets, may aid weight loss (5, 6, 7).

Each service is associated with several other benefits.

Blue Apron

Blue Apron is one of the most affordable meal kits on the market, offering plans that start at just $7.49 per serving — with free shipping for most plans.

The company also sources ingredients from family-run farms and ranches. It partners with fisheries that prioritize sustainability and use eco-friendly packaging. All ingredients are free of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and growth promoters, such as added hormones.

Blue Apron also has a strict animal welfare policy and uses only suppliers that meet these standards.

Green Chef

Green Chef uses high quality ingredients in all of its meal kits, including ingredients that are mostly certified organic.

Ingredients are also sourced from local suppliers whenever possible and free of antibiotics, growth hormones, and steroids.

All dishes on Green Chef’s Keto + Paleo plan are grain-free and certified gluten-free by the Gluten Intolerance Group’s Gluten-Free Food Service (GFFS), making this plan a great option for those with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity.

Green Chef is also committed to sustainability. Not only is most of its packaging recyclable, but the company also offsets 100% of its carbon emissions from operations to help minimize its environmental impact.

There are several downsides to consider with both meal delivery services.

Blue Apron

Apart from its Signature for 4 plan, all Blue Apron recipes only include two servings each, which may not be ideal if you have a large family or household.

Additionally, those who prefer eating organic may want to choose a different service, as only certain Blue Apron recipes include organic ingredients.

Finally, there’s not an option to customize your recipes or filter out specific allergens or ingredients. Thus, Blue Apron may be unsuitable for those with severe food allergies or certain dietary restrictions.

Green Chef

Green Chef is more expensive than similar services, with prices starting at $11.99 per serving.

The company also charges for shipping, which can drive up the total cost further.

Plus, although Green Chef notes any potential allergens in each recipe, meal kits are manufactured in a facility that processes most major food allergens. As such, those with severe food allergies may want to avoid Green Chef.

Additionally, Green Chef neither lets you customize your meals nor offers options geared specifically toward weight loss — two factors that may be important considerations for some people.