TL;DR: The best HelloFresh alternative depends on whether you still want to cook. If you don't, Frive delivers fresh, chef-cooked meals that are 100% UPF free and ready in about three minutes, at £47.40 for six meals delivered. If you do, Gousto is the closest swap at a similar price and sells a box for one, Mindful Chef has the highest Trustpilot score of the recipe boxes, and Green Chef, which HelloFresh owns, is built around keto and high-protein recipes.
People look beyond HelloFresh for a few reasons: the price once delivery's added, the time it takes to cook every night, there's no box for one, or they simply want something different. There are good recipe boxes like it. There's also a step on from recipe boxes altogether: fresh meals that arrive already cooked, like Frive.
Below, we compare five HelloFresh alternatives on price, food, flexibility and reviews to help you make a decision that is right for you.
HelloFresh alternatives at a glance
| HelloFresh alternatives at a glance | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Service | What arrives | Price, full, delivered | Box for one? | What it says about UPFs | Trustpilot |
| HelloFresh (for comparison) | Ingredients and recipe cards | £36.48 for 2 people, 3 recipes (£6.08 a portion) | No; smallest box serves two | No UPF-free claim | 3.1 (109,687 reviews) |
| 1. Frive | Freshly made meals, ready in about three minutes | £47.40 for six meals (£7.90 a meal) | Yes; every meal is a single portion | We are 100% UPF free | 4.4 (13,276) |
| 2. Prep Kitchen | Cooked meals, ready in 3 to 4 minutes | £47.69 for six meals (£7.95 a meal) | Yes; single portions | No UPF-free claim found | 4.5 (4,153) |
| 3. Gousto | Ingredients and recipe cards | £36.24 for 2 people, 3 recipes (£6.04 a portion) | Yes, from £8.20 a portion delivered | No UPF-free claim; tracks processing | 3.6 (50,767) |
| 4. Mindful Chef | Ingredients and recipe cards | From £46.49 for 2 people, 3 recipes (from £7.75 a portion) | Yes, from £11 a portion plus delivery | No UPF-free claim; says no refined carbs or sugar | 4.6 (20,268) |
| 5. Green Chef (owned by HelloFresh) | Ingredients and recipe cards | £43.93 for 2 people, 3 meals (£7.32 a portion) | No | No UPF-free claim | 3.0 (5,062) |
Something to consider: recipe boxes were just the start
Recipe boxes were the first big change in how we get dinner delivered: they took the planning and the shopping off your hands. The next step takes the cooking away too.
If you've never come across it, meal prep delivery means meals prepared by chefs and delivered ready to heat, either fresh and chilled or frozen.
| Three ways to get dinner delivered | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Format | What arrives | Time on the night | How long it keeps | Examples |
| Recipe box | Ingredients and recipe cards | Around 30 minutes of cooking, plus prep and washing up | Cook within a few days | HelloFresh, Gousto, Mindful Chef, Green Chef |
| Fresh meal prep | Cooked meals, chilled | About three minutes in the microwave | Days in the fridge (up to seven for Frive) | Frive, Prep Kitchen |
| Frozen meal prep | Cooked meals, frozen | Longer, heated from frozen | Months in the freezer | COOK, Field Doctor |
Why people make the switch:
Time back: no prep, no cooking and no washing up, just heat and eat.
Built for one or two: single portions, so nothing goes to waste and you don't eat the same dinner twice. It also means that you and your partner can mix and match if you have differing dietary preferences.
Nutrition you can see: calories and protein on every meal, which makes goals easier to stick to. Ours carry a median 44g of protein.
Healthier by design: plans built around goals such as high protein, weight loss and GLP-1, and at Frive, we are 100% UPF free.
If you're weighing up fresh against frozen, here's how they compare.
Meal prep delivery alternatives to HelloFresh: no cooking
If it's the cooking you want to stop, these two deliver meals that are already made.
1. Frive: best if you want to stop cooking, with fresh meals that are 100% UPF free
If you've had enough of cooking every night, this is where we'd start, and yes, it's us.
We prepare chef-crafted, nutritionist-approved meals from 100% natural, whole-food ingredients, and we are 100% UPF free. They arrive fresh, keep up to seven days in the fridge and are ready in about three minutes. Our 40+ weekly main meals carry a median 44g of protein, with breakfasts, snacks and smoothies alongside, and there are plans for high protein (a median of 44g of protein), weight loss, low carb, balanced, vegetarian, vegan, and GLP-1.
Where HelloFresh sends ingredients for you to cook, we send dinner. No prep, and no washing up beyond your fork. Every meal is a single portion, so it works for one person as well as for couples, and there's no second night of the same recipe.
Price: £7.90 a meat meal; £7.80 vegetarian and vegan; £8.80 seafood
A week of six meals: £47.40 delivered, free delivery over £40
Time on the night: About three minutes
UPFs: We are 100% UPF free; olive, avocado and sesame oils only
Delivery: Four days a week: Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Thursday
Trustpilot: 4.4 from 13,276 reviews
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| ✓ We are 100% UPF free, sauce and all | ✗ Costs more per portion than a recipe box for two or more |
| ✓ No cooking, no washing up: about three minutes | ✗ Weekly subscription (skip or cancel any time), no one-off orders |
| ✓ Single portions, ideal for one | ✗ £6 delivery on orders under £40 |
| ✓ A median 44g of protein per main meal | |
| ✓ Plans including high protein, weight loss, halal and GLP-1 | |
| ✓ Four delivery days; meals keep up to seven days |
See our full Frive vs HelloFresh comparison, or start with our meal prep delivery plans.
2. Prep Kitchen: ready-made meals with a choice of portion size
Prep Kitchen is the other fresh, ready-made option if you want to stop cooking.
It makes chilled, high-protein meals that heat in 3 to 4 minutes, in Balanced or Lower Carb versions and in Regular or Large portions. A standard meal is £6.95, and it delivers once a week, on a Sunday or a Monday.
Like us, it takes the cooking away entirely, and every meal is a single portion. Unlike us, it makes no UPF-free claim that we could find, and its standard meals carry a median 3.15g of salt.
Credit where it's due: Prep Kitchen's Trustpilot score of 4.5 is higher than our 4.4, and at £6.95 its meals cost less than ours before delivery.
Price: £6.95 a standard meal; £7.75 to £8.95 for Lower Carb or Large
A week of six meals: £41.70 plus £5.99 delivery, so £47.69 (£7.95 a meal)
Time on the night: 3 to 4 minutes
UPFs: No UPF-free claim found on its website
Delivery: Once a week, Sunday or Monday
Trustpilot: 4.5 from 4,153 reviews
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| ✓ Lowest price per meal of the fresh services, at £6.95 | ✗ £5.99 delivery on a single box |
| ✓ Large portions with a median 54.5g of protein | ✗ No UPF-free claim found on its website |
| ✓ Highest Trustpilot score of the ready-made pair, at 4.5 | ✗ One delivery day a week |
See our full Frive vs Prep Kitchen comparison.
Other recipe boxes like HelloFresh
If you enjoy cooking and just want a different box, these are the three closest to HelloFresh.
3. Gousto: the closest like-for-like swap, with a box for one
Gousto is the nearest thing to HelloFresh, and slightly cheaper once delivery's included.
It sends ingredients and recipe cards for 1 to 5 people, with "175+" weekly recipes in its own words, filters such as 30g+ protein, under 600 calories, plant-based, gluten-free and dairy-free, and recipes "ready in as little as 10 mins". It also sells a small range of chilled Heat & Eat ready meals you can add to a box.
Unlike HelloFresh, it sells a box for one and lets you order one-off. Two people and three recipes cost £36.24 delivered, against HelloFresh's £36.48. Gousto says it tracks how processed its ingredients are, but it makes no UPF-free claim.
The Guardian's April 2026 roundup named Gousto its "Best budget recipe box".
Price: 2 people, 3 recipes: £32.25 plus £3.99 delivery, so £36.24 (£6.04 a portion)
For one person: 5 recipes for £40.99 delivered (£8.20 a portion)
Time on the night: A median 30 minutes across its recipes
UPFs: Tracks processing using the NOVA system; no UPF-free claim
Sourcing: 100% British fresh meat; a B Corp
Trustpilot: 3.6 from 50,767 reviews
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| ✓ Slightly cheaper than HelloFresh once delivery's included | ✗ You still cook every night |
| ✓ Box for one and one-off orders | ✗ No UPF-free claim |
| ✓ 100% British fresh meat; B Corp | ✗ Some recipes carry a premium surcharge |
For the full head-to-head, see HelloFresh vs Gousto.
4. Mindful Chef: recipes with no refined carbs or sugar
Mindful Chef is the recipe box to look at if healthy cooking is the priority, and its customers rate it highly.
It sends ingredients and recipe cards for one, two or a family, with "28 recipes, changing every week", in its words. Mindful Chef says it uses "real proteins, no refined carbs or sugar" and is palm oil free.
It costs more than HelloFresh: from £6.75 a portion for two people, plus £5.99 delivery and a £25 minimum order. Unlike HelloFresh, it sells a box for one and lets you order one-off. We couldn't find a UPF-free claim.
Its Trustpilot score of 4.6 is the highest of every service on this page, ours included, and BBC Good Food named it its "Best healthy meal delivery service".
Price: From £6.75 a portion for two people; family boxes from £5.12; one person from £11
Two people, three recipes: From £46.49 delivered (from £7.75 a portion)
Delivery: £5.99 an order; £25 minimum order; seven days a week
UPFs: No UPF-free claim found; says no refined carbs or sugar
Sourcing: 100% British meat, free-range chicken; a B Corp
Trustpilot: 4.6 from 20,268 reviews
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| ✓ Highest Trustpilot score here, at 4.6 | ✗ The most expensive recipe box here |
| ✓ No refined carbs or sugar, in its words | ✗ £5.99 delivery and a £25 minimum order |
| ✓ Box for one and one-off orders | ✗ You still cook, around 30 minutes a meal |
5. Green Chef: keto and high-protein recipes, from HelloFresh's sister brand
Green Chef is worth a look if you cook to a specific diet, though it's owned by HelloFresh.
It sends ingredients and recipe cards for two or four people, with "35+ weekly changing recipes" in its words, developed by its nutritionists. Its preferences include Keto ("under 20g of carbs"), High Protein ("35g-70g of protein per recipe") and Calorie Conscious ("Always under 550Kcal"), plus vegan, vegetarian and pescatarian.
HelloFresh bought Green Chef in 2018, and Green Chef UK is run by the same UK company. Like HelloFresh, there's no box for one and no one-off orders. Two people and three meals cost £43.93 delivered, more than HelloFresh, and it makes no UPF-free claim.
BBC Good Food named it its "Best meal delivery service for accessible healthy meals".
Price: 2 people, 3 meals: £38.94 plus £4.99 delivery, so £43.93 (£7.32 a portion)
For one person: No box for one
Time on the night: Most recipes about 30 minutes
UPFs: No UPF-free claim
Ownership: Owned by HelloFresh
Trustpilot: 3.0 from 5,062 reviews
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| ✓ Keto, high-protein and calorie-conscious recipes | ✗ Owned by HelloFresh, so not a different company |
| ✓ Recipes developed by nutritionists | ✗ No box for one, no one-off orders |
| ✓ A median 43.5g of protein per serving | ✗ Lowest Trustpilot score here, at 3.0 |
How much do HelloFresh alternatives cost?
For two people, a recipe box costs less per portion, with Gousto the cheapest at £36.24 for three recipes delivered. For one person, we work out cheaper per meal than any recipe box that sells a box for one.
Six Frive meals cost £47.40 delivered (£7.90 a meal), against £8.20 a portion for Gousto's box for one and from £13.00 a portion for Mindful Chef's one-person box of three recipes. HelloFresh and Green Chef don't sell a box for one, so living alone means a two-person box and eating each recipe twice.
So if you're feeding two or more and you're happy to cook, a recipe box is cheaper per portion than we are. Every brand discounts the first order for new customers; these are full prices.
| What dinner costs, full price, delivery included | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Service | Two people, three recipes (6 portions) | Per portion | Living alone |
| HelloFresh | £36.48 | £6.08 | No box for one; the two-person box gives six portions of three recipes |
| Gousto | £36.24 | £6.04 | 1 person, 5 recipes: £40.99 (£8.20 a portion) |
| Green Chef | £43.93 | £7.32 | No box for one |
| Mindful Chef | From £46.49 | From £7.75 | 1 person, 3 recipes: from £38.99 (from £13.00 a portion) |
| Frive | Six single meals: £47.40 | £7.90 a meal | The same £47.40 for six single meals; nothing to cook |
| Prep Kitchen | Six single meals: £47.69 | £7.95 a meal | The same £47.69 for six single meals; nothing to cook |
Weighing cost against time? Here's what meal prep delivery really saves you.
Which HelloFresh alternative is right for you?
Pick the row that sounds most like you.
| Choose by what you want | ||
|---|---|---|
| If you want… | Choose | Why |
| The closest swap at a similar price | Gousto | £36.24 for two people, three recipes, against HelloFresh's £36.48 |
| To stop cooking altogether | Frive or Prep Kitchen | Fresh meals, cooked for you and ready in minutes |
| Healthy recipes with no refined carbs or sugar | Mindful Chef | Its own standard, and the highest Trustpilot score here |
| A meal prep delivery service that is UPF free | Frive | We are 100% UPF free, with only olive, avocado and sesame oils |
| A recipe box for one | Gousto | From £8.20 a portion delivered for one person |
| Meals for one without eating the same dinner twice | Frive or Prep Kitchen | Single portions; six Frive meals cost £47.40 delivered |
| Keto recipes | Green Chef | Keto recipes under 20g of carbs, in its words |
| A halal, vegan or GLP-1 plan without cooking | Frive | Plans for each; HelloFresh says it can't guarantee a halal plan |
| Ready-made meals in a bigger portion | Prep Kitchen | Large portions with a median 54.5g of protein |
Why Frive is the brand to beat
100% UPF free: every meal is made from 100% natural ingredients, with no artificial ingredients and only olive, avocado and sesame oils.
No cooking, no washing up: meals arrive cooked and are ready in about three minutes.
Made for one: single portions at £7.90 a meal, cheaper per meal than any recipe box for one on this page.
More protein, less salt: a median 44g of protein and 1.6g of salt per main meal, against median salt of 1.9g to 2.9g per serving across the recipe boxes here.
Plans for how you eat: high protein, weight loss, low carb, balanced, vegetarian, vegan, halal and GLP-1.
If you love cooking and you're feeding two or more, a recipe box will cost you less per portion. Where we win is time, single portions and what goes into the food.
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Our verdict
If you want to keep cooking, Gousto is the closest swap to HelloFresh and Mindful Chef is the best-rated recipe box. If you want to stop cooking, fresh meal prep is the step on from a recipe box, and that's what we make: single portions, cooked for you, that keep up to seven days in the fridge.
Ready to hand over the cooking? Our chef-crafted, nutritionist-approved meals are 100% UPF free, carry a median 44g of protein and are ready in about three minutes. Every meal is a single portion, with plans for high protein, weight loss, low carb, balanced, vegetarian, vegan, halal and GLP-1. New customer discount available: see this week's menu.
FAQs
What's the best alternative to HelloFresh?
It depends on whether you want to keep cooking. Gousto is the closest recipe box, at £36.24 for two people and three recipes delivered, and Mindful Chef is the best-rated, at 4.6 on Trustpilot. If you'd rather not cook, Frive delivers fresh meals that are 100% UPF free, ready in about three minutes.
What companies are similar to HelloFresh in the UK?
Gousto, Mindful Chef and Green Chef all send ingredients and recipe cards like HelloFresh, though Green Chef is owned by HelloFresh. If you'd like the cooking done for you, Frive and Prep Kitchen deliver ready-made meals instead, from £47.40 for six meals delivered.
Is there a cheaper alternative to HelloFresh?
Gousto is slightly cheaper once delivery's included: £36.24 for two people and three recipes, against HelloFresh's £36.48. For one person, Frive costs £7.90 a meal delivered on an order of six meals, less per meal than Gousto's box for one at £8.20 a portion. Both are full prices.
Which HelloFresh alternatives are free from ultra-processed food?
Frive: we are 100% UPF free. Gousto says it tracks how processed its ingredients are but makes no UPF-free claim, and Mindful Chef says it uses no refined carbs or sugar but makes no UPF-free claim we could find. HelloFresh, Green Chef and Prep Kitchen make no UPF-free claim.
Is Frive a good alternative to HelloFresh?
If you want to stop cooking, yes. Our meals arrive cooked and are ready in about three minutes, every meal is a single portion, and we are 100% UPF free. Six meals cost £47.40 delivered, or £7.90 a meal. If you enjoy cooking for two or more, a recipe box costs less per portion.
Does Frive have halal meals?
Yes. Most of our meals are halal-friendly, though there are some meals and add-ons which are not, and we have a dedicated halal plan. Like every Frive meal, they arrive cooked and are ready in about three minutes. HelloFresh says it can't guarantee a halal plan. See our halal plan.
Is Green Chef owned by HelloFresh?
Yes. HelloFresh bought Green Chef in 2018, and Green Chef UK is run by the same UK company as HelloFresh. It focuses on diet-led recipes such as keto, high protein and calorie conscious. Two people and three meals cost £43.93 delivered, against £36.48 for a HelloFresh box of the same size.
Where does Frive deliver?
We deliver across mainland UK, except some areas of Scotland, on four delivery days a week: Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. That includes Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool, Sheffield, Nottingham, Newcastle, Bristol, Brighton, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow and more. Enter your postcode at checkout to confirm we cover your address.
Prices, delivery charges and minimum orders come from each brand's own website and help pages, checked between 23 September and 7 October 2026, and are full prices before introductory offers; Mindful Chef prices are its published starting prices. Trustpilot ratings were read on 6 and 7 October 2026. Frive figures are from our live menu on 28 September 2026. Prices and menus change.
