The 3 Best Meal Kits in Edmonton and Calgary 

HelloFresh stands as the largest meal kit company in Canada, and its huge rotating menu makes it the King of Variety for busy households across Calgary and Edmonton. 

Menu and Meal Variety

HelloFresh’s menu is its biggest selling point for Alberta customers. You get access to more than 100 weekly items, plus marketplace add-ons that keep dinner from feeling repetitive. The lineup includes classic cook-it-yourself kits, ready-made meals, desserts, sides, and quick lunches.

Customization: You can build your box around several lifestyle preferences such as Family Friendly, Calorie Smart, Carb Smart, Vegetarian, and Pescatarian. This makes it easy for mixed households to stay aligned without extra planning.

Quick Cooking: Many meals take around 30 minutes, and the growing Quick and Easy and 15-Minute Meal categories are perfect for hectic weeknights in Calgary and Edmonton.

Pricing, Plans, and Alberta Delivery

HelloFresh stays competitively priced, though your total depends on the plan and meal choices.

Cost Structure: Most meals range from CAD 9.25 to 12.50 per serving, with lower prices when you order more. Premium meals or upgraded proteins add a small fee.

Delivery and Logistics: HelloFresh delivers throughout Calgary and Edmonton and reaches most Canadian postal codes. Boxes arrive between Sunday and Thursday depending on your area. Insulated liners and ice packs protect ingredients through Alberta’s changing temperatures, and you can leave delivery instructions if you’re not home.

Subscription Flexibility: You can easily adjust servings, change your meal count, skip a week, or pause your plan through the app whenever your schedule shifts.

Who Is HelloFresh Best For?

HelloFresh works especially well for:

Families: Larger portions and the Family Friendly menu make it easier to please picky eaters.

Cooks Seeking New Ideas: With such a large weekly selection, HelloFresh is a great fit for anyone who wants fresh recipe inspiration without planning or shopping.

2) Chef’s Plate

#1

Overall rating 98.0%

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Chefs Plate Review

Plans for

• Picky eaters
• Novice cooks
• Calorie watchers
• Busy people
• Allergics

Price range/ week

$48 ‐ $185

Pros and cons

• Budget-friendly
• Wide variety of meals
• Ability to easily skip any week you choose
• Delivery to almost anywhere

Apply discount

Promotion $100 off

Promo code: COMP299

Chef’s Plate sets itself apart in Alberta by leaning into value. It’s the most budget-friendly option among the major cook-it-yourself meal kits, and while it shares a parent company with HelloFresh, it keeps things simpler. That streamlined approach means lower prices for customers in both Calgary and Edmonton.

Menu and Extreme Affordability

Chef’s Plate builds its menu around cost-efficiency while still keeping meals flavourful. Most recipes are straightforward crowd-pleasers that take less time and effort than the more complex options offered elsewhere.

Affordable Pricing: Plans often start around CAD 8.99 per serving, especially for larger family orders. Chef’s Plate hits this low price by using simpler ingredients and efficient recipe structures, which is a major advantage as grocery prices continue to rise.

Variety and Focus: You can expect about 25 to 30 recipe choices each week. The lineup is smaller than HelloFresh, yet it still covers Italian, Tex-Mex, and Asian-inspired meals. Plan options include Meat and Vegetables, Family Friendly, Vegetarian, and the popular Speedy and Simple category.

Unique Offerings: The 15-Minute Meal Advantage

One standout feature is the dedicated lineup of 15-Minute Meals, which fits perfectly with the pace of life in Edmonton and Calgary.

Speed and Simplicity: These fast recipes use pre-chopped or par-cooked ingredients so you can get dinner on the table in minutes. It’s a major perk for anyone cooking late or juggling a tight evening schedule.

Reduced Food Waste: Chef’s Plate also sends pre-portioned ingredients, which helps cut down on waste and gives budget-focused users more control over their spending.

Who Is Chef’s Plate Best For?

Chef’s Plate works well for:

Budget-Conscious Families and Individuals: Its consistently low cost per serving makes it the most affordable way to try meal kits.

Beginner or Reluctant Cooks: Recipes are simple, clear, and use fewer ingredients, which helps new cooks build confidence.

Time-Crunched Users: The 15-Minute Meal lineup bridges the gap between cook-it-yourself kits and ready-made meals.

3) Factor

#1

Overall rating 97.0%

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Factor Review

Plans for

• Vegetarians
• Calorie watchers
• Allergics
• Healthy lifestyle

Price range/ week

$10 ‐ $202

Pros and cons

• Gluten, antibiotics, and hormone free meals
• Delivers to Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Manitoba
• Vegan and vegetarian meals

Apply discount

Promotion $90 off

Promo code: COMP75

Factor, another brand under the HelloFresh umbrella, takes a completely different approach to meal delivery. Instead of offering cook-it-yourself kits, Factor focuses on total convenience supported by structured, dietitian-approved nutrition. For people in Calgary and Edmonton who value efficiency or want healthy meal prep delivery Calgary options without any cooking, Factor delivers a premium, high-quality alternative.

Menu and Nutritional Focus

Factor’s entire lineup features fully prepared meals that arrive fresh, never frozen, and only need about two minutes in the microwave. This no-prep model appeals to busy professionals, students, and anyone with specific nutrition or fitness goals.

Diet-Specific Plans: This is where Factor stands out. Its menu is organized around clear health objectives rather than broad variety. Popular categories include Keto with 15 grams of net carbs or less, Calorie Smart with 550 calories or fewer, and Protein Plus with 35 grams or more of protein. These structured plans make it easy for users to stick to a high-protein, low-carb, or calorie-controlled lifestyle without extra planning.

Ingredient Quality and Assurance: Factor places a strong emphasis on ingredient integrity. They prioritize responsibly sourced meats and poultry raised without antibiotics, and meals are designed with guidance from registered dietitians. Each dish aims for a thoughtful mix of healthy fats, complex carbs, and high-quality proteins to support balanced eating.

Cost and Zero Prep-Time Value

Factor is usually the most expensive of the three services in this comparison, but its pricing reflects the time saved and the premium of dietitian-designed meals.

Cost Structure: Meals generally range from CAD 11.00 to 15.00 per serving, with prices dropping when customers order larger weekly quantities, especially 12 meals or more. Delivery across Alberta is fast and reliable, and insulated packaging keeps meals fresh on arrival.

Value Proposition: For anyone who regularly turns to takeout or restaurant meals, Factor can be a healthier, cost-effective swap. The convenience of eliminating shopping, chopping, cooking, and cleanup adds real lifestyle value, which helps justify the higher per-serving cost.

Who Is Factor Best For?

Factor is the strongest choice for:

Busy Singles and Couples: People who don’t need large portions and want high-quality meals ready in minutes.

Fitness and Health-Focused Users: Anyone committed to a specific nutrition plan, such as Keto or high-protein eating for muscle growth, benefits from Factor’s precise, dietitian-approved meals.

Non-Cooks: Those who dislike cooking or simply don’t have time for it but still want to maintain a balanced, nutritious diet.

Key Considerations for Meal Kit Delivery in Alberta

Choosing between HelloFresh, Factor, and Chef’s Plate involves more than comparing menus or prices. People in Calgary and Edmonton also need to think about weekly delivery logistics, environmental impact, and how easy each service is to manage.

Sustainability and Packaging

Packaging is one of the biggest concerns with meal kit delivery, especially in a province with weather that swings from freezing winters to hot summers. All three services take steps to address sustainability, although their approaches differ.

Insulated Boxes: HelloFresh, Factor, and Chef’s Plate ship their meals in insulated cardboard boxes with liners and ice packs to keep everything cold. Most boxes are fully recyclable, and the cardboard is usually made from 100 percent recycled paperboard.

Recycling Challenges: The main variation shows up in the smaller ingredient packages. HelloFresh and Chef’s Plate rely on many pre-portioned plastic pouches to reduce food waste, but these aren’t always accepted by every municipal recycling program. Customers in Calgary or Edmonton often need to confirm what their local facilities accept.

The Factor Difference: Factor’s ready-made meals come in oven- and microwave-safe trays. This format reduces the number of tiny plastic bags found in traditional kits, although the total plastic per meal can still be significant.

Food Waste vs. Packaging Waste: Research shows that meal kits can cut carbon emissions by about 33 percent compared to traditional grocery shopping because they reduce food waste. Since wasted food is a major contributor to household emissions in Canada, the environmental gains often balance out the extra packaging.

Subscription Flexibility and Management

All three brands fall under the HelloFresh Group umbrella, and they share similar, highly flexible subscription features that help customers adjust around busy or unpredictable schedules.

No Commitment: None of the services require long-term contracts, and there are no cancellation penalties.

Easy Adjustments: You can manage your entire plan online or through each service’s mobile app. This includes:

• Skipping Weeks: Skip up to eight weeks ahead with just a few clicks.

• Pausing or Canceling: Stop or cancel your plan anytime as long as you make the change before the weekly cutoff, which is usually 11:59 PM PST four days before delivery.

• Changing Plans: Switch between two- and four-person boxes or adjust your weekly meal count whenever you need to.
  
  

The Ready-to-Eat vs. Cook-at-Home Decision

The biggest choice for many customers comes down to how much time they want to spend cooking.

Cook-at-Home (HelloFresh and Chef’s Plate): These services offer more recipes and give you the satisfaction of cooking a fresh meal. They’re ideal if you can spare 20 to 40 minutes in the kitchen.

Ready-to-Eat (Factor): This option is all about speed. With zero prep and almost no cleanup, Factor works best for people who only have five minutes to heat a meal and want something nutritionally balanced without any extra work.

Final Verdict: Which of the 3 Best Meal Kits Should You Choose?

If you are a Busy Professional or a Time-Stressed Single: Factor comes out on top. You trade a bit more money for a huge amount of convenience. Every meal is dietitian-designed, ready in two minutes, and far healthier than the average takeout order. It’s the fastest, most efficient way to stay on track during a packed week.

If you are a Family or a Cook Looking for Fresh Ideas: HelloFresh is the clear winner. Its massive weekly menu rotation and the option to add extra sides or snacks through the HelloFresh Market keep your dinners exciting. You get the right mix of variety, creativity, and practicality without feeling overwhelmed.

If you are Highly Budget-Conscious or New to Cooking: Chef’s Plate is the best choice. It consistently delivers the lowest price per serving, making it a smart alternative to rising grocery costs and pricey takeout. Its straightforward, fast recipes give beginners an easy way to gain confidence in the kitchen.

No matter which one you choose, signing up for a meal kit in Calgary or Edmonton helps cut food waste, saves time on planning, and keeps healthy meals within reach. Each service also offers generous introductory discounts and flexible subscriptions, so it’s simple to try one—or all three—to find your ideal match.