Freshly, Magic Kitchen and Silver Cuisine are regularly recognized as some of the best meal delivery services in the nation. Each has its own strong points, with Magic Kitchen offering meal plans carefully tailored for people with specific dietary restrictions, Freshly specializing in fresh-not-frozen delivery and Silver Cuisine providing exceptional menu variety.

How Do Meal Delivery Services Work?

Meal delivery services are different from traditional restaurant and fast food delivery in that they primarily work on a subscription model. Rather than ordering one meal at a time, customers may order food for a week or even 6 months. Most companies deliver all of a week’s food at once in a temperature-controlled cooler; customers can keep deliveries frozen and save them for reheating throughout the week.

As of 2022, Freshly, Magic Kitchen and Silver Cuisine all deliver to the 48 contiguous U.S. states, but not to Hawaii or Alaska.

How Do Meal Delivery Services Differ?

Freshly is one of the most popular meal delivery services due to its reasonable base prices, free delivery and emphasis on fresh food items. However, since the company doesn’t freeze its meals before they reach customers, there’s a tradeoff between better-than-average freshness and lower-than-average shelf life. Customers who set up high-volume subscription plans can save a lot of money with Freshly; ordering 12 meals a week costs just $9 per meal.

Magic Kitchen, another well-reviewed service, provides some meal plans specifically for older adults; these meals are low in sodium and nutritionally balanced. In addition to offering full-meal and a la carte options that allow customers to customize their entrees and sides, Magic Kitchen has meal plans for weekly, biweekly or monthly delivery. Unlike Freshly’s meals, Magic Kitchen’s precooked meals arrive frozen, allowing customers to save them for up to 6 months before eating.As of 2022, a week of Magic Kitchen’s food at one meal a day costs roughly $85, while a week at three meals a day costs around $250. This makes Magic Kitchen slightly more expensive than Freshly at around $12 per meal.

Silver Cuisine, a meal delivery service that puts its full focus on the senior market, is a standout for food variety, offering an always-available menu of over 150 meals. It also allows customers to order without signing up for a subscription plan, which can be particularly useful for seniors who only need meal support in the absence of their regular caregiver. Like Magic Kitchen, Silver Cuisine’s meals arrive frozen. Silver Cuisine is a more expensive meal delivery option than most, in part because the company charges $19.95 for every shipment on top of its regular food costs. However, AARP members qualify for a 10% discount on all orders. 

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