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Blue Apron Review: Is This Popular Meal Delivery Service Worth It?
This company stands out for its range of options, but it doesn’t offer meal plans for certain diet types or food allergies
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Looking for a meal delivery service that doesn’t lock you in? Blue Apron might be worth considering. In April 2026, when we surveyed 300 adults ages 50 and older who used a meal delivery service in the previous 12 months, Blue Apron was identified by respondents as the second-most widely subscribed provider after HelloFresh.
What makes Blue Apron unique is that, unlike most other companies in the field, it doesn’t require a subscription to access its meals. If you decide to sign up, you can order à la carte (with a $10 minimum order) or choose the company’s Subscribe & Save option, which starts a recurring charge for the amount of food and the frequency you select.
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By committing to this service, you’ll automatically get a 5 percent discount on every item in your box. You would then have the flexibility to pick the dishes you want for each delivery, and you can skip a week if the menu doesn’t suit your tastes.
To help you decide whether Blue Apron may be worth a try, our AARP Smart Picks team worked with testers ages 50 and older to assess the service. Our lab team ordered meals for the older adult testers to prepare in our Smart Picks Test Kitchen. Lab testers evaluated the ordering and shipping process, and our older adult testers evaluated the meals, rating such factors as taste, portion size and ease of preparation.
Read on for our in-depth review to learn more about how Blue Apron performed in our testing — and whether it could work for you.
What to know about Blue Apron
Blue Apron offers four main types of meals:
- Meal kits: pre-portioned ingredients with step-by-step instructions written on recipe cards
- Assemble-and-bake: one-pan meals with pre-prepped ingredients that you combine and cook in the oven
- Prepared: called “Dish by Blue Apron,” these premade meals can be cooked in the microwave or oven
- Family-style: lets you mix and match family-sized mains and sides
The company performed well across several key categories in our assessments, including food preparation, delivery and customer service. Our testers tried multiple prepared meals and an assemble-and-bake meal kit, and are in the process of testing the company’s standard meal kits. For the meals we assessed, testers praised the clear instructions and easy-to-read font size on the recipe cards, as well as the straightforward prep process.
Testers also gave Blue Apron a solid score for its customization options. The service offers a wide range of products, from single-serving meals to family-style lunches, dinners, sides, extra proteins and “quick bites” like croissants or cookies.. You can choose prepared meals, meal kits or both for your order. While prepared meals are convenient, meal kits may "work well for [older adults] who have the energy and stamina to handle tasks like chopping, cooking and cleanup," says Amy McNabb, a registered dietitian based in Tennessee. "[Meal kits] can support independence and help maintain a consistent daily routine, while offering more variety and the experience of fresh-cooked meals at home."
What sets Blue Apron apart is that it doesn’t require a subscription. Every other meal delivery service we’ve tested requires a subscription to order food, and some even require you to enter payment information before you can see the menu. While Blue Apron does offer a subscription (called Subscribe & Save), you can also place an à la carte order for a one-time purchase. It also offers Blue Apron+, a membership program that gives you perks like free shipping on all orders, unlimited access to cooking shows and more. This level of flexibility could benefit older adults who travel often, face mobility challenges, are recovering from illness or injury or who seek flexibility in their menu choices.
One big drawback is that Blue Apron doesn’t offer any plans for specific diets or allergens. The company says all its ingredients are “packaged in a facility that also processes milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, sesame, wheat and soy.” As a result, it doesn’t recommend ordering from them if you have a severe food allergy. And although testers overall said their Blue Apron meals were tasty, one tester gave his meal only a fair taste score.
- Pros and cons
- Features
Pros
Easy-to-read recipe cards
Large portions
Top-level delivery process
Cons
One dish delivered middling flavor
No allergy filters
Types: Meal kits, assemble and bake, prepared meals and sides
Plan options: À la carte or “subscribe and save” for recurring meal deliveries
Vegetarian friendly: Yes
Vegan friendly: No
Sample of other diets available: Reduced sodium, carb conscious and wheat free
Key takeaways from our testing
Our testers gave Blue Apron a near-perfect score for the overall cooking experience. "The instructions are very clear," said tester Will, 65, who tried the white bean, kale and spicy sausage bake, an assemble-and-bake meal kit. "I had no issues reading the instructions and creating the dish." He also noted that the recipe card included helpful pictures and an easy-to-read font size. Tester Donna C., 60, said she also had a smooth experience making her premade coconut korma chicken with rice, describing the microwave reheating instructions as straightforward and simple.
Testers gave Blue Apron’s portion sizes positive scores, saying its servings either matched what was advertised or were slightly bigger. Donna C. said her meal was "perfect for one" and Will noted that his dish had "a ton of meat on it." Similarly, 65-year-old tester Donna H. said her prepared lemon and feta chicken with orzo was large enough to sustain her throughout the day.
Testers said their prepared meals (shown here, unopened) had large portions and easy-to-read preparation instructions.
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Testers said their prepared meals (shown here, unopened) had large portions and easy-to-read preparation instructions.
"The delivery process was easy and transparent," one lab tester said. "I didn't have any issues receiving my order." Packages arrived on time, well-sealed, with their contents organized in clear bags, resulting in Blue Apron receiving perfect marks for the overall delivery experience. Unlike some other meal delivery services we’ve tested, Blue Apron emailed tracking information for shipments days before the actual delivery. Some services we’ve tested, like Fuel Meals, sent a tracking email only on the day of delivery.
Tester Will said the instructions were “very clear” and easy to read, giving it an impressive rating for instructions and food prep.
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Blue Apron doesn’t offer any plans to accommodate allergies, though you can filter by protein type to exclude items like shellfish. The company recommends not ordering if you have a severe food allergy.
When our testers put their dishes to a taste test, their scores were decent. Donna C. said she would have added more spices to boost the flavor of her dish, while Will noted that he had to add salt after his meal came out of the oven because it was “a bit bland.” Will gave it a so-so score for taste — the lowest of our testers. Donna H. said she was “okay” with the taste of her chimichurri salmon grain bowl, noting that the salmon was “not as moist” as she would like it, but she still gave it admirable marks.
How we test and review meal delivery services
To identify the strengths and weaknesses of meal delivery services, we recruit testers ages 50 and older — including members of AARP’s The Ethel community — to assess the services and share their unbiased feedback. The Ethel is a free weekly newsletter, website and online community named in honor of AARP founder Dr. Ethel Percy Andrus. Our lab team and older adult testers then order and cook their meals in their homes or in our AARP Smart Picks Test Kitchen and share their thoughts on key factors such as food quality, portion size, taste, customization options and ease of preparation.
In addition, we pay close attention to the delivery process, including the number of delivery updates the company provides and the quality of packaging. We also review the cancellation process to determine how long it takes and whether any challenges might arise before a subscription is paused or canceled.
For more details, see our meal delivery service testing methodology page.
How much does Blue Apron cost?
Blue Apron’s price per serving for meal kits starts at about $9.49 before any protein modifications or add-ons and around $8.99 for prepared meals. That’s slightly less than other meal delivery services we’ve tested, which average around $10 per serving.
Blue Apron requires a minimum purchase of $10 for à la carte and $25 for subscriptions. You can cancel a subscription at any time.
In general, your total cost for a box in a given week depends on the food you choose, the number of meals you order and any protein customizations you make. You can see a breakdown of general costs in the chart below.
Who is Blue Apron right for?
"When deciding whether a meal delivery service is a good fit, older adults should consider more than just convenience," says McNabb, the dietitian in Tennessee. "It's important to choose a service that supports their overall health and nutritional needs."
Wondering whether Blue Apron could work for you? Ask yourself the following questions to help you decide.
Do you want the flexibility to order without subscribing?
Blue Apron is unique in that it doesn’t require you to subscribe before ordering. Instead, you can purchase food à la carte, as long as your order is at least $10. That kind of flexibility can be appealing to older adults, especially those who are often away from home or want to take an occasional night off from cooking. Most meal delivery services let you pause a subscription for weeks at a time, but we haven’t tested any others that let you order à la carte without committing to recurring deliveries.
“If the food delivery service you choose is compatible with your schedule and other daily routines, you are more likely to continue using it over a longer period of time,” says Kezia Joy, a registered dietitian nutritionist and medical advisor at Welzo, a London-based health care platform.
Do you want to vary how you prepare your meals?
Unlike some meal delivery services, Blue Apron offers more than just standard meal kits — you can also order premade meals, “assemble-and-bake” kits and family-style meals that let you mix and match mains and sides. Some services we tested, like Factor, offer only prepared meals and others, like EveryPlate, offer only meal kits. With Blue Apron, you can vary the size and types of meals you order, which can be helpful if you’re hosting guests or have a particularly busy week or more time on your hands to cook.
Do you have any food allergies?
If you have a food allergy, you’ll want to determine whether Blue Apron’s selections can accommodate it. You may find that there aren’t enough choices to sustain a recurring subscription.
The company offers a range of meals and lets you filter by protein preference, calories and prep time, but not by allergens. You’d need to manually check the nutrition labels of each dish to avoid certain ingredients. Blue Apron’s FAQ page also notes that "all Blue Apron ingredients are packaged in a facility that also processes milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, sesame, wheat, and soy,” and the company does not recommend ordering if you have a severe food allergy. If food-allergy control is a priority, a service that specializes in allergen-free meal plans may be a better fit. Hungryroot is a service that could be more suitable for people with food intolerances and dietary restrictions, thanks to its extensive customization options.
FAQs
How long do Blue Apron meals last after you receive them?
The company recommends making meal kits, family-style or assemble-and-bake recipes within seven days of delivery and consuming prepared meals within five days of delivery or freezing them to eat later. To keep your food fresh, be sure to refrigerate it as soon as possible after receiving it.
Does Blue Apron have a trial period?
Blue Apron offers a 30-day trial period with its Blue Apron+ membership only, an add-on that includes free shipping on every order, access to cooking shows and other select perks and discounts. The Blue Apron+ membership costs $9.99 per month and can be canceled at any time in your account settings. The company does not offer a trial period for its Subscribe & Save program, as it is free to join and has no enrollment fee.
Does Blue Apron offer low-sodium meals?
Blue Apron uses a "reduced sodium" tag to flag certain dishes, and every meal lists its sodium content per serving — but the service doesn't offer a dedicated low-sodium filter. You'll need to check each meal's nutrition facts individually before selecting. Meal kits give you more control than prepared meals, since you can adjust the ingredients to reduce the amount of salt you add as you cook.
Questions or feedback? Email us at AARPSmartPicks@aarp.org.
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