Additionally, it includes a user interface that lets you check off items while you cook, eliminating the need to constantly check whether you’ve added salt. Using this app, you can meal plan based on specific diets and meal preferences. Plus, you can curate a list of recipes you love and organize your shopping list. Nearly 50% of users say this app slashed their time in the grocery store and almost 80% of people said they see less food waste. MealPrepPro’s features are tailored to meal prepping, making it a perfect tool for individuals or families looking to save time during the week. Whisk’s meal calendar feature allows users to plan their meals for the week, and it integrates seamlessly with shopping services like Instacart.

AI Meal Planner

However, the lack of recipes may make it challenging for some to follow. MealPrepPro provides original recipes with complete nutrition information that’s also tallied in the app to display daily nutrient intake. In addition to creating organized lists and sharing them with ease, AnyList also lets you add items with Siri. It works on Mac and PC, and you can snag it on the App Store or Google Play.

A quick look at the best meal planning apps

Meal planning functionality such as a calendar to organize recipes is also available when you upgrade. The app will keep your screen turned on while you’re working from a recipe. It can also detect timer directions within a recipe so that you can set cooking timers directly from the app. Nathaniel Lee is an avid cook, drawing on his decades of home cooking and fine dining experience. He is a contributing chef at Mashed, and his recipes and contributions have been featured in Tasting Table, Edible Arrangements, Insanely Good Recipes, and The Daily Meal.

  • After you’ve entered your preferences, you’re presented with a variety of recipe choices, complete with full-color photos, simple instructions, and an organized grocery list.
  • But with a crowded market, how do you find the best meal planning apps for your specific needs?
  • This subscription service delivers curated weekly meal plans directly to you, based on your chosen eating style.
  • It also allows for customization, such as planning for leftovers and adjusting family sizes, making it a flexible tool for structured eating.
  • The app is simple to use and offers visuals, which may be appealing to those looking for basic guidance on improving their overall diet pattern.
  • Meal planning and grocery shopping don’t have to be overwhelming tasks.

Reddit Reviews of Mealime

These 18 best meal planning apps help you find recipes, create meal plans, and order groceries from home. With so many options available, there’s sure to be an app for everyone. This makes meal planning and grocery shopping a breeze, and saves you time in the long run. The app even offers weekly meal plans with tailored recipes, so you don’t have to worry about coming up with ideas every week.

The Best Meal Plan Apps to Save Time & Money (Paid / Free Trials)

best meal planning app reddit

While Paprika’s recipe selection isn’t quite as expansive as some of the other options, it’s still formidable. While we don’t mind subscriptions, we also appreciate this app’s one-time-purchase model. If you’ve already got recipes you love, you can easily add them, and this meal planning app’s organizational tools should help you run your kitchen more efficiently. Meal planning is the best way to avoid the inevitable wilted bag of spinach and sour milk in the back of the fridge. But with the temptations of take-out and kitchen chaos, it can be hard to stick with the menu, even if you’ve tried all the tips for simplifying your weekly meal planning.

Allrecipes Dinner Spinner

Prepping and scheduling meals isn’t just for busy parents or those following a strict diet. It’s a structured way to stick to a budget and minimize cooking time throughout the week. Handwritten lists and spreadsheets can go a long way, but sometimes it can be a challenge to see the bigger picture in a little notebook. Whether you need to discover new recipes or just input them into a calendar for reference, there are tools that will come to your rescue, but often at a price. Each weekly plan includes a detailed batch-prep guide, showing users how to prepare ingredients in advance to make weekday cooking faster. This approach makes sticking to a WFPB diet more manageable for busy individuals and families.

Plan to Eat is a great choice for those looking for a meal planning app that is straightforward, user-friendly, and feature-rich. Mealime stands out as one of the best meal planning apps for busy individuals, couples, and small families who prioritize speed and simplicity. Its core strength lies in generating highly personalized weekly meal plans comprised of healthy, straightforward recipes designed to be cooked in about 30 minutes. The app’s intuitive interface makes it incredibly easy to select your dietary preferences, allergies, and dislikes, then instantly receive a plan. Meal planning apps save time and money while providing healthy, well-balanced meals.

Plan to Eat

best meal planning app reddit

Additionally, you can use the meal prepping feature to prep meals ahead of time by adjusting the number of portions in the recipe. Not only does BigOven offer half a million recipes for users to search through, it spotlights recipes in unique and helpful ways. There are smart design features, too, like the ability to split screen while you cook, so you can see the recipe up to three ingredients and steps side by side. The app has an uncluttered cooking experience that lets you focus on the recipe at hand.

Comparing apps

They note that it’s straightforward to create and manage meal plans with Plan to Eat, and that the app can be used on multiple devices. Mealime supports classic, flexitarian, low carb, pescatarian, vegetarian, paleo, keto, and vegan diets. Your diet plan can be updated at any time, and you can add allergies, dietary restrictions, and food preferences to further refine the recipes. Your journey to organized, stress-free meals begins with a clear understanding of your personal needs. Or are you a home cook who finds joy in meticulously curating a personal recipe collection from across the web? One of the biggest drawbacks of the app is the lack of a calendar-style meal plan and grocery shopping integration.

Best Meal Planning Apps for 2025: A Detailed Guide

One of its major downsides is the lack of automatic, customizable grocery lists to pair with your meal plan. Is really more of a calorie and macronutrient tracker than a meal planner, though the premium version includes meal planning features. However, you have to purchase the premium option to generate a meal plan beyond just a single day. You’re also unable to access grocery lists and grocery delivery on the free plan.

The app merges similar ingredients and provides the option to create categories within the grocery list to make shopping easier. PlateJoy, which is owned by the same parent company as Healthline, creates customized meal plans for you and unimeal app reviews your household according to your dietary preferences and weight loss goals. One drawback to this app is the user interface may not be as easy to navigate as some of the other meal planning apps on this list. With browser integrations and a somewhat complicated online user guide, getting started with this app may be a challenge for some. Eat This Much then generates a weekly meal schedule for you based on those numbers.

Best for tracking nutrients

You should consult with a medical professional before making significant changes to your diet. Our team of licensed nutritionists and dietitians strive to be objective, unbiased, honest and to present both sides of the argument. Create an account online or download the app for free from the App Store or Google Play. Available in the App Store for iPhone and iPad, MealPlan+ costs $3.99. MealPlan+ also wins points for extra portability since it’s compatible with Apple Watch.

Plan to Eat lets you organize all of your favorite recipes and create meal plans in one easy-to-use app. The biggest drawback to PlateJoy is that it’s somewhat costly compared to other meal planning apps. It’ll set you back $12.99 per month, $69 for six months, or $99 for a 12-month subscription. Mealime offers user-friendly, customizable meal plans that you can tailor to your diet while excluding specific foods you don’t like. This app is the best budget planning app because of the comprehensive features offered for free when using the app. My buddy Joel started an awesome meal planning service called Ultimate Meal Plans (free trial!).

You can also prepare meals in advance, saving you time and energy during the week. This app is an exceptional choice for anyone seeking a structured yet flexible approach to nutrition without the manual effort. You can explore the plans and features on the AI Meal Planner website. Once you’ve created an account, you can get started by browsing recipes in the Prepear database.

All in all, Mealime is a great choice for anyone looking for an easy and efficient way to plan their meals. This free tool is great for cutting down on food waste, as it generates recipes from all over the web based on what’s already in your pantry. You can also do all the basic meal planning steps, like making grocery lists and collections of your favorite recipes. The only feature SuperCook lacks is a calendar to map out meals, but between this app and Daily Meal Planner, you’ll have the best of both worlds. The best part is that the developers don’t bombard you with pop-ups tempting you with more features. AI Meal Planner solidifies its position as one of the best meal planning apps by leveraging sophisticated AI to deliver a truly bespoke nutrition strategy.