I’ve had my HelloFresh subscription for over five years now. A lot has changed in my life since then.

At the beginning, I was still a student, writing my bachelor’s thesis and moving into my first apartment at the same time. Shortly afterwards, the coronavirus crisis began and going shopping suddenly became a real problem (just think of the long queues in front of the supermarkets).

Hello Fresh came at just the right time and made things a lot easier. I could simply choose dishes, have the ingredients delivered to my home and cook with them for a whole week. But now I’m not as satisfied as I used to be, and now I view Hello Fresh’s offering rather critically. Let me explain why.

Reason 1: Rising prices, less food

My first problem with Hello Fresh is the rising costs. These don’t stop at the subscription, because the service has become significantly more expensive in recent years.

In 2020, I paid £34.99 plus shipping for three meals for two people (i.e. six portions). Now, however, the price has risen to £44.99, which is a good £10 more.

These price increases usually came at the turn of the year and were mainly justified by rising food costs. That’s fair, because I’m paying more at the supermarket too.

What is not fair, however, is the fact that I am also getting less food for my money — without this even being communicated to me. An example: a recipe that used to call for 250 grams of chicken or fish for two people now only calls for 200 grams. This is not balanced, because it means that carbohydrates dominate most dishes.

In other cases, ingredients are simply omitted altogether. Hello Fresh used to only expect me to have the absolute basics such as oil, salt, pepper, and maybe sugar at home. Other ingredients such as honey, butter, or vinegar were included if the recipe called for them.

Nowadays, this is rarely the case. As a rule, it is assumed that I will use my own ingredients. And Hello Fresh sometimes changes the recipes I used to enjoy cooking, but sometimes forgets to change the pictures on the recipe cards! So I can even see from the picture which ingredients are different from before.

All in all, this is textbook shrinkflation: the customer pays more but gets less and less in return. And I think that’s a shame. When I asked, customer support couldn’t tell me anything about it, because they usually only help if ingredients are missing or have been delivered incorrectly. Hello Fresh generally responds to criticism with rejection and relativization, as shown by the responses on Trustpilot, among other places.

Tip: If you are dissatisfied with the quality of an ingredient or if it was not delivered in sufficient quantity, you should complain about it in the app. That way, you will at least get some of your money back and won’t have to pay for the missing ingredients out of your own pocket.

Reason 2: Inconsistent menu quality

One thing you have to give Hello Fresh credit for is that over the years, the selection of dishes has increased significantly and now offers everything from meat, fish, vegetarian, and vegan options to quick meals and recipes for families with children.

The quality of these menus is not always consistent, however. I’ve had the feeling a few times that I’ve chosen a dish that looked really good, only to end up disappointed. Or to feel like I’ve just paid an awful lot of money for a portion of pasta with tomato sauce. I can cook that myself, without Hello Fresh.

In addition, there are many dishes that are too similar. If you like to eat chicken with rice in all possible variations, or tolerate a maximum of three different vegetables in your meal, this can be an advantage. However, sometimes that certain something is missing that makes me want to try Hello Fresh’s somewhat limited menu planning.

At least a few themed weeks throughout the year, such as Veganuary, festive Christmas dishes, or street food from around the world, add some variety. However, I have to pay extra for many of these dishes because they are marked as special “gourmet menus”. Then a portion suddenly costs up to £10 instead of £4.75.

So if I find Hello Fresh’s normal offering too monotonous in the long run, I inevitably have to pay extra to try other dishes. But even here, the price-performance ratio is not always right. I’d rather go shopping myself…

Reason 3: Few advantages for long-term users

As a long-standing customer, there is little to reward my loyalty to Hello Fresh. A few months ago, Hello Fresh introduced a bonus system that unlocks certain benefits once you have ordered a certain number of boxes.

However, these bonuses generally fall into three categories: discount on shipping costs, discount on the next box, or discount on gourmet menus. The latter remains valid for several boxes and can be worthwhile. Otherwise, there are hardly any incentives to order a box every week.

I used to get extras from Hello Fresh every now and then, such as a free dessert. New customers still get really good discounts to entice them to subscribe, but everyone else doesn’t. As is often the case, unfortunately.

Reason 4: More waste instead of less

One thing Hello Fresh likes to advertise is the environmental friendliness of its service. With a subscription, you not only save yourself the trip to the shops, which many people would do by car, but you also supposedly produce less waste. This is also due to unused ingredients that spoil.

However, the reality is somewhat different. For one thing, Hello Fresh generates an incredible amount of paper waste, as I have a relatively large cardboard box on my doorstep every week. Almost all of the ingredients are also individually packaged. From mushrooms and bread to tiny bags of precisely portioned spices or sauces.

Some items are also wrapped in plastic, which of course cannot always be avoided. In general, however, I had the feeling that I was producing more waste than less with Hello Fresh in the long run. Unfortunately, some ingredients sometimes end up in the bin because I cannot eat them due to allergies or because they do not keep for long (e.g. packaged salads, spinach).

That’s a real shame, so I usually try to give ingredients away before I have to throw them in the bin. But that doesn’t always work, which is why I increasingly prefer to cook with leftovers before ordering another box.

Reason 5: Change in life situation

Last but not least, I would like to emphasise that much of my dissatisfaction with Hello Fresh also depends on my changed life situation. I am no longer a student, I no longer cook just for myself, and fortunately, the peak of the coronavirus pandemic is behind us.

Compared to before, I also have more money at my disposal and other options for shopping. Even when things get stressful and I don’t have time to do my weekly shopping, I can use other services such as Knuspr to get groceries delivered to my home. And in some cases, I can cook with them for longer than with Hello Fresh.

Because there’s one thing you shouldn’t forget: Hello Fresh can be worthwhile if you want to cook exact portions. Hello Fresh likes to calculate the costs and emphasizes the money you supposedly save. But overall, you always end up paying more, if only for the convenience and the rather expensive home delivery.

When I buy a kilogram of potatoes at the supermarket, I have a whole kilo and can cook with it three times. With Hello Fresh, I only get 300 grams for the same price, which is only enough for one dish. Hello Fresh argues: “This ensures less food waste,” but I don’t throw away the remaining potatoes otherwise, do I?

The same applies to spices, sauces, etc.: I buy them once and then have enough to last a long time, instead of only being able to cook with them once. Hello Fresh creates an illusion of affordability that simply cannot exist.

Conclusion

Ultimately, everyone has to decide for themselves whether the Hello Fresh subscription is still worthwhile. Families with children may see things very differently from me and appreciate the fact that the service tells you what to cook and only delivers as much as you really need.

For me personally, however, the concept no longer makes much sense. Especially since I’ve noticed that I can save a lot of money by keeping an eye out for special offers in supermarkets and buying in bulk (especially for non-perishable foods).

How to cancel Hello Fresh

Incidentally, cancelling your Hello Fresh subscription is not that easy. Unfortunately, you won’t find a button labelled “Cancel subscription” in the app, and simply pausing the delivery of the meal boxes is not enough.

Instead, you have to contact customer service and initiate a cancellation, or follow the instructions on this page. Optionally, you can also specify a cancellation date and reason here. However, this is not mandatory. In any case, you must be the account holder in order to cancel.