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An important note
As of June 2022, Daily Harvest discontinued the sale of its French Lentil + Leek Crumbles after multiple customers reported falling ill after consuming the crumbles. If you purchased Daily Harvest French Lentil + Leek Crumbles please throw away the item and do not eat it.
Splendid Spoon and Daily Harvest are plant-based subscription services that deliver meals and snacks right to your door.
While they may seem similar at first glance, the services differ in the types of products they offer and the amount of prep work they require.
This article takes a closer look at Daily Harvest and Splendid Spoon to help you decided which is a better fit for you.
Daily HarvestSplendid SpoonBasics• frozen meal delivery service• all items are plant-based, vegan, and gluten-free
• allows you to order 9, 12, or 24 items weekly or 24 items per month
• subscription-based meal delivery service
• all items are plant-based, vegan, and gluten-free
• offers 5 plans varying by the type and number of itemsCost• 9 items weekly: $53.91–$80.91
• 14 items weekly: $73.86–$115.86 (with a $10 discount)
• 24 items weekly or monthly: $123.76–$195.76 (with a $20 discount)
• Shipping: free • Breakfast Plan: $65 per week
• Lunch Plan: $65 per week
• Breakfast + Lunch Plan: $95 per week
• Breakfast, Lunch + Reset Plan: $135 per week
• Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner + Reset Plan: $185 per week
• Shipping: freeMenu options• provides over 80 options, including smoothies, grain bowls, flatbreads, and snack bites
• offers some keto, paleo, and low sugar items • offers 50 menu items, including soups, smoothies, and grain bowls.
• includes some Whole30-compliant meals
• lists WW points for each itemBenefits• wide selection of meals and snacks
• products are frozen for optimal freshness
• 95% of ingredients used are organic • items can be enjoyed cold or require minimal reheating
• all meals are made with non-GMO ingredients
• allows for one-time orders Downsides• many items require prep time, including flatbreads and smoothies
• only allows subscription orders• fewer menu items
• slightly more expensive
Get started with either meal kit company here
- Daily Harvest
- Splendid Spoon
Basics
Here’s a closer look at how each service works.
Splendid Spoon
Splendid Spoon provides preportioned meals and snacks, all of which are plant-based, vegan, and gluten-free.
With Splendid Spoon, customers choose from one of five plans, including:
- Breakfast Plan: 5 smoothies
- Lunch Plan: 5 soups or grain bowls
- Breakfast + Lunch Plan: 5 smoothies and 5 soups or grain bowls
- Breakfast, Lunch & Reset Plan: 5 smoothies, 5 soups or grain bowls, and 5 light soups, which are part of their 1-day reset program
- Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner + Reset Plan: 5 smoothies, 5 soups or grain bowls, 5 noodle bowls, and 5 light soups, which are part of their 1-day reset program
Meals are delivered weekly, and you can either subscribe to one of these plans or choose an on-demand box, which is a one-time order.
Once you choose your plan or on-demand box, you can select from over 50 menu options.
Daily Harvest
Daily Harvest also works on a subscription model but provides a wider selection of products, including ice creams, flatbreads, and plant-based milks.
As with Splendid Spoon, all Daily Harvest products are plant-based, vegan, and gluten-free.
The service offers 3 plans, including a weekly delivery of 9, 12, or 24 items, or a monthly delivery of 24 items.
Daily Harvest does not allow orders outside of its subscription service. However, you can skip shipments, pause the service, or cancel the subscription anytime.
Cost and shipping
Splendid Spoon offers five weekly plans varying in price and the amount of food, although all include free shipping to the contiguous United States.
Meals cost approximately $9–$13 each, with weekly plan pricing as follows:
- Breakfast Plan: $65 per week
- Lunch Plan: $65 per week
- Breakfast + Lunch Plan: $95 per week
- Breakfast, Lunch + Reset Plan: $135 per week
- Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner + Reset Plan: $185 per week
One-time on-demand boxes range in price from $59–$165.
According to Daily Harvest, the company delivers to 95% of the continental United States with free shipping.
Items cost $5.99–$8.99 each, with discounts available for larger orders. Pricing for Daily Harvest is as follows:
- 9 items weekly: $53.91–$80.91
- 14 items weekly: $73.86–$115.86 (with a $10 discount)
- 24 items weekly or monthly: $123.76–$195.76 (with a $20 discount)
Menu options
Both meal delivery kits offer a wide variety of items that are plant-based, vegan, and gluten-free. Here’s what you can expect to find on the menu for each service.
Splendid Spoon
Splendid Spoon offers 50 menu items, including:
- Smoothies. Splendid Spoon offers 15 flavors of ready-to-drink smoothies, including Power Greens and Dragon Fruit Berry.
- Bowls. There are 30 varieties of soups and grain bowls, including Garden Minestrone and the Green Goddess Quinoa Bowl.
- Noodles. There are 8 noodle bowls, including Creamy Butternut Squash Noodles and Kale Pesto Noodles.
- Light Soups. There are 5 soups you can choose from, including Cauliflower Potato Chowder and Parsnip Apple Purée.
- Wellness Shots. Splendid Spoon also offers 3 types of wellness shots, including the Digestion Shot (apple cider vinegar and turmeric) and Detox Shot (aloe and moringa).
Daily Harvest
With Daily Harvest, you can select from over 80 chef-crafted meals and snacks, including:
- Smoothies. The company offers 25 smoothie flavors, including Strawberry + Peach and Mint + Cacao.
- Mylk. Daily Harvest also offers almond-milk-based “wedges” that can be mixed into water to make almond milk. Flavors include Almond and Almond + Vanilla.
- Harvest Bowls. There are over 15 varieties to choose from, including Quinoa + Chipotle and Sweet Potato + Wild Rice Hash.
- Flatbreads. The service offers 7 gluten-free flatbreads, including Pear + Arugula and Tomato + Basil.
- Soups. The menu includes 10 soups, including Mushroom + Miso and Carrot + Coconut Curry.
- Forager Bowls. Forager bowls are larger and more filling than the Harvest Bowls. They are available in 3 flavors, including Raspberry + Mulberry Seeded, Leek + Fonio Grits, and Cremini + Miso Oat.
- Oat Bowls. There are 6 oat bowls to choose from, including Cinnamon + Banana and Kabocha + Chai.
- Chia Bowls. Chia bowls are available in 3 flavors, including Chocolate + Almond, Vanilla Bean + Apple, and Blackberry + Majik.
- Scoops. Scoops are Daily Harvest’s plant-based, dairy-free ice cream. They’re available in 5 flavors, including Vanilla + Salted Swirled Black Sesame and Chocolate + Ooey Gooey Midnight Fudge.
- Bites. Bites are bite-sized snacks that are perfect for eating on the go. There are 4 flavors, including Hazelnut + Chocolate, Coconut + Lemon, and Espresso Bean + Tahini.
- Lattes. Daily Harvest also provides latte pods. To prepare them, you heat the contents of the pod with 1 1/4 cup of plant-based milk. There are 4 flavors, including Coffee + Almond, Ginger + Turmeric, and Matcha + Lemongrass.
Diet friendliness
Both Splendid Spoon and Daily Harvest are plant-based, vegan-friendly, and gluten-free. They also offer products that are suitable for other dietary needs.
When selecting your meals, both companies allow you to filter by diet type, such as keto, low carb, and high protein. However, options for more restricted diets may be limited.
Additionally, many of Splendid Spoon’s items include WW (formerly Weight Watchers) points, and the company’s Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section provides a list of Whole30-compliant products.
Finally, neither company is a good fit if you have severe food allergies, as all of the items are prepared in facilities where cross contamination could occur.
Ingredients, taste, and freshness
Both companies prioritize the use of organic ingredients whenever possible, especially those on the “Dirty Dozen” list, which is a list of fruits and vegetables that are most likely to contain higher levels of pesticide residue.
Furthermore, all Splendid Spoon meals are made without the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
To ensure optimal freshness and quality, all of Daily Harvest’s items arrive frozen.
Similarly, Splendid Spoon’s soups, noodles, and grain bowls are flash-frozen before shipping. Meanwhile, the smoothies and wellness shots are refrigerated.
Regardless of how they arrive, all of the meals and snacks from both companies can be frozen for longer storage.
Both companies regularly receive positive reviews for quality, with customers generally viewing the products as fresh and wholesome due to the quality of the ingredients used.
Effectiveness for weight loss
Although neither service is explicitly designed to promote weight loss, you may lose weight if you include Splendid Spoon or Daily Harvest as part of a balanced, reduced calorie diet.
In particular, both services make calorie counting easy, as they include nutrition information for all of their preportioned products.
What’s more, given that the meals are made with whole, minimally processed ingredients, they may be more supportive of weight loss than highly processed foods, which tend to be higher in calories and may promote weight gain (1).
Just keep in mind that each of Splendid Spoon’s items provides two snack-sized servings.
Therefore, if you consume the whole container, you’ll need to double the calories and other nutrients on the label to accurately track your intake.
Additional benefits
If you dislike cooking or have a busy lifestyle, using Splendid Spoon or Daily Harvest can make it significantly easier to stick to your dietary needs or preferences.
Given that convenient food options are especially limited for those following a vegan, gluten-free diet, these services will save you time by eliminating the need to cook and shop for every meal.
Additionally, as both meal deliveries incorporate a wide variety of ingredients, they can add some diversity to your meals.
Potential downsides
The major downside of these services is the price, as you’ll be paying at least $53–$65 per week.
Still, you may find that the convenience and quality of the food outweigh the cost.
A good way to try out these services without investing too much money is by trying an on-demand box from Splendid Spoon or 1 week of Daily Harvest.
Recommendation
Both Daily Harvest and Splendid Spoon are good options if you’re looking to eat more plant-based meals and can afford the service.
While Daily Harvest offers a broader selection of products, many of the items require additional prep work, including the smoothies, soups, Mylk products, chia bowls, and lattes.
On the other hand, Splendid Spoon offers a smaller selection of foods, but they’re all ready to eat or drink cold or after a brief reheating.
In terms of cost, Daily Harvest is less expensive, with prices ranging from $5.99–$8.99 per item, compared with $9–$13 per Splendid Spoon meal.
The bottom line
Daily Harvest and Splendid Spoon are plant-based meal delivery services that provide high quality meals and snacks, including smoothies, grain bowls, and soups.
While Splendid Spoon’s meals require less prep work, Daily Harvest offers a larger selection of foods and is less expensive.
Regardless of which service you choose, you can be assured that you’ll be eating tasty meals made with high quality ingredients.