Balance by Marley Spoon Review 2025: Does It Work?

Overview

Balance by Marley Spoon offers a variety of meal plans and over 150 meal options, making it an excellent choice for those with specific dietary needs. While the lack of ingredient swapping might feel limiting for some, the filtering system does a good job of helping you find meals that fit your preferences. I’d love to see the ability to filter by specific cuisines, though – it would make meal selection even easier.

The meals do feel a bit pricey, but they’re designed by registered dietitians. To me, the quality and nutritional value are well worth the price for those who prioritize healthy eating. The minimum order requirement of 8 meals can feel like a lot if you're just trying a few options, but it does ensure you have a well-rounded experience with the service.

Customer service is efficient but it’s another area where there's room for growth. The only support option is a contact form, which can be a bit inconvenient. More support options like live chat or phone could certainly make things smoother. That said, I did receive a response to my message in under 2 hours, which was impressive.

Overall, while Balance by Marley Spoon could improve in a few areas, it remains a great choice for anyone looking for nutritious, well-balanced prepared meals designed by professionals.

Balance by Marley Spoon’s Menu: A Focus On Healthy Eating

Balance by Marley Spoon is a meal delivery service focused on health and healthy diets. To that end, it offers a lot of variety by providing the following meal plans: Gluten Free, Vegan, Mediterranean, Heart Healthy, Low Sodium, Dairy Free, and Low Carb. Altogether, that’s a pretty impressive array.

The entire Balance by Marley Spoon menu contains 150 meals, lots of snacks, and a couple of whey protein powder options. The items rotate in and out according to the season. Though each meal plan has its own menu, you can mix and match between diets when placing an order as well.

Meal Options: Choose From 150+ Menu Items 

The menu offers plenty of variety in terms of nutrition. It includes an excellent range of proteins and vegetables, including chicken, beef, fish, pork, cauliflower, eggplant, potatoes, and more.

The number of cuisines on offer is very impressive and includes African, Mexican, Italian, French, Canadian, Southwestern American, classic American, and more. A slight downside is that you can’t filter by cuisine. For example, you have to browse the full menu if you're specifically looking for Mexican dishes.

All the meals come prepared and can be cooked in the oven or in the microwave. In the oven, the meals generally take 30 minutes or less to heat. In the microwave, they can be heated up in 6 minutes or less.

While there aren’t any specific kid-friendly meals, it’s really easy to find ones your little ones will love. For instance, options like the Beef Shepherd’s Pie, Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf with Yuca Fries, or Chicken Bacon Mac & Cheese are all great options for kids.

Balance by Marley Spoon stacks up pretty well when compared to other services. With 150 options, that’s enough choices to construct a menu of lunch and dinner selections for an entire week without repetition. And you can even throw in a bunch of breakfast choices!

Of course, you don’t want to forget about healthy snacks (to keep cravings away). The Balance by Marley Spoon menu includes a variety of snacks, such as Cookies & Bars, Cheesecakes, dried meat, and Nuts & Fruit – whatever suits your craving! And I love the inclusion of a couple of whey protein powder options as well (chocolate or vanilla).

There's No Customization, but There Are Plenty of Dietary Filters

Balance by Marley Spoon doesn’t allow you to customize the meals or swap any ingredients. The meal listed on the menu is what you get. The service states that this is due to a need to preserve the nutrition profile of its meals. If you swapped an ingredient in a Heart Healthy meal, the end result may NOT be a Heart Healthy meal. This would defeat the purpose of providing food tailored for very specific purposes.

That being said, you still get a great filtering system. You can filter for meal types (breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snacks), main ingredients (such as Beef, Chicken, Turkey, Pork, Seafood, Pasta, Plant-Based, and Soups & Stews), or dietary needs (Gluten Free, Dairy Free, as well as the 7 other options I listed above).

And the best thing about the filtering system is that all the filters are stackable. That means you can filter for both chicken and beef, or both Heart Healthy and Gluten-Free, at the same time. In fact, you can even filter by all 4 of those criteria – as well as others – if you need to.

Balance by Marley Spoon’s kitchens handles all major allergens in its meal preparations. As a result, there’s always a small chance of cross-contamination. So, if you have severe allergy issues, you should contact one of the Balance by Marley Spoon concierges or, perhaps, look elsewhere (Blue Apron and Home Chef allow for plenty of customization).

Balance by Marley Spoon’s Menu at a Glance

Unboxing: Well-Organized & Recyclable Packaging

The meals arrive in microwaveable containers stacked together in the cooler. It’s recommended that you unpack your order immediately upon arrival and then place the meals in the freezer. Every order includes dry ice and insulation to help keep your items at the right temperature.

Balance by Marley Spoon meals have an impressive shelf life in the freezer: up to 1 year after the production date. Of course, once you try them, you’ll probably finish them off in far less time.

Balance by Marley Spoon has developed a recycling plan for its packaging. The coolers in which the meals are shipped can be reused in a number of ways – from urban planters to beach coolers and more. Coolers can also be donated to the Red Cross or a local food bank. More details are available on the website.

It’s worth mentioning that the boxes are made from 100% post-consumer recycled paper. They’re also printed with vegetable-based ink. And the coolers are made with 60% post-consumer recycled foam products. As you can see, Balance by Marley Spoon is dedicated to environmentally friendly, sustainable business practices.

Cooking With Balance by Marley Spoon: Simply Heat & Eat 

All meals arrive frozen except the snacks. Once you’re ready to eat, simply heat the main meals directly from frozen or thaw them in the fridge for 24–48 hours first. Every meal can be heated in 6 minutes or less in a microwave. If you prefer to use an oven, it should take no more than 30 minutes. The snacks are either shelf-stable or can be eaten straight from the fridge.

Generally speaking, clean-up is quick and easy. You can throw out the microwave-safe container or wash the 1 or 2 pots or pans you might have transferred the meal into if you used an oven.

Shortlist of My Favorite Meals

I found it challenging to narrow down a menu of 150 meals to my favorite choices, but here are 3 meals that make my mouth water.

Honey Mustard Chicken with Herb-Roasted Potatoes

I love that the Honey Mustard Chicken with Herb-Roasted Potatoes offers such a delicious balance of flavors. The tender chicken with the honey mustard rub pairs perfectly with the herb-roasted parmesan potatoes, creating a satisfying dish. The haricot verts with red bell peppers add a fresh, crunchy element that complements the richness of the chicken and potatoes. It’s a well-rounded meal that’s both flavorful and healthy.

Southwest Bison Meatloaf with Smoky Tomato Glaze

This is one of my favorites. The Southwest Bison Meatloaf with Smoky Tomato Glaze is a standout dish from Balance by Marley Spoon, blending lean bison with bold Southwest flavors. The addition of cowboy kidney beans and a vibrant mango slaw gives it a delicious twist, making every bite an explosion of textures and tastes. The smoky tomato glaze adds an irresistible touch, really elevating the richness of the bison meatloaf.

Vegetarian Chili

I love how this Vegetarian Chili from Balance by Marley Spoon combines hearty black and pinto beans in a flavorful tomato base, offering a delicious plant-based option. It's part of their Mediterranean menu, bringing fresh, vibrant flavors into a comfort food classic. The addition of vegan cheddar cheese and sour cream adds a creamy touch, making it a satisfying meal. With its balanced nutritional profile, it's an easy, healthy choice for anyone looking to eat plant-based without compromising on flavor.

Prices: Reasonably Priced, but There Are High Shipping Fees

One of the best things about Balance by Marley Spoon is the flexibility in meal orders. There’s a minimum order requirement of 8 meals, and you can order up to 20 meals at a time. If you want to add snacks, there’s no minimum on those as long as you've met the meal order requirement. There are no maximums on snacks.

Meals start at around $8.79 for options like the Vegetarian Chili, with prices going up to $17 or more for more elaborate seafood and meat dishes. Snacks are priced between $2.50 and $3 each, each being single-serving. 

Shipping usually costs between $9.99 and $11.99 (nationwide), depending on order size. This is about on par with many other meal delivery services. The shipping charge will be clearly displayed in your shopping cart before you place your order.

You can get a refund for damaged items during transit – but the service doesn’t provide any other money-back guarantee beyond that.

Shipping & Delivery: Very Streamlined & Flexible

Balance by Marley Spoon delivers anywhere in the US except Alaska and Hawaii. Shipments are sent out from the company’s frozen distribution center from Monday through Wednesday.

The time taken to get the box to your door depends on how far away you live from the distribution center. Processing an order can take up to 2 days, and most processed orders will take 2 to 5 business days to travel via FedEx Ground.

You can cancel or change your order before FedEx picks it up. To do so, use the contact form on Balance by Marley Spoon’s website. Signing up for weekly or biweekly recurring deliveries at checkout is also really easy.

Once your order is shipped, you’ll receive the tracking information so you can monitor it during transit.

How Balance by Marley Spoon Works (Step by Step Guide)

Signing up for a Balance by Marley Spoon subscription is pretty basic and straightforward. Similarly, managing the subscription is fairly easy as well.

How to Sign Up (Just 6 Simple Steps)

Follow these steps to sign up for Balance by Marley Spoon:

1. Visit the Balance by Marley Spoon homepage and click View Menu.

   

2. Enter your postal code and click View Meals to check out the menu.

   

3. Begin adding items to your order, or alternatively, click the Filter button in the top right to filter down your options based on your dietary preferences. Add at least 8 meals from the Breakfast or Lunch & Dinner categories, then click Continue.

   

4. Add any snack add-ons, then click Continue once more.

   

5. Review your order, choose your delivery frequency (every week or every other week), click Check Out, then complete the checkout process.

   

Managing Your Subscription

Managing your subscription is just as easy. You can update your shipping or billing address from your account anytime. Just select the Add a New Address option and then add, edit, and/or delete as desired.

Likewise, you can perform other management tasks in your account, such as updating or changing your password, your email address, or any other personal details.

Customer Service: Prompt Responses, but Options Could Be Better

Balance by Marley Spoon only offers support via a contact form. There is no option for phone, email, or live chat support, which is disappointing to see, as many competitors offer most (if not all) of these services.

I did try out the contact form myself, and to be honest, I was pleasantly surprised. Someone got back to me in about 2 hours, which was certainly appreciated. The agent was friendly and answered my question sufficiently and efficiently.

There’s also a fairly complete FAQ section on the website that offers answers to most questions. I’d check there first before contacting the customer service team to see if your question isn’t already answered.

I like that the service offers refunds if your box or meals are damaged in transit, but it doesn’t provide refunds if you don’t like the meals. For this reason, I suggest double-checking each meal to make sure you’ll like it before ordering.

If you want to cancel your order with Balance by Marley Spoon, check the FAQ page. You need to contact the customer service team as soon as possible. As long as you do this before your order is shipped, you should be able to change or cancel it easily.

How Balance by Marley Spoon Compares to Other Meal Delivery Services

• Balance by Marley Spoon vs. Factor: Both services offer ready-made meals and have an extensive menu, but Factor’s meals arrive fresh, not frozen and fit a balanced diet. Plus, Factor’s extras include smoothies, juices, and shakes, as well as healthy desserts, breakfasts, and cooked protein.

• Balance by Marley Spoon vs. Green Chef: Green Chef is a meal kit delivery service with a good variety of diets and plenty of options for healthy meals. If you like to know exactly what goes into your meals and don’t mind some light to medium cooking, this may be the best option for you.

• Balance by Marley Spoon vs. BistroMD: BistroMD features a similar menu to Balance, but you must choose a meal plan and stick to it. It works extremely well if you want an easy-to-follow weight-loss menu designed by dietitians who take your dietary needs into consideration.

The Bottom Line: Is Balance by Marley Spoon Worth It?

Balance by Marley Spoon offers a wide variety of healthy prepared meals perfect for those with specific dietary needs. With over 150 meal options, it caters to gluten-free, vegan, low-carb, and other plans. The meals are quick to prepare, with most ready in about 6 minutes, making it ideal for busy people.

While the meal variety is impressive, the lack of customization and limited customer service options might not appeal to everyone. Balance by Marley Spoon only offers contact form support and no live chat or phone support. Additionally, refunds are only available for damaged meals, so be sure to choose wisely.

Overall, Balance by Marley Spoon is great for health-focused individuals looking for convenient, nutritious meals. Its extensive menu and ease of use make it a solid option, though the shipping fees and customer service limitations may be a downside for some.

FAQ

Is Balance by Marley Spoon a good meal delivery service?

Yes, Balance by Marley Spoon is an excellent meal delivery service. However, its plans focus on healthy meals and weight loss through eating healthily. To that end, it has 7 different diet plans, each tailored to a specific medical issue or dietary need, from diabetes to heart health to gluten intolerance.

Are Marley Spoon’s Balance meals healthy?

Marley Spoon’s Balance branch is focused primarily on healthy eating and healthy food. You can enjoy a variety of meals featuring different proteins and vegetables. There are also a number of vegetarian and pescatarian meals if you follow one of these diets.

How much does it cost to order from Balance by Marley Spoon?

Balance by Marley Spoon is a subscription-free service. This means you can order as little (1 item) or as much as you want. The price per meal starts at around $4.69 (even lower if the meal is on a special offer) and goes as high as $18.99. You also have to consider the shipping fee. Overall, Balance by Marley Spoon isn’t an overly pricey meal delivery service and can accommodate most budgets.