Best Senior Meal Delivery Services

Best Overall: Silver Cuisine

Why We Chose It: With over 150 meals designed specifically for seniors, Silver Cuisine makes eating healthy easy, convenient, and commitment-free.

Pros
Specifically designed for seniors
150+ meals and snacks to choose from
Specialty plans available
No subscription required
Discounts for AARP members

Cons
Few plant-based options
Cannot accommodate severe food allergies
No emphasis on organic ingredients
Expensive shipping

Silver Cuisine caters to adults 50 and older with its nutritionally balanced frozen meals that are ready to eat in about six minutes. With no contracts or minimum orders, you simply select your meals; the company takes care of the planning, shopping, cooking, and delivery.

The rotating menu of chef-crafted breakfasts, lunches, dinners, desserts, and snacks has over 150 options that range in price from $6.49 to $15.99. You can filter your search by the following specialty diets: Heart Healthy, Gluten-Free, Diabetic Friendly, Low Sodium, Low Carb, Menopause, Dairy-Free, Mediterranean, and Vegetarian. Expect to find dishes like artichoke spinach and roasted pepper frittata with sausages; grilled salmon with creamy pesto, ratatouille, and roasted cauliflower; and espresso fudge cookie bites.

Silver Cuisine delivers to all of the contiguous United States for a flat fee of $19.95, for all orders below $99, but orders above that amount ship for free. Shipping is done via FedEx and arrives in two to five days. Although no subscription is required, there is an option to set up recurring orders.

Best for Dietary Restrictions: Mom’s Meals

Why We Chose It: Mom’s Meals supports many nuanced stages of life by offering nine different health condition menus that support dietary needs that most other companies cannot.

Pros
Cater to many health conditions
Options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner
Meals stay fresh for 14 days
No subscription required
Covered by Medicare, Medicaid, and other plans

Cons
No options for vegan, keto, or paleo
No emphasis on organic ingredients

Mom’s Meals is dedicated to making health more accessible by delivering nutritious, high-quality, refrigerated meals to your doorstep. The meals are designed by professional chefs and registered dieticians and are tailored to support nutrition needed for health conditions that most other services cannot accommodate. Menus include Cancer Support, Diabetes-Friendly, General Wellness, Gluten Free, Heart Friendly, Lower Sodium, Pureed, Renal Friendly, and Vegetarian.

Mom’s Meals is covered under Medicare Advantage plans, Medicaid plans, Long-Term Services and Supports (LTSS) programs, and the Older Americans Act. For individuals or caregivers who want to purchase meals directly, the self-pay program offers packages of 10, 14, or 21 meals starting at $6.99 per meal.

You can choose the meals you want for each delivery from the seasonal menu, which features classic comfort foods as well as contemporary and regional favorites. Sample menu items include sausage egg and cheese burrito with spiced blueberries and apples for breakfast; broccoli cheese soup and apple crisp for lunch; and sweet and sour chicken with stir fry vegetables and rice for dinner.

Mom’s Meals delivers to the contiguous United States. Thanks to custom packaging, meals stay fresh in the refrigerator up to 14 days from the date of delivery. While a subscription is not required, you can opt to have meals auto-ship weekly at a 10 percent discount.

Most Affordable: Meals on Wheels

Why We Chose It: Meals on Wheels is dedicated to ensuring that seniors have access to adequate nutrition, regardless of their mobility or financial resources.

Pros
Made for seniors
Sliding fee scale
Performs friendly visits and safety checks

Cons
Less choice for meal selection
Waiting lists sometimes apply

Meals on Wheels is dedicated to helping seniors extend their independence and health as they age. Since its founding in Philadelphia in 1954, Meals on Wheels has grown into one of the largest and most effective social movements in America, helping nearly 2.4 million seniors annually in just about every community in the country.

They focus on caring for adults aged 60 and over whose limited mobility makes it hard to shop for groceries, prepare meals, or socialize, and it operates through a network of more than 5,000 independently-run local programs. While the services and operations vary from site to site, each works hard to provide a varied and delicious menu of balanced meals for the seniors. The offering can include two meals: a hot dinner, cold lunch, dessert, and a beverage. A typical meal meets the dietary guidelines set by the Older Americans Act Nutrition Program and meals are often tailored to meet medical needs and cultural preferences.

The fee is on a sliding scale, from no cost to full price, based on individual circumstances. The signup process begins with an application which may then lead to an assessment of the need for meals and other services. Contact your local Meals on Wheels program to find out how to begin the process in your community.

Best for Ready-to-Heat Meals: Top Chef Meals

Why We Chose It: Seniors receive 10 percent off when they order from Top Chef Meals and can fully customize their selection of made fresh-to-order meals.

Pros
10% discount for those 60 and older
Caters to special diets
Meals are made fresh and customizable
No subscription required

Cons
Cannot accommodate vegan or severe food allergies
Shipping is pricey

Top Chef Meals offers customizable prepared meals that are made fresh to order and then frozen for delivery. The dietician-developed meals accommodate several diets such as diabetic, low sodium renal, gluten-free, and more. People 60 and older receive a 10 percent discount on all orders and no subscription or commitment is required.

You choose from over 75 meals that range from $5.95 to $15.95, all ready to eat in under three minutes. For most entrees, you can customize your sides and vegetable selection. For example, for the Belgian waffle entree, you can choose between pork bacon, pork sausage, turkey bacon, and turkey sausage and options like roasted potatoes, oatmeal, and grits. For the seared salmon with brown butter entree, you choose side dishes like herbed lentil rice, rotini pasta, or sweet potatoes, and vegetables including ratatouille, broccoli, or green beans.

Top Chef Meals delivers via FedEx to the continental U.S. While it does not guarantee the day or time of delivery, orders placed before 9 a.m. ET generally ship the next day via FedEx.

Best Meal Kit Service: Sunbasket

Why We Chose It: With prepped ingredients and easy-to-follow steps, Sunbasket allows seniors to cook their own meals while sticking to their specific dietary needs.

Pros
Fresh, organic produce
Responsibly sourced meat and seafood
10 custom meal plans
Breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, and more
Exciting, internationally-inspired meals

Cons
Cannot accommodate severe food allergies
Doesn’t ship to all states

Sunbasket delivers healthy, delicious meals made with organic, farm-fresh ingredients. While there’s no specific plan for seniors, it caters to many tastes and lifestyles that seniors can enjoy. In addition to the Fresh & Ready Meals, which can be enjoyed in as little as three minutes, Sunbasket also offers meal kits. These meals have easy-to-follow directions and are ready in 15–40 minutes. Because you can mix and match between the prepared meals and the kits, this is a great option for seniors who wish to cook some of the time.

There are 10 meal plans to choose: Paleo, Carb-Conscious, Gluten-Free, Lean & Clean, Diabetes-Friendly, Chef’s Choice, Vegetarian, Pescatarian, Mediterranean, and Fresh & Ready. Plus, you can add on breakfast, lunch, snacks, and more. When signing up, you select your meal plan, preferences, and the number of meals you’d like to receive each week. While this helps Sunbasket recommend options, you can always order from the full menu. The menu includes more than 30 delicious meals like Marrakech lamb merguez patties with warm carrot salad; shrimp cioppino with fire-roasted tomatoes and baby spinach; and lemongrass turkey and rice noodle lettuce cups with coconut curry.

Sunbasket is a subscription that requires at least four meals per week, starting at $9.99 per meal. There’s no commitment and you can skip or cancel any time before noon PST the Wednesday before your delivery. Sunbasket ships to most ZIP codes in the United States, excluding Alaska, Hawaii, Montana, North Dakota, and parts of New Mexico.