Curious about how the cost of Blue Apron compared to the grocery store? Read on to find out what it broke down as for me!
Most of you probably already know by now that Jay and I have been using Blue Apron for well over two years now. I’ve shared our meals with you a number of times, and I’m also lucky enough to be able to have the opportunity to work with them via the blog, too.
For the longest time, I always viewed our Blue Apron deliveries as somewhat of a “treat,” if you will. Most of the time, I monitor my account, check to see which new recipes are coming up, and choose to get them delivered or skip based on our preferences. I guess I just always assumed that using the service was likely more expensive than doing a regular grocery trip, which is why I always viewed them that way.
One of the biggest appeals for me with Blue Apron is the fact that everything comes in the exact proportions. Wasting food is a huuuuuge pet peeve of mine, so knowing that there is none of that from unused ingredients is probably my #1 favorite thing about the service. Coming up as a close #2 would probably be the fact that it’s pretty much the only time we try something new. These days, we’re usually so rushed to try and get food on the table that we simply stick with our easy, go-to recipes. I mean, those are good…don’t get me wrong. But there have been SO many Blue Apron meals where Jay and I find ourselves saying, “wow, that was awesome…I never would have thought to try that!”
So the more I got to thinking about it, the more I started wondering…is Blue Apron really that much more expensive than shopping at the grocery store?
I decided to use our latest delivery to price compare everything at our local grocery store (Market 32/Price Chopper, in case you’re interested). Obviously, I totally understand that some stores may have different prices than others. And I also know that there may be certain ingredients that I would have had to buy special, which some of you may already keep on hand. So for arguments sake, this is really just a rough breakdown of approximately what I would have had to purchase to make these exact same meals at home.
Meal #1: Mozzarella & Arugula Paninis with Marinated Summer Squash & Olive Salad
For this meal, there were a few ingredients that would have been tough for me to purchase in the same amounts needed. My grocery store doesn’t sell ciabatta rolls in quantities less than 4, I couldn’t find fresh mozzarella smaller than 8oz, and I also (for the life of me) cannot find 15oz cans of crushed tomatoes (only 28oz…and the other half almost always goes to waste!).
Meal #2: Chicken & Sweet Pepper Tostadas with Roasted Summer Squash
For this meal, there were a few items again that would have been tough to buy in the exact quantities (i.e., mini peppers, Monterey Jack cheese, flour tortillas, sour cream).
Meal #3: Beef Knockwurst & Sauerkraut with Potato Salad & Whole Grain Mustard
If I were to have gone and tried to cook this meal on my own, I would have wound up needing to buy a few new ingredients (which, who knows when I’d use them again) or just larger quantities than I actually needed. This is also a meal that I probably never would have cooked on my own but a) it was actually quite easy, and b) it was really, really good!
The Comparison/Breakdown
Adding up everything that I would have needed to purchase, my rough total came to $60.01. The cost for a 2-person delivery is $59.94 + free shipping. So honestly, I was shocked to see just how similar in price everything was. Not to forget, there was no hassle with having to run to the grocery store, either! The only thing I didn’t really account for was the spices, since Blue Apron usually sends spice blends and I’m not sure on the exact measurements of each. I’m 100% certain that they use spices that I don’t keep on hand, too, so that’s something else to consider.
Overall? I’ll admit that I was nervous about doing this cost breakdown, because I was certain that it would show that Blue Apron was that much more expensive. So honestly, I am totally pleased with the breakdown and it has solidified the fact that I will continue using the service. Will we use it more? I’m not sure, since the meals do take a little more time than what we’re throwing together these days and dinner time can get crazy. But if I see some meals coming up that look good, then I definitely think I’ll be more inclined to have them delivered!
ALSO, as an exciting side note, Blue Apron has also made a couple of NEW IMPROVEMENTS which I am super excited about. For each week, they now offer 8 meal choices instead of 6, AND you can choose from any combination of meals (previously, you could only choose certain combos).
FYI: This is actually still in the beta phase, so you can check to see if you have it available to you by entering in your zip code (if signing up for the first time) or logging into your account!
This is major for us, since those two things are both things that we’ve sort of complained about in the past. Awesome changes, Blue Apron!
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This post is sponsored by Blue Apron! Thank you, as always, for your continued support of STSL! <3
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