I've Been a Culinary Dietitian for 12 Years—Here Are My Favorite Meal Planning Tips and Tools

It’s easy to see why Paprika is one of the most downloaded and highest-rated meal planning apps available — this recipe management system truly does it all. You can import recipes from nearly anywhere, or upload your own and scale, sort, and save them as you like. Building meal plans is simple, grocery lists are generated automatically, and ingredients are even sorted by aisle. Plus, you can even keep track of what you have on hand in your “pantry” and schedule meals for certain days of the week. Paprika will also import nutrition information; while it won’t generate it for you, you can group recipes into lists, so if you want to keep track of everything high in protein, for example, you can.

While the interface could be sleeker and it can be somewhat more expensive for desktop versions, it’s an incredibly functional system for those who don’t need a lot of hand-holding on the recipe and meal planning front, but need the systems to put their recipes into a more usable and organized format.

Plan to Eat really makes the planning part of the meal-planning process the center of the experience, with an easy-to-use calendar feature that lets you view daily, weekly, and monthly meal plans and move, shift, and replace recipes quickly and easily. You’ll still be able to save recipes you love from social media or your favorite websites, or you can input your own and generate an automatic shopping list. But what really sets Plan to Eat apart from other apps is its robust calendar, which lets you organize your saved recipes by day and mealtime. Plan to Eat also has a free 14-day trial and is available for desktop and mobile devices, and costs just $6 per month or $49 for a year’s subscription.

If you’re not as interested in cooking recipes that you’ve seen on blogs, Pinterest, or social media and really want to put your meal planning on autopilot, Mealime might be the choice for you. Mealime lets you choose from meal plans including Classic, Low Carb, Keto, Flexitarian, Paleo, Vegetarian, Pescetarian, and Vegan, and you can also add in dietary restrictions like shellfish-free, gluten-free, and dairy-free. Based on your preferences, the app builds a meal plan that you can customize before generating a grocery list. Recipes generally take about 30 minutes to prepare. While Mealime doesn’t offer as much day-to-day calendar planning as some other apps, it takes the guesswork out of deciding what to make for dinner — which, for many people, is the biggest hurdle.

If you’re not into cooking every day and prefer to prepare meals ahead of time, a meal planning app can still be helpful for putting together your recipes and shopping list. MealPrepPro is a perfect tool for this: simply build your profile around your nutrition needs and when you want to prep, choose your meals, and use the automated grocery list to ensure you have all the ingredients you need. We do wish this app allowed you to track other nutrients besides carbs, fat, and protein (like sodium). That said, it lets you adjust recipes based on portion size, and new recipes are uploaded monthly, making this app a great way to cut down on the time it takes to plan and shop for your meals.

The Clever Fox Meal Planner Notebook is small enough to keep in a purse, but large enough to really get into the nitty-gritty of your meal planning. With sections for breakfast, lunch, and dinner for every day of the week as well as a place to list weekly priorities, track healthy habits, and build a shopping list, everything you need for the week is right at your fingertips. There’s also space for health and fitness planning, and some fun stickers to help with motivation and reminders. Choose from an assortment of fun colors, and the built-in pen holder and ribbon bookmarks make it easy to flip to the current week and jot down notes whenever inspiration strikes.

Custom planners have quite a following, and it’s easy to see why, especially with this option from Plum Paper. These meal planning notebooks let you personalize everything from the cover design and text to the interior color scheme, binding, and optional add-on pages. Every planner includes 26 weekly meal planning spreads with shopping lists, grocery and farmers market pages, takeout and restaurant trackers, and recipe pages. You can also add up to 90 extra pages, including additional meal planning layouts, habit trackers, work pages, stickers, coloring pages, or storage pockets.

It doesn’t get much simpler than this magnetic “What to Eat” meal planning pad. The layout is simple but effective, with separate sections for dinner and “not dinner” (breakfast and lunch), plus the days of the week listed along the left side. The dinner column even includes “dine in,” “dine out,” and “takeout” options for each day, which feels refreshingly realistic. There’s also a handy “grab bag” section for a grocery list, planning desserts, or jotting down reminders. Each pad includes 60 tear-off sheets — enough to last several months — and the built-in magnet lets you stick it right on your fridge, keeping your meal plan front and center while you use up what you already have.

Keeping an entire household’s schedule organized is practically a full-time job, especially when you’re also trying to coordinate meals and grocery shopping. This digital calendar is a smart system for housing everything you need from appointments to practice schedules, chore charts, and yes, even meal plans. Sync your calendars, create profiles for household members and assign them to events, create routines, and custom lists, all of which are immediately visible on the Skylight’s 15-inch illuminated touch screen. Some of these features do require a subscription to Calendar Plus, but we think it’s well worth it to be able to manage the calendar with its sidekick app, import recipes via web browser to your meal plan, and even get some suggestions if you’re out of ideas. The calendar itself can be wall-mounted in a family-friendly zone so everyone can view it, or you can use the kickstand to place it on a counter for easy access.

Marley Spoon’s meal delivery service is a lot like its competitors, offering a combination of meal kits for home-cooked meals alongside prepared meals that are ready-to-reheat and even a bit of coverage for breakfast and snacks. However, the service leans a little gourmet in its offerings, and it’s best suited to those who want comfort food but aren’t afraid to explore new flavor profiles. According to health writer Lindsay Modglin, who tested the service, “Marley Spoon may appeal to busy individuals or families who value convenience or who like experimenting with new and diverse cuisines,” though she didn’t find it to be the most budget-conscious.

You’ll find meal kits for items like Beef Omurice with Katsu Sauce & Furikake under the “recipes” tab of the menu, and prepared dishes like Smoked Chipotle Pork with Salsa Verde, Roasted Corn & Quinoa-Stuffed Peppers under prepared meals. The “market” section of the menu includes kid-friendly shortcut meals, baking kits for cookies and cupcakes, snack plates, soups, sides, prepared items, and breakfast items. We think it makes a ton of sense for couples or smaller families who like the idea of meal planning and using their kitchen skills.

If getting a meal delivery service every week isn’t appealing (and remembering to pause or skip weeks is too much), Blue Apron is one of the few meal delivery services that have shifted to a “no subscription required” model. Meal kits still have the same elevated menus with a get-ready-to-roll-up-your-sleeves level of effort, but there are also categories like 15-minute meals and assemble-and-bake options (many of which even include the baking tray for easy cleanup). The service also has fully prepared, single-serving entrées, desserts, and some brekfast-y bites as well as extra proteins to add on and cook at your leisure. When I tested Blue Apron, I found it to be one of the best-tasting meal kits I’ve tried, and I enjoyed the varied levels of cooking required across meals. While the service wouldn’t suffice as your only source of food, I can see couples or smaller families with a taste for quality and variety enjoying the service as a really helpful component of weekly meal planning.

For meal planners who prefer to choose recipes on their own but want some support in the healthy grocery shopping category, Thrive Market is a great fit. The selection from Thrive Market is huge, featuring a mix of recognizable name brands and in-house products specific to Thrive. One of the main benefits of this service is the range of specialty products it offers for dietary restrictions and considerations like sustainability. Choose from shelf-stable products like pantry items, beverages, snacks, bars and treats, health and personal care, or household items, as well as a pretty robust assortment of frozen items that range from meat to packaged foods, desserts, and more.

The service does require a subscription, and while our tester, health writer Brittany Vargas, didn’t necessarily feel she’d always be able to fill out the minimum order size to unlock free shipping, she says, “You’d certainly be hard-pressed to find this selection of pantry goods, organic meat, and wild-caught seafood alongside nontoxic toiletry and home items anywhere else.” If you already have meal planning down but want an easier way to shop for groceries, consider Thrive Market.

If you want to prioritize flexibility and quick-prep meals, Hungryroot does it best with its combination grocery and meal kit plan service. Hungryoot’s service leverages name-brand groceries alongside its own house-made products, such as sauces and dressings, to make meal kits that usually take less than 20 minutes to put together. While the meals can be a little on the simplistic side, there’s a lot to choose from with more than a thousand meal options, and we appreciate the flexibility to order whatever combination of groceries and kits appeals to you. Plus, if you have a week when you don’t need dinners, you can use your credits for other meals or to restock your pantry.

After testing it herself, dietitian and health writer Ashley Brafman, MPH, RD, says, “Hungryroot is a great option for anyone looking for a hybrid of an online grocery service, meal kits, and fast, easy meals.” She added that, if you’re “following a specific diet either to lose weight or manage a health condition, Hungryroot could also be a fit for you.”

Meal planning and meal delivery services are not exclusive to meat-eaters, and with so many good veggie options, we had to highlight a favorite for plant-based and plant-forward folks. Purple Carrot has held its own as one of the very few entirely plant-based meal delivery services, no doubt thanks to its fabulous-sounding food, and according to dietitian and health writer Caitlin Beale, MS, RDN, who tested the service, “Purple Carrot is an excellent option for people who want to learn how to cook plant-based meals or want access to ready-to-eat, high-fiber vegan meals. Making the leap to a plant-based diet can have a learning curve, so having the support and guidance of a meal delivery service like Purple Carrot can help.” The service offers meal kits, prepared meals, quick-prep options, sides, and a curated selection of grocery items, making it easy to stock your kitchen without sacrificing a plant-based diet.