Fresh Prep vs Factor: Which Canadian Meal Service Wins?

Key takeaways;

Fresh Prep’s reusable Zero Waste Kit diverted over 22,851 kg of single-use plastic waste in 2025, making it the more eco-conscious choice for sustainability-minded Canadians.
Factor meals require zero cooking, while Fresh Prep ready-to-eat meals offer comparable speed and a ready-to-cook range for households that enjoy cooking.
Both services offer flexible subscriptions with skip, pause, and cancel options, but Fresh Prep adds a local dimension by delivering prepared and distributed meals across BC, AB, ON, and QC.

It’s 5:30 PM on a Tuesday. You’re home, your brain is done, and the question lands: what’s for dinner?

If you’ve looked into meal delivery lately, you’ve likely come across both Fresh Prep and Factor. Both solve the same basic problem, but in genuinely different ways.

Fresh Prep is a Canadian-owned, B-Corp-certified meal kit service offering ready-to-cook and ready-to-eat meals made with locally sourced ingredients. Factor is a heat-and-eat meal service under the HelloFresh Group that ships nationwide in Canada, with zero cooking required.

This article compares them on price, ingredient quality, sustainability, convenience, and who each one actually makes sense for.

Fresh Prep vs Factor at a glance

Before getting into the details, here’s a side-by-side look at how the two services compare across the factors that matter most.

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Feature	Fresh Prep	Factor
Corporate identity	Canadian-owned, B-Corp certified	HelloFresh subsidiary, global brand
Primary meal type	Ready-to-cook + ready-to-eat	Ready-to-eat only
Delivery areas	BC, AB, ON, QC	ON, QC, MB, AB, Maritimes
Sourcing philosophy	Regional focus, local farmers and producers	National priority, some imported ingredients
Packaging	Patented reusable Zero Waste Kit	Single-use recyclable packaging
Menu variety	35+ meals weekly 150+ Fresh Prep Market items	40+ dietitian-designed items weekly
Prep time	2 min (ready-to-eat) to 30 min (ready-to-cook)	2 to 3 minutes (microwave or oven)
Trustpilot score	4.4	3.8

Both services have a ready-to-eat option, so speed alone doesn’t separate them. What does is who made it, where the ingredients come from and what gets thrown away when you’re done.

Fresh Prep is a Canadian-owned, B-Corp-certified company built around regional producers and a reusable kit system that has kept over 68,000 kg of plastic out of landfills since 2021.

Factor is a subsidiary of the global HelloFresh Group, built for speed and macronutrient precision, with a national supply chain and single-use recyclable packaging.

Price and plans

Cost is the most common barrier for anyone considering a meal delivery service. Both Fresh Prep and Factor are closer in price than many people expect.

Cost per serving

Fresh Prep pricing runs from approximately $10.50 to CA$15.00 per serving, depending on your plan size. Larger plans unlock lower per-serving rates. Delivery runs $4.99–$6.99, and the Fresh Prep Market has over 150 grocery items, from pantry staples to fresh produce and breakfasts, so you can skip a separate grocery trip entirely.

Factor meals typically range from $11.49 to CA$14.99 per serving, with a flat $10.99 shipping fee on top. Fresh Prep’s lower delivery fee keeps it ahead on total cost, especially for larger orders.

If you want to see what the per-meal cost looks like in practice, explore Fresh Prep’s current plans.

Subscription flexibility

Both services let you skip weeks, pause your subscription or cancel without penalty. Both companies require changes by 11:59 PM PST on Wednesdays for the following week.

Ingredients, taste and menu variety

This is where the two services part ways and where Fresh Prep’s Canadian roots are most evident.

Ingredient quality and freshness

Fresh Prep partners with producers in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, and Quebec, sourcing ingredients as close to home as possible. Meals arrive with pre-portioned vegetables and proteins that are never frozen, prepared locally and distributed fresh. That regional focus means ingredients are closer to peak freshness when they arrive at your door.

Factor meals are prepared by chefs and dietitians at a centralized facility in Mississauga and shipped nationally. Meals arrive fresh and chilled, and the approach delivers consistency, but the supply chain includes both Canadian and imported ingredients to maintain year-round macronutrient profiles for their keto and high-protein lines. A Jalapeño-Lime Cheddar Chicken tastes the same in Ottawa and Edmonton, but it won’t reflect what’s actually in season in your province.

Menu variety and dietary options

Fresh Prep offers 35+ chef-created meals weekly across ready-to-cook and ready-to-eat formats. Options include keto and vegetarian dishes, two vegan meals every week, and the ability to swap proteins. Most meals are high in protein and fibre. The Fresh Prep Market adds over 150 items weekly, including grocery staples, fresh produce, salads, and breakfasts. You can browse the current menu to see what’s available this week.

Fresh Prep’s ready-to-eat meals are prepared and delivered fresh, just like the ready-to-cook kits. Factor runs 40+ meals weekly with strong specialization in keto, high-protein, and “Protein Plus” options, along with a dedicated vegan and veggie line. Add-ons include cold-pressed juices, protein powders, and high-protein snacks. If you follow a strict macronutrient protocol, Factor’s dietitian-designed menu is built for that specific use case.

Sustainability and packaging

This is Fresh Prep’s clearest advantage. For eco-conscious Canadians, the difference between the two services is material, not just marketing.

Packaging

Fresh Prep’s Zero Waste Kit replaces the standard array of single-use plastics with a reusable, BPA-free container delivered in a sanitized cooler bag. You use it, put it back and Fresh Prep picks it up, sanitizes it and reuses it.

Ready-to-eat meals, the closest comparison to Factor, use a removable lining and a compostable container, with fully recyclable inserts for items that need to stay separated for freshness.

This system diverted 22,851 kg of single-use plastic waste in 2025 alone, and since the kit launched in 2021, it has kept more than 68,000 kg of plastic out of landfills.

Factor uses recyclable boxes and gel packs. While the packaging is technically recyclable, Canada’s actual plastic recycling rate sits at around 16%, according to the Canada Plastics Pact’s most recent reporting. The gap between “recyclable” and “actually recycled” is significant, one that Fresh Prep’s reuse and compostable formats both sidestep.

As well, Fresh Prep has found that the Zero Waste Kit costs less to provide than traditional packaging, which means the environmental win comes without a financial penalty.

Carbon footprint and sourcing

Fresh Prep operates a carbon-neutral delivery fleet, offsetting every kilometre driven. Its regional sourcing model means ingredients travel shorter distances and arrive fresher. Factor’s national logistics involve longer shipping distances and a more complex cold chain using traditional national carriers.

Fresh Prep is also B-Corp certified, a third-party verified commitment to meeting standards for environmental performance, worker welfare, and community impact. For Canadians who want their purchasing decisions to reflect their values, that certification matters. You can read more about Fresh Prep’s impact.

For more on what B-Corp certification means in practice, Fresh Prep’s B-Corp in action post covers their ongoing commitments and progress.

Convenience and prep experience

Factor’s speed advantage is real: two to three minutes in the microwave, zero cleanup, done. Fresh Prep’s ready-to-eat meals match that pace.

Prep time

Fresh Prep ready-to-eat meals heat up in about two to three minutes, with the same near-zero cleanup: just remove the liner and compost the bowl. The ready-to-cook range takes under 30 minutes, with pre-portioned ingredients that eliminate chopping and measuring, so you get the experience of cooking something fresh without the planning or prep work that normally comes with it.

Factor is designed for those who want dinner and want to move on: zero cooking, zero pans to wash. Fresh Prep serves those same households with its ready-to-eat line and adds the option to cook when someone wants that experience instead.

Delivery areas and the Fresh Prep Market

Factor currently delivers to ON, QC, MB, AB, and the Maritimes, with Western Canada expansion underway. Fresh Prep serves BC, AB, ON, and QC, including major cities like Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto, and Montreal.

One practical advantage Fresh Prep offers households in its delivery zones is the Fresh Prep Market, which lets you consolidate grocery shopping into your weekly delivery. Eggs, bread, local cheeses, snacks, and fresh produce arrive alongside your meals. Factor’s add-ons are more focused on functionality, offering protein shakes and snack items rather than full grocery staples.

Who should choose which?

Both services solve the dinner problem. They just solve it for different people.

Choose Fresh Prep if:

Supporting a Canadian-owned, B-Corp certified business matters to you
Single-use plastic bothers you, and you want a genuine reuse model
You’d rather consolidate your grocery run into one weekly delivery
You want flexibility to cook as much or as little as you’d like with ready-to-cook and ready-to-eat meals.

Choose Factor if:

You follow a strict keto or high-protein protocol and need precise macronutrient tracking
You live outside Fresh Prep’s current delivery areas

Neither service is objectively better. They’re built for different households and different priorities.

Frequently asked questions

Is Factor available in all of Canada?

As of 2026, Factor delivers to Ontario, Quebec, Manitoba, Alberta, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia. Expansion into other areas, including more of Western Canada, is ongoing.

Is Fresh Prep cheaper than Factor?

They’re priced similarly on a per-serving basis. Fresh Prep ranges from approximately $10.50 to $15.00 per serving, while Factor runs from $11.49 to $14.99 per serving. Delivery adds to both: Fresh Prep charges $4.99–$6.99, Factor charges a flat $10.99. That gap adds up over a month, especially for larger households. Fresh Prep also offsets costs by reducing food waste through pre-portioned ingredients.

Are Factor meals actually nutritious?

Factor meals are dietitian-approved, built for specific nutritional targets, especially high-protein and low-carb. They’re prepared meals, not raw ingredients.

Fresh Prep holds its own on nutrition too. Ready-to-eat meals pack 35g+ protein (25g+ vegetarian), 6g+ fibre, and premium olive and avocado oils, with several keto-friendly dishes in the mix. The real difference isn’t macros. It’s whether you also want fresh, seasonal ingredients and the flexibility to cook or not cook, which is where Fresh Prep’s approach pulls ahead.