Ready-To-Eat Meals: Helpful Habit Or Just Good Marketing?

by Barbara Yakimchuk

Ready-To-Eat Meals: Helpful Habit Or Just Good Marketing?

20 Jan 2026

Image: HJ Project

There is no real need for statistics or big-name studies here — it is obvious that life over the past few years has sped up. You feel it the moment you step outside and realise how much is constantly happening around you. Naturally, we adapt.

Along the way, we collect small life hacks to keep up and make everyday living a little easier — and somewhere in that process, ready-to-eat food quietly slips into our routines.

It is no longer just about counting calories (even though many of us still use these services for exactly that). They take the thinking out of food altogether: meals arrive, you heat them up, you eat. Simple. But is it actually a smart financial choice? Is it genuinely healthy? And, in the long run, does it really make life easier?

Why is ready-to-eat food booming?

And now it is time for my favourite thing — statistics.

The global ready-to-eat food market was valued at around 404.78 billion USD in 2024. A big number, yes — but what does it actually mean? For context, the global AI market was valued at around 294.16 billion USD in 2025 — almost one and a half times smaller. Just wow, right? This is a product category that arrived at exactly the right moment, perfectly aligned with the way we live today — and the conditions were there for it to thrive.

First, there is the global shift towards wellness — and ready-to-eat food fits neatly into that mindset. You want low-calorie meals? High-protein? Plant-based? Something in between? You can have it all. Ready-to-eat no longer means fast, high-fat food. It simply means food that matches what you want it to be.
Second, COVID played a huge role. During lockdowns, we all learned — the hard way — what delivery really means. We got used to food arriving at our doorsteps, and now this feels like the natural next step of that habit, but with a healthier narrative attached to it.
Third, household dynamics have changed. There is no single, traditional structure anymore where one person — usually the woman — cooks for everyone. In some homes it still looks like this, in others roles are shared. And in many cases, households have simply adapted to modern life.
Finally, with ready-to-eat meals, you aren't just paying for food — you are paying for relief from decision fatigue. Imagine your doctor (or, let’s be honest, another Instagram post) telling you that you need balanced meals with calorie control. Suddenly, eating feels stressful. You can’t just order something random for a snack anymore. You are planning breakfast, lunch, and dinner in advance. You might even feel the need to buy scales to measure everything you eat. And then comes the solution: meals that are quick, pleasant, structured — and still flexible enough to reflect your preferences. In that sense, ready-to-eat food really does start to feel like a subscription to a small, modern miracle.

Image: Getty Images

What meal options are available in Dubai — and are they cost-efficient?

Actually, I haven’t been entirely honest with you. I didn’t lie — I just didn’t tell the whole story. When talking about the boom in ready-to-eat meals, I left out one key reason. And that reason is economic efficiency.

But before jumping to conclusions, the numbers really matter. So let’s take a closer look at how much popular meal bundles cost here in the UAE. And forgive me if I haven’t mentioned your personal favourite — it turns out there are simply too many options in Dubai, so I have focused on the most popular ones.

Kcal Life

A monthly meal plan covering everything from taste preferences (international, Arabic) to health-focused programmes (diabetic, wellness, athletes).

Pros: a free consultation with a nutritionist, extra bonuses for long-term plans, and full menu previews including snacks.
Cons: no options for fewer than five days per week, a minimum commitment of four weeks, and no trial period.
Cost: 2,940 AED per month (Wellness plan), five days a week, three meals a day plus snacks.

Right Bite

A flexible meal plan offering a wide range of food preferences, with the option to adjust your programme alongside a dietitian.

Pros: detailed nutritional breakdowns and flexible bundles with varying meal frequencies.
Cons: unclear daily menus, with no full day-by-day breakdown (although food examples are available).
Cost: 2,240 AED per month (Convenience Meal Plan), five days a week, three meals a day plus snacks.

Source: rightbite.com

Pura

A meal plan with a personalised approach, taking into account your weight, age, activity level and fitness goals. Dietitian consultations are available, though they come at an additional cost.

Pros: a two-day trial before committing, plus the ability to choose the number of meals per day.
Cons: a minimum commitment of five days per week and four weeks in total, with limited menu visibility before signing up.
Cost: 2,700 AED per month, five days a week, three meals a day plus snacks.

FITT Meals

A meal subscription service where calories and nutrients are calculated using professional nutritional software.

Pros: five plan options (including high-calorie, standard and weight-loss), as well as a weekly ordering option that works well as a trial.
Cons: limited flexibility — only standardised plans, a minimum of five days per week, and no accommodation for special requests or allergies.
Cost: 2,300 AED per month, five days a week, three meals a day plus one snack.

Source: fittmeals.ae

Hello Chef

A meal-kit delivery service rather than a ready-to-eat food brand. It is a slightly different concept, but one that is far too popular to ignore. You choose the number of people and recipes (with calorie information provided), and Hello Chef delivers the ingredients — not the finished meals.

Pros: more control over ingredients, fresher cooking, and a lower overall cost compared to ready-to-eat subscriptions.
Cons: requires time and effort to cook; not suitable if convenience is the main priority.
Cost: approximately 300 AED for five meals for two people.

Source: hellochef.me

Okay, so this is where we come to the calculations.

The average ready-to-eat bundle in the UAE comes in at around 2,500 AED per month for a comprehensive plan (three meals a day plus snacks). That works out to roughly 120 AED per day, depending on the provider and menu.

And here is the tricky part: how much do you actually spend when you cook at home — and what do you really cook?

Don’t blame me for the numbers — a lot depends on where you shop — but let’s do a very basic one-day breakdown. Imagine a simple day of meals: two eggs with tomatoes, cucumber and salad leaves for breakfast; chicken wings with potatoes for lunch; the same wings plus pasta with cheese and tomato sauce for dinner, and ice cream as a snack.

My quick calculation came to around 70 AED for the day — almost half the cost. However, once you zoom out and look at the full monthly picture — including all the extras we tend to forget (oil, bread, avocados, condiments, and the occasional treat) — the difference narrows. In reality, home cooking usually ends up being around 20–25% cheaper overall.

But let’s be honest: very few people cook three times a day, every single day. In most real-life scenarios, it looks more like cooking once or twice and ordering food the rest of the time.

And once ordering becomes a regular habit, the numbers shift. Ready-to-eat meals start to feel comparable — and sometimes even more efficient — simply because they remove the time pressure that usually pushes us towards delivery.

Image: Beatriz Camaleão

How do ready-to-eat meals fit into social life?

The real challenge with ready-to-eat meals begins when they meet real life. Those neatly planned three-meals-a-day bundles don’t always match the reality of a Wednesday night out with friends or a Friday McDonald’s cheat meal. Instead, the meals stay in the fridge. You can’t just throw them away — but you also can’t eat more than you need.

And yes, it is a problem. There is no point pretending otherwise. Luckily, my husband actually tried this system properly — so I took his insights, combined them with other people’s experiences they shared online, and turned them into a few genuinely useful takeaways.

Start with a trial, not a commitment. Choose the smallest bundle first to understand how many meals you genuinely need per day. For many people, it isn't three — it is two. The third meal is either skipped, eaten socially, or cooked simply at home.
Don’t order for seven days a week. Realistically, you aren't home every day. Leave space for dinners out, spontaneous plans, and social meals.
Build in a calorie buffer. When choosing your calorie target, leave around 300 calories for unplanned eating: coffee (usually cappuccino, right?), a shared snack, a protein bar after an evening run. Example: if your daily target is 1,800 calories, aim for a 1,500-calorie meal plan.
Think twice about snacks. Snack preferences are personal — and subscriptions rarely get them right. Many people are happier choosing their own snacks instead of having them delivered, so consider the bundle without it.
Eat the least exciting meals first. The meals you love will disappear quickly. The “okay” ones are the ones most likely to sit in the fridge until they expire.

Accept a little waste — without guilt. Agree with yourself in advance: if a meal is about to expire, you throw it away. The same thing happens with regular groceries we don’t finish. It isn't a personal failure — it is part of real life.

by Barbara Yakimchuk