Best Meat Subscription Boxes of 2022
Best Overall: Butcher Box Best for Pasture-Raised Meat: Farm Foods Market Best for Snacks: Carnivore Club Best Restaurant-Quality Meat: Crowd Cow Best for Gift-Giving: Porter Road Best for Buying in Bulk: Stock Yards Best for Pork: Good Chop
Why You Should Try It: ButcherBox is our pick if you’re looking for a reliable, straightforward service that delivers high-quality meat straight to your door. Given the variety of meat you can get in a box and the ease of starting and stopping your subscription, it’s a great option for any home cook.ProsVariety of high-quality meat options Range of price pointsEasy to pause or start subscriptionsFree shippingConsCost can be highMinimum order is 8.5 pounds of meat Butcher Box is a meat delivery service that offers high-quality meat in preset box sizes, with the option to select a fully customizable box. The company offers everything from ground beef to filet mignon and also includes options for wild-caught seafood, humanely raised pork, and organic chicken. ButcherBox subscriptions range in price from $146 to $306 and you can order anywhere from 8 to 14 pounds of meat per box. For a little extra, you can order the custom box for more flexibility in the meats you receive. You can upgrade or downgrade your subscription at any point and add some basic customizations to your box of meat, although the best value is in letting ButcherBox choose for you. Butcher Box ships your meat flash-frozen in eco-friendly boxes that are designed to keep your meat cold until it arrives. Meat may arrive frozen, partially thawed, or fully thawed but still cold. It can be refrigerated or frozen upon arrival. Overall, ButcherBox offers great value for quality plus reliable delivery. Why You Should Try It: When it comes to quality meats, Farm Foods Market takes the sourcing of its products seriously, with high standards for its beef, chicken, pork, and seafood. The company excludes grain-based feed and hormones from its beef, and only offers heritage, pastured, hormone-free pork.ProsDelivery to all 50 states (additional fees apply to Hawaii and Alaska)Wide variety of high-quality meat and seafoodBulk pricing available for certain items like ground beef ConsCost is on the higher end Farm Foods Market is the modern answer to mass-produced, anonymous meats. The company is very diligent in its sourcing and lists every farm it partners with on its website for clear, transparent standards. While Farm Foods offers beef, chicken, pork, turkey, and fish, so there are a wide variety of options for customers to mix and match. Farm Foods’ box plans let you choose your proteins and have them delivered every two, four, six, or eight weeks. All boxes come with free shipping, with the flexibility to pause or cancel your subscription at any time. Why You Should Try It: If you are a fan of jerky and charcuterie, the offerings can get a bit limited at the grocery store. Carnivore Club delivers a variety of cured meats directly to your door. ProsReasonable price point for charcuterie productsRotating a variety of offeringsStrong customer base ConsLimited offerings outside of cured productsNo background on sourcing or animal welfare standards A subscription service just for cured meats? Yes, please. Carnivore Club offers a few options, ranging from $20 to $50 and higher per box. Setting up a subscription for the boxes will give you some cost savings on a monthly delivery. You can also order some items à la carte, but the boxes are by far the most popular items that Carnivore Club offers. Carnivore Club has a strong online following, and for good reason: Everything is shipped fresh, not frozen, and prices are lower than other meat subscription services. Beyond the boxes, Carnivore Club encourages gifting its products. And, it sells the accessories needed for great charcuterie spreads, like cutting boards and knives. Why You Should Try It: If you are looking to upgrade your meals using restaurant-quality cuts, Crowd Cow is a fantastic option. Getting A5 Japanese Wagyu beef is normally no easy task, but Crowd Cow will deliver it to your door! ProsAmazing restaurant-quality meat offeringsGreat gift optionsExcellent Wagyu beef variety ConsHigh price pointsLimited customer support options Crowd Cow has been shipping beef and other meats to consumers since 2015, with a focus on offering higher-end, restaurant-quality cuts of meats and seafood. If you want to take your home cooking to the next level, getting a box of high-quality grass-fed or Wagyu beef, heritage Kurobuta Pork, or wild sockeye salmon delivered to your door is a great way to start. And while it may be intimidating to cook an A5 Wagyu steak at home, the website offers tutorials and recipes to get you started. While Crowd Cow does offer subscriptions, it might be best seen as a special occasion order or gift option to present something truly special on the table. ProsCustomizable boxesWide variety of beef, pork, chicken, sausage, and market itemsGood gift options like the beef stick bundle ConsNo seafood offeringsHigher price point for basic offerings Porter Road is the brainchild of two Nashville chefs who started sourcing high-quality meats in 2010. While it used to be just a local butchery, the founders brought the concept online in 2017 and now ship to 48 states. While Porter Road prides itself on excellent sourcing and using local farms to ensure high-quality meats, what really sets it apart is the gift and curated box options. With options like the aptly-named Grilling Heroes box, Porter Road’s preselected selections will help you attain grill master status in no time. Why You Should Try It: Stock Yards is best for its bundles, which combine steaks, meats, and seafood in unique shipments for special occasions. Customers can choose from items like the tailgating collection to make prepping for game day a snap. ProsBundles pre-made for eventsGreat variety of meats, seafood, lamb, veal, and even sides and dessertsA best-sellers list for easy shopping ConsPrice is on the higher end, going well above $300 for some boxesHuge list of options can be daunting Stock Yards is one of the oldest providers of meats and seafood, in existence since 1893. The company has grown to offer a huge variety of items to online consumers, although it doesn’t provide much in terms of background on the meat it sources. If you have the budget for it, Stock Yards can be a great option for a party or celebration since some of its bundles could definitely feed a crowd. Just looking to stock up your freezer? Stock Yards’ bulk ordering options make it easy for you to make multiple meals out of one delivery. Why You Should Try It: Good Chop sources its meats and seafood exclusively from American farms to ensure high-quality products. While there is a limited number of box options, you can customize what is in the boxes to some degree. ProsAmerican sourcedExcellent pork productsClear subscription options ConsLimited customizationFewer overall options than other delivery services Good Chop was created with the goal of transparently sourcing American meats to create the feel of a local butcher shop (minus the trip to the store). The company delivers a website that is simple to navigate and not cluttered with excessive options. The ordering process is straightforward and easy to understand, focusing on delivering a few, high-quality items without a lot of extras. Good Chop’s subscription options include a medium box aimed at individuals and smaller families which costs $149 and a large box ideal for bigger families or those who want to stock their freezer, which costs $269. The boxes come every four weeks and there is a discount on the first one. Customers are able to select six or 12 cuts of meat, depending on which box they choose, and each box is fully customizable. Products arrive frozen, and subscriptions can easily be paused or canceled anytime.
What Are Meat Subscription Boxes?
Meat subscription boxes offer delivery of meats to your door on a recurring basis. Most offer standard boxes with a mix of meats, while some offer customizable options. While the price varies, most are slightly more expensive than meats you would find in the grocery store, but they tend to feature higher-quality or more unique offerings.
Are Meat Subscription Boxes Worth the Money?
In short, it depends. If you are just looking for basic groceries, you might find the delivery services to not be worth it. But, if you are in the market for unique cuts or are interested in sourcing meat from companies with specific animal welfare standards, it can be absolutely worth it to subscribe to a meat delivery service.
Do Meat Subscription Boxes Have High-Quality Meat?
Most meat subscription services put their sourcing upfront and claim it as a major feature over grocery store meat counters. Most companies also tout specific practices which allow customers to see exactly what they are getting for each category of meat or seafood. In general, this likely leads to higher-quality meats.
How Much Do Meat Subscription Boxes Cost?
Costs can vary considerably depending on the company and your order, but on the low end, you can expect to spend $100 for smaller boxes and up to $300 for some larger boxes containing 20 pounds or more of meat.
Methodology
We researched 33 meat subscription boxes and considered the products offered, pricing, and customer reviews. Packaging, shipping costs, and sustainability were also taken into account before we pared down the options to the companies on our list.
