WhichMealKitTovala vs Factor
What is in your kitchen decides it: Tovala’s fresh meals come mostly prepped and cook themselves in its own Smart Oven, which you buy first; Factor’s arrive cooked and chilled, to heat in the microwave you already have.
Three dinners for two, food only: $83.94 at Tovala; $65.94–$83.94 at Factor. Tovala adds $10.99 shipping, $94.93 in all; the pages we read do not give Factor’s shipping.
Tovala’s standard meals are $13.99 each plus $10.99 shipping, and its oven is $299 at list price or $69 with six orders in six months. Factor states a price range a meal and shows the exact price after you enter a ZIP code.
Tovala
6 single meals · 6 portions
Factor
6 single meals · 6 portions
Choose by what you need
Choose Tovala if
You want meals cooked fresh rather than reheated, from four a week, and will keep its Smart Oven on the counter.
Choose Factor if
You don’t want another appliance, or want to be able to cancel without owing anything on an oven.
Side by side
| Detail | Tovala | Factor |
|---|---|---|
| Price for three dinners for two | $94.93 $15.82 a meal $83.94 food + $10.99 shipping, before tax; the Smart Oven its meals cook in is extra, $299 at list price · checked 18 Oct 2026 | $65.94–$83.94 $10.99–$13.99 a meal, before shipping Factor’s stated $10.99–$13.99 a meal × 6, before shipping and tax; the exact price shows after you enter a ZIP code · checked 8 Oct 2026 |
| Your box | 6 single meals: 6 portions | 6 single meals: 6 portions |
| Format | Meals for its own smart oven | Prepared meals |
| Cooking | Scan and cook in its own oven | Heat and eat |
| Smallest box | 4 single meals (4 portions) | 6 single meals (6 portions) |
| Order once | No, weekly plan | No, weekly plan |
| Breaks | Skip up to 5 weeks ahead, or pause for 4 to 8 weeks | Deactivate, then reactivate when you are ready |
| Cutoff | Changes, skips, pauses and cancellations until 6 PM Central on the Wednesday the week before delivery | 11:59 PM five days before delivery: Pacific time on Factor’s cancel page, Central time on its how-it-works page |
| After the cutoff | After the Wednesday cutoff Tovala starts preparing the next week’s meals and can’t cancel them; a cancellation then stops the deliveries after that one. | The next delivery proceeds when the cutoff has passed. |
| Menu labels | Vegetarian, gluten-free, dairy-free, low-carb, high-protein, low-calorie, low-sodium, Mediterranean | Vegetarian, plant-based/vegan, keto, low-carb, high-protein, low-calorie, low-sodium, Mediterranean, pescatarian |
| Order minimum | No dollar minimum published | No dollar minimum published |
| Delivers to | The 48 contiguous states; not Alaska or Hawaii | All of the lower 48 states |
| Next step | Tovala details See Tovala’s menu | Factor details See Factor’s menu |
Neither fits? Also look at CookUnity, Clean Eatz Kitchen or Mom’s Meals. See every box that fits your household.