You know what lives rent-free in my head? That fact that when Aretha Franklin was interviewed about her greatest challenge, she didn’t talk about developing an almost-four-octave vocal range, or about carrying the torch for R&B music, feminism, and even the civil-rights movement over a six-decade career. Instead, she said it was “trying to figure out what to cook for dinner.”If that’s how the Queen of Soul felt, what chance do we mere mortals have?And as one of those mortals, I can tell you that this persistent conundrum prompts a bit of boredom and sweaty anxiety, especially when it’s posed by one of my hangry children when I’m trying to finish work, the dog needs a walk, and I could really use a nap.So I get why meal kits are popular. By delivering a set number of recipes each week, with the exact amount of ingredients needed to execute them, they can ease the Sisyphean task of figuring out dinner.Over the years, to find the best meal kits, we have cooked over 200 meals from 11 services in our homes and in our Wirecutter test kitchen. No kit is as life-changing as it sounds, and finding the right one can take some trial and error. But the best ones we tried lightened our load, making dinnertime easier and even a little more fun.For broadly appealing, easy-to-execute recipes and reliable service, we recommend HelloFresh or Blue Apron. Green Chef provides more options, such as vegan and gluten-free menus, and Dinnerly is a solid budget option.