Sophia

Budget meal plan

Cheap meals for the week, planned from your budget

You decide what the plan’s shopping can cost. Sophia composes the meals with that amount in mind, without holding it to the penny, works out the quantities and writes the shopping list (grocery list, in the US).

Try it for 7 days

Then €9.99/month on Solo, or €12.99/month on Family · No commitment

What usually gets in the way

“My shopping always costs more than planned”

The budget is set before the menu, and Sophia composes with it. Everything on the list goes into a meal of the plan.

“Cheap food means boring food”

Full, varied dishes, with seasonal produce, cooked at home.

“I throw away half of what I buy”

Quantities follow the number of portions to cook. You buy what you cook.

How Sophia does it

  1. Your budget

    You say what the plan’s shopping can cost. In the US, you pick it on a slider that starts at the least these meals can cost.

  2. The menu is composed with it

    Meals for 1 to 7 days for the whole household, composed with that amount in mind. When it’s tight, the plan leans on pulses, eggs and starchy foods, and some dishes come back more than once.

  3. One list, one to three shopping trips

    The quantities to buy, sorted by aisle and split by shopping trip: you choose 1 to 3, or let the plan decide.

A real plan, generated by Sophia

Lentils, eggs and tinned tuna for three

Generated on 28 October 2026 for a fictional household. Nothing has been touched up: these are the dishes and quantities exactly as Sophia wrote them.

  • Gemma

    Keep a stable weight

    33 years old · woman · 163 cm · 64 kg

  • Liam

    Keep a stable weight

    35 years old · man · 178 cm · 83 kg

  • Ruby

    Eat normally

    5 years old · girl · 110 cm · 19 kg

What this plan is based on
Gemma
Profile33 years old, woman, 163 cm, 64 kgGoalKeep a stable weightActivitymostly sitting, exercise once or twice a weekAppetiteaverage appetite
Liam
Profile35 years old, man, 178 cm, 83 kgGoalKeep a stable weightActivitymostly sitting, exercise once or twice a weekAppetiteaverage appetite
Ruby
Profile5 years old, girl, 110 cm, 19 kgGoalEat normallyActivitymostly sitting, exercise 3 to 4 times a weekAppetiteaverage appetite

The plan’s settings

  • 5 days of meals
  • 1 cooking session
  • 1 shopping trip
  • shopping budget: 45
  • 120 min of cooking per session at most
  • equipment: oven, hob, microwave, freezer

From these details, Sophia works out each person’s needs; every portion in the plan follows from them.

Summary

Shopping and cooking, day by day

Your week at a glance
Mon2Tue3Wed4Thu5Fri6Sat7
Groceriesyes
Cooking1h45
Gemma (kcal)—1,9742,0001,9771,9732,006
Liam (kcal)—2,5962,6872,6402,6122,750
Ruby (kcal)——————

Plan

Pick a day to see your meals

Tuesday

On the menu

Breakfast

For Ruby

For Gemma

For Liam

Mid-morning

For Ruby

Lunch

On the side for Ruby: Yogurt with honey

On the side for Gemma: Yogurt with honey

On the side for Liam: Yogurt with honey

Afternoon

For Ruby

Dinner

On the side for Ruby: Skyr with oats

On the side for Gemma: cheddar

On the side for Liam: cheddar

The guide

How to plan cheap meals for the week

A cheap week of meals is decided before you shop, not at the till. In order:

  1. Set the budget before choosing the dishes, not after.
  2. Build meals around starchy foods and pulses: rice, pasta, couscous, potatoes, lentils, chickpeas, beans.
  3. Choose seasonal vegetables, and plain frozen ones when they’re cheaper.
  4. Cook once for several meals: tonight’s dinner is tomorrow’s lunch.
  5. Buy the quantities on the menu, not extra “just in case”.

The last step costs the most when it’s missing: without written quantities, you buy too much, and part of it ends up in the bin.

Cheap dinner ideas

The cheapest meals are often the simplest: a vegetable bake, a lentil stew, an omelette and a salad, pasta with roast vegetables, egg fried rice, a bean chilli, jacket potatoes (baked potatoes, in the US) with a filling.

Cooked in one session, they also become the quickest meals on a weekday evening.

Cheap family meals

With a family, one portion too many is multiplied by every meal of the week: that’s where the budget leaks.

Cheap meals that stay balanced

Eating on a budget doesn’t have to mean eating less well. The cheapest sources of protein are often eggs, pulses and tinned fish (canned fish, in the US). Around them, a vegetable and a starchy food make a full plate.

7 days to try Sophia

Then €9.99/month on Solo, or €12.99/month on Family from two people at the table

Meal plans, shopping list, cooking schedule and personal tracking included.

No commitment.

Try it for 7 days

Frequently asked questions

Can I set a budget for the shopping?

Yes: it’s the budget for the plan’s shopping. Sophia composes the menu with that amount in mind, without holding it to the penny. In the US, you pick it on a slider that starts at the least the meals you asked for can cost.

What are the cheapest meals to make?

Dishes built on pulses, eggs and starchy foods: a lentil stew, a bean chilli, an omelette, egg fried rice, pasta with vegetables, a potato and vegetable bake. Cooked once for several meals, they also save you time.

Are cheap meals balanced?

They can be: a vegetable, a source of protein and a starchy food on each plate. With Sophia, each meal combines the three, and each person’s share is worked out for their goal.

Does Sophia deliver the shopping?

No. Sophia writes the shopping list, split by shopping trip and sorted by aisle, and each trip’s list downloads as a PDF. You shop and cook yourself.

How much does Sophia cost?

7 days free, then €9.99 a month for one person (Solo), or €12.99 a month from two people at the table (Family), up to 8 people. No commitment.

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