The struggle is real. Healthy foodies can attest, eating nourishing foods and staying within a reasonable budget can be more than just a struggle—it can be downright impossible. We all want to eat well, but as the prices skyrocket for real, wholesome ingredients, the fast food dollar menu seems like the only option to keep costs low.
How to Eat Healthy Without Going Broke
If you or anyone in your family has any dietary restrictions, whether for medical, personal or ethical reasons, maintaining a food budget can be even harder. Following a gluten-free diet? Certified gluten-free items are often more expensive in grocery stores than their conventional counterparts. If you’re vegan, vegetarian or trying to limit your consumption of animal products, you’ll encounter the same problem. An 8-ounce tub of regular cream cheese might cost $1.99, but for a vegan alternative? You’re looking at $4.29 for the same size!
Luckily, there’s hope! Shopping online is a great way to save money. Online, you can find loads of healthy favorites and specialty diet essentials—more than you’d find at a local store. Plus, with delivery times and fees constantly improving, the items arrive at your door within a few short days! Here at Vitacost.com, you can find over 45,000 healthy and wellness products. What’s more, we’ve recently lowered prices on over 3,000 products, including gluten-free and vegan foods. You don’t have to break the bank to eat healthy and feel good anymore!
$30 7-Day Gluten-Free, Vegan Meal Plan
Not sure the best way to take advantage of convenient online shopping? Here’s a meal plan with five recipes that will help keep your diet gluten-free and vegan, and keep your budget under $30 for one whole week!
This budget assumes you have some basic staples on hand, like dried spices and condiments. And, if you’ve already got certain items like rolled oats, chickpeas or quinoa in your pantry, you can cut the cost of each recipe! You can also save by substituting ingredients in the shopping lists for ones you already have. The Overnight Oats recipe calls for coconut sugar, but if you’ve already got date sugar, stevia or maple syrup, use that instead!
Since many of the items purchased for this plan will last beyond the week, I’m only accounting for the price per ingredient, per serving for seven days. For instance, a container of vegan mayonnaise costs $7.69. At 64 servings per container, you’re only spending $0.12 per serving. You’ll need 1½ tablespoons of mayo for the Vegan Tuna recipe, so it will only cost $0.18 for seven days.
The cheap, gluten-free and vegan recipes below will serve one person for 7 days. There are two breakfasts, one lunch (with two serving options) and two dinners. Some recipes yield more than required for one week, so you’ll only need to make a portion of each recipe. Or, you can make the whole dish and get a head start on your meal prepping for the next week! The plan for each day alternates between the meals, but if you find yourself craving lasagna one morning, feel free to swap them around!
Recipes & Meals
Breakfast
Quinoa Breakfast Bowl
(full recipe yields 4 servings)
Quinoa for breakfast? What a nutritious way to start your day! To make the recipe a little more economical, we’re going to sub a few of the ingredients for ones that we’ll use again later in the week. Plus, we’ll be a swapping out one animal product to make the bowl vegan. This nutrient-rich dish is sure to become one of your faves!
Shopping List
| Item | Price per serving, per recipe |
| Quinoa (instead of red quinoa) | $0.31 |
| Apples | $2.09 |
| Shredded coconut (instead of coconut chips) | $0.19 |
| Maple syrup (instead of honey) | $0.36 |
| TOTAL | $2.95 |
Cost to make 4 servings: $2.95
Overnight Chia Oats
(full recipe yields 1 serving)
These oats taste like you’re eating ice cream for breakfast! It’s a go-to recipe for me every week because it’s so simple to prep ahead and grab as you run out the door. To keep the price down, we’re going to omit most of the toppings here. Use whatever nuts, seeds or fruit you have on hand. I’ve used almond milk instead of coconut milk because I always have almond milk at home. If you’ve got another sweetener in your pantry, use it instead of the coconut sugar and you’ll cut costs even more!
Shopping List
| Item | Price per serving, per recipe |
| Rolled oats | $0.27 |
| Chia seeds | $0.47 |
| Coconut sugar | $0.37 |
| Almond milk (subbed for coconut milk) | $0.80 |
| Shredded coconut | $0.19 |
| TOTAL | $2.10 |
Cost to make 3 servings: $6.29
Lunch
Vegan Tuna Sandwich/Lettuce Wraps
(full recipe yields 10 servings!)
This recipe yields about 2 ½ cups, and I can pack about ¼ cup for each sandwich, making this vegan tuna a steal! You probably have mustard already, so I’ve left that out of the price, but I’ve included specialty condiments like dill relish and vegan mayonnaise. To add a little variety to the meal, alternate every day between gluten-free bread and butter lettuce. It’s a quick, easy and filling lunch. Did I mention delicious? It’s really delicious, too!
Shopping List
| Item | Price per serving, per recipe |
| Chickpeas | $1.93 |
| Orange bell pepper | $1.00 |
| Celery stalks | $0.80 |
| Vegan mayonnaise | $0.18 |
| Dill relish | $1.08 |
| Butter lettuce | $2.49 |
| Gluten-free bread | $1.55 |
| TOTAL | $9.03 |
Cost to make 7 servings: $6.32
Dinner
Veggie Lasagna
(full recipe yields 8 servings)
Craving Italian? Yep! Olive oil, sea salt and dried oregano are staples in any kitchen, so I’ve omitted those from our shopping list. Sprouted tofu takes the place of ricotta cheese (make sure to buy organic!), and the cionvenient no-boil, ready-to-bake noodles make this gluten-free, vegan lasagna easy to whip up.
Shopping List
| Item | Price per serving, per recipe |
| Sprouted tofu | $3.98 |
| Garlic cloves | $0.22 |
| Nutritional yeast | $0.12 |
| Frozen spinach | $1.45 |
| 1 zucchini | $1.99 |
| Marinara sauce | $2.33 |
| Gluten-free lasagna noodles | $3.39 |
| TOTAL | $13.48 |
Cost to make 4 servings: $6.74
Quick Vegetable Stir-Fry
(full recipe yields 4 servings)
We’re using protein-rich quinoa again for this one. Frozen vegetables help call this recipe “quick,” but if there’s a good farmers market in your area, buy fresh and eat any leftover veggies for snack or as a side. Want to kick the flavor up a notch? Sprinkle each serving with shredded coconut. Tasty!
Shopping List
| Item | Price per serving, per recipe |
| Frozen stir-fry vegetables | $2.59 |
| Garlic cloves | $0.22 |
| Tamari | $0.35 |
| Quinoa | $0.31 |
| TOTAL | $3.47 |
Cost to make 3 servings: $2.60
TOTAL COST FOR 7 DAYS: $24.90
Meal breakdown by day
Monday
Breakfast: Quinoa Breakfast Bowl
Lunch: Vegan Tuna Lettuce Wrap
Dinner: Veggie Lasagna
Tuesday
Breakfast: Overnight Chia Oats
Lunch: Vegan Tuna Sandwich
Dinner: Vegetable Stir-Fry
Wednesday
Breakfast: Quinoa Breakfast Bowl
Lunch: Vegan Tuna Lettuce Wrap
Dinner: Veggie Lasagna
Thursday
Breakfast: Overnight Chia Oats
Lunch: Vegan Tuna Sandwich
Dinner: Vegetable Stir-Fry
Friday
Breakfast: Quinoa Breakfast Bowl
Lunch: Vegan Tuna Lettuce Wrap
Dinner: Veggie Lasagna
Saturday
Breakfast: Overnight Chia Oats
Lunch: Vegan Tuna Sandwich
Dinner: Vegetable Stir-Fry
Sunday
Breakfast: Quinoa Breakfast Bowl
Lunch: Vegan Tuna Lettuce Wrap
Dinner: Veggie Lasagna