Meal Planning Statistics at a Glance
Meal planning looks simple from the outside, but the numbers show a much bigger story: time, household roles, grocery habits, and food shopping behavior all shape how people prepare meals. The statistics below show not just how long meal prep takes, but who does it, how fast food changes the routine, and how grocery shopping habits connect to meal planning decisions.
If you want a clean read on meal planning statistics, start with the time-use numbers. They reveal that meal planning is not one behavior but a cluster of everyday tasks that different groups handle very differently.
Quick takeaways
- In 2014, Americans age 18 and over spent 37 minutes per day in food preparation and cleanup (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up).
- Women spent 51 minutes per day in meal prep and cleanup in 2014, compared with 22 minutes for men (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up).
- Adults ages 65 and older spent 43 minutes per day in meal prep and cleanup in 2014 (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up).
- WIC participants spent 62 minutes per day in meal prep in 2014, the highest value in the dataset’s household-assistance comparison (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up).
- In 2023, 19.5 percent of grocery shoppers bought groceries online at least once in the last 30 days (USDA ERS: Eating and Health Module (ATUS) - Summary Findings).
- In 2017-March 2020, 25.3 percent of adults age 20 and older had heard of MyPlate (CDC NCHS: Awareness of the MyPlate Plan).
Table of Contents
- How much time people spend on meal planning
- Who spends more time preparing meals
- How fast food changes meal planning time
- Meal planning and grocery shopping behavior
- What the MyPlate numbers add to the picture
- What these statistics suggest about everyday meal planning
How much time people spend on meal planning
The first thing meal planning statistics make clear is that the category includes more than cooking alone. The USDA ERS time-use figures bundle food preparation and cleanup together, which is useful because real meal planning usually includes multiple steps: deciding what to make, shopping, preparing, serving, and cleaning up afterward.
In 2014, Americans age 18 and over spent 37 minutes per day in food preparation and cleanup (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up). That average is a helpful baseline, but the more interesting part is how widely the number changes across groups.
Adults ages 18 to 24 spent 21 minutes per day in meal prep and cleanup in 2014 (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up). Adults ages 25 to 64 spent 38 minutes per day (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up). Adults age 65 and older spent 43 minutes per day (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up).
That spread matters because meal planning is often treated like a single lifestyle choice. The data suggest it is more accurate to see it as a time-budget decision that shifts with age, household structure, and responsibility for cooking.
Time-use snapshot
| Group | Minutes per day | Source label |
|---|---|---|
| Americans age 18 and over | 37 | USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up |
| Adults ages 18 to 24 | 21 | USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up |
| Adults ages 25 to 64 | 38 | USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up |
| Adults age 65 and older | 43 | USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up |
| Men | 22 | USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up |
| Women | 51 | USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up |
The table shows the core pattern clearly: meal planning-related time use is not evenly distributed. The gap between men and women is especially large, and the age pattern points to more time spent preparing food among older adults than among younger adults.
Who spends more time preparing meals
The gender gap is one of the most striking parts of the meal planning statistics. Men spent 22 minutes per day in meal prep and cleanup in 2014, while women spent 51 minutes per day (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up). That is not a small difference. It shows that meal planning is still strongly shaped by who in the household takes on the routine work.
The dataset gives more detail on who the usual meal preparer is. About three-quarters of women said they were their household’s usual meal preparer (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up). By contrast, 15 percent of men said they split meal preparation equally with others in their household, and 10 percent of women said the same (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up).
That matters because the usual meal preparer is where the time adds up. Usual meal preparers spent 51 minutes per day in meal prep in 2014 (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up). Men who were the usual meal preparer spent 32 minutes per day, while women who were the usual meal preparer spent 60 minutes per day (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up).
A closer look at responsibility and time
- Usual meal preparers spent 51 minutes per day on meal prep in 2014 (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up).
- Men who were the usual meal preparer spent 32 minutes per day (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up).
- Women who were the usual meal preparer spent 60 minutes per day (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up).
- WIC participants who were the usual meal preparer spent 86 minutes per day (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up).
The WIC number stands out because it shows how meal planning time can become especially heavy in households where food choices, budget, and family needs must all be balanced at once. In practical terms, the statistics point to meal planning as a recurring workload rather than a single decision.
How fast food changes meal planning time
One of the most useful meal planning statistics in the dataset is the time difference tied to buying fast food or prepared food. This helps show how meal planning changes when part of the dinner workload gets outsourced.
Usual meal preparers who bought fast food on the diary day spent 27 minutes in meal prep, versus 58 minutes for those who did not (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up). That is a 31-minute time difference, which the source explicitly describes as a time saving (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up).
The same pattern appears in several subgroups. Employed usual meal preparers who bought fast food spent 21 minutes in meal prep on the diary day, while employed usual meal preparers who did not buy fast food spent 45 minutes (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up). In households with children, usual meal preparers who bought fast food spent 39 minutes, compared with 74 minutes for those who did not buy fast food (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up).
Fast-food and prepared-food comparisons
| Group | Bought fast food / prepared food | Did not buy | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Usual meal preparers | 27 minutes | 58 minutes | 31 minutes |
| Employed usual meal preparers | 21 minutes | 45 minutes | 24 minutes |
| Usual meal preparers in households with children | 39 minutes | 74 minutes | 35 minutes |
The dataset also states that purchasing prepared food saved about 30 minutes of meal-preparation time per day for a household’s usual meal preparer (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up). Over a year, that time saving was equivalent to 7.7 days not spent in meal preparation (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up).
That annual figure is useful because it turns a daily habit into something easier to visualize. A few minutes here and there can add up to real time recovery over the year.
Meal planning and grocery shopping behavior
Meal planning is also tied closely to grocery shopping. If someone is the household meal planner, they often also do a lot of the grocery shopping, and the data show that these tasks are usually concentrated in the same people.
In 2023, 52.6 percent of people age 15 and older usually did a lot or all of the grocery shopping in their households, while 32.3 percent usually did a little or some of the grocery shopping (USDA ERS: Eating and Health Module (ATUS) - Summary Findings). That means grocery shopping is not just a background task. It is part of the meal planning system itself.
Online grocery shopping adds another layer. In 2023, 19.5 percent of grocery shoppers bought groceries online at least once in the last 30 days (USDA ERS: Eating and Health Module (ATUS) - Summary Findings). Among those online grocery shoppers, 30.6 percent bought groceries online once in the last 30 days, 22.3 percent bought groceries online twice, and 47.1 percent bought groceries online three times or more (USDA ERS: Eating and Health Module (ATUS) - Summary Findings).
Why people shop online
The reason people buy groceries online matters just as much as the purchase itself. In 2023, 48.1 percent of respondents cited time constraints as the main reason for purchasing groceries online, while 13.9 percent cited convenience (USDA ERS: Eating and Health Module (ATUS) - Summary Findings). Among nonbuyers, 49.3 percent said they like being able to see and touch products in person (USDA ERS: Eating and Health Module (ATUS) - Summary Findings).
That mix suggests three important meal planning behaviors:
- Some households use online grocery shopping to save time.
- Some use it to make routine shopping easier.
- Some still prefer the in-person experience because it gives them more control over product choice.
The 2022 numbers point in the same direction. In 2022, 19.3 percent of regular grocery shoppers bought groceries online at least once in the last 30 days (USDA ERS: Who Shops for Groceries Online?). Among past-month online grocery shoppers, 30.2 percent bought online once, 25.1 percent bought online twice, and 44.7 percent bought groceries online three or more times (USDA ERS: Nearly 20 percent of U.S. shoppers bought groceries online in 2022). In 2022, 40.5 percent of online grocery shoppers cited time constraints as the main reason for buying groceries online, while 10.6 percent cited convenience (USDA ERS: Who Shops for Groceries Online?).
What the MyPlate numbers add to the picture
Meal planning statistics are not just about time and shopping. They also reveal how people think about healthy eating guidance.
In 2017-March 2020, 25.3 percent of adults age 20 and older had heard of MyPlate (CDC NCHS: Awareness of the MyPlate Plan). That awareness was higher among women, at 31.6 percent, than among men, at 18.5 percent (CDC NCHS: Awareness of the MyPlate Plan).
But awareness did not automatically translate into action. In the same period, 8.3 percent of adults age 20 and older had heard of MyPlate and tried to follow the recommendations (CDC NCHS: Awareness of the MyPlate Plan). Among adults who had heard of MyPlate, 32.7 percent tried to follow the recommendations (CDC NCHS: Awareness of the MyPlate Plan).
MyPlate awareness and self-rated diet quality
The dataset also shows how people rated their own diets:
- 7.2 percent rated their diet as excellent (CDC NCHS: Awareness of the MyPlate Plan).
- 22.0 percent rated it as very good (CDC NCHS: Awareness of the MyPlate Plan).
- 40.5 percent rated it as good (CDC NCHS: Awareness of the MyPlate Plan).
- 24.2 percent rated it as fair (CDC NCHS: Awareness of the MyPlate Plan).
- 6.1 percent rated it as poor (CDC NCHS: Awareness of the MyPlate Plan).
Adults with fair or poor self-rated diet quality had a lower odds of hearing of MyPlate, with an odds ratio of 0.65 (CDC NCHS: Awareness of the MyPlate Plan). They also had a lower odds of hearing of and trying to follow MyPlate, with an odds ratio of 0.53 (CDC NCHS: Awareness of the MyPlate Plan).
For meal planning, the implication is straightforward: guidance only helps if people know about it and can realistically use it in the daily routine. Awareness is one layer; the time and responsibility to act on that awareness is another.
What these statistics suggest about everyday meal planning
Taken together, the numbers point to meal planning as a system of tradeoffs rather than a single habit. Time use, household roles, shopping format, and nutrition guidance all interact.
A few patterns stand out clearly:
- Meal planning is time-intensive enough to matter, even at the average level of 37 minutes per day for adults age 18 and over (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up).
- Women carry much more meal prep and cleanup time than men, both in the overall average and among usual meal preparers (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up).
- Fast food and prepared food can reduce the time burden noticeably, especially for usual meal preparers and households with children (USDA ERS: Americans Spend an Average of 37 Minutes a Day Preparing and Serving Food and Cleaning Up).
- Grocery shopping habits are tightly linked to meal planning, and online grocery use is often motivated by time constraints (USDA ERS: Eating and Health Module (ATUS) - Summary Findings; USDA ERS: Who Shops for Groceries Online?).
- Awareness of food guidance such as MyPlate is not widespread enough to assume it shapes most households’ planning choices, and awareness is stronger among women than men (CDC NCHS: Awareness of the MyPlate Plan).
If you are using meal planning statistics to understand household behavior, the main lesson is that meal planning is not just about recipes. It is about who has the time, who takes responsibility, and which parts of the food routine can be simplified, outsourced, or standardized without breaking the household’s normal rhythm.