Free tool
High-protein meals, on a budget
Tell it your weekly food spend and how many you're feeding, and see your cost per meal, whether it's tight or roomy, and a costed sample day. Then let FORM build the whole week and the shopping list.
Sample high-protein day (per person)
Prices approximate UK value-range basics (2026) and vary by shop and week. That day lands around £4.15 and 140g protein - roughly £29/week per person. FORM's in-app planner costs a real week from your bank and hits your exact targets.
The staples
Cheap protein that does the heavy lifting
Hitting protein is what makes budget eating actually work for fat loss or muscle. Build most meals around one of these and bulk them out with rice, oats, potatoes and frozen veg.
Let FORM cost the whole week
Set a weekly spend and household size and FORM builds a week from its recipe bank that fits the money, hits your protein and calories, costs it per serving, and turns it into an aisle-grouped shopping list - scaled by how many you're cooking for, minus what's already in your pantry.
FAQ
Budget meal planning: FAQ
How do I meal plan on a budget?
Start from your weekly spend and how many people you're feeding, work out a per-meal budget, then build around cheap high-protein staples - eggs, mince, tinned fish, yoghurt, lentils - with bulk carbs and frozen veg. Batch-cook to cut both cost and effort. FORM's budget planner does the maths and the shopping list for you.
What is the cheapest way to eat high protein?
Per gram of protein, the cheapest sources in the UK are eggs, chicken thighs, value mince, tinned fish, Greek yoghurt, dried legumes and value whey. Build most meals around one of these, bulk them out with rice, oats or potatoes, and add frozen veg.
How much does it cost to eat healthily per week in the UK?
It's very doable from around £25-35 a week per person if you cook from value-range basics and batch-cook, and comfortable around £40-50. The calculator above shows where your budget lands and whether it's tight or roomy for high-protein eating.
Can FORM plan a budget week for me?
Yes - that's the in-app feature this tool teases. Set a weekly spend and household size and FORM assembles a week from its recipe bank that fits the money and still hits your protein and calories, costs it per serving, and turns it into an aisle-grouped shopping list you can scale by how many you're cooking for.