Lunchly Not a Healthier Option Than Lunchables

Exposure to heavy metals—arsenic, cadmium, and lead—through diet is a concern, especially for children. “It can affect cognitive development and increase the chances of other health problems,” Rogers says. The risks from those substances are cumulative.

We found detectable levels of lead and cadmium in the three Lunchly kits we tested. We also tested for total arsenic, but the levels were low enough that we did not conduct further testing for inorganic arsenic, the most harmful type. We didn’t find mercury in any of the kits. 

The lead levels stood out the most. Two of the Lunchly kits contained more than half of CR’s Level of Concern for lead. The lead levels we found are significant enough that exposure to any other source of lead in your life—other foods, drinking water, home environment, and even soil in yards or playgrounds—could potentially push someone eating the kits over CR’s Level of Concern, Rogers says.

We tested three of each variety of the kits, each with a different lot number, in early 2025 (it takes several months for us to perform our testing and generate findings). Our results are a snapshot in time and may not be representative of the lead levels in every kit. However, they underscore the importance of understanding how eating these kits fits into a child’s overall diet.

Lunchly challenged CR’s test methodology and findings and said the company did not “believe that the testing performed on the Lunchly kits provides reliable data.” The company also noted that its products are regularly tested for heavy metals, which they cited as “naturally occurring and are often in a variety of foods.”

Because Lunchly compares its kits with Lunchables on its website, we also included the lead results and sodium values for the Lunchables products we previously tested in the chart below. The sodium values for the Lunchly and Lunchables products were obtained from the nutrition labels on the packages, and are shown as a percentage of the U.S. Dietary Guidelines maximum daily sodium intake for kids 4 to 8 years old. Note: The package sizes listed here vary, but each package represents one serving of the product, and what you would expect someone to consume in a single sitting. For more on sodium, see "What Lunchly Doesn’t Highlight," below.

We tested for several types of phthalates, contaminants in plastic packaging, because increasing evidence shows that they can pose health risks. Those compounds can mimic or interfere with hormones in the body, which can contribute to an increased risk of reproductive problems, obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and certain cancers. “To varying degrees, phthalates and other plasticizers can make their way into food from the containers they’re in, or even be introduced during the manufacturing process,” CR’s Rogers says. Phthalates have been so widely used for so long that, like heavy metals, they’re hard to avoid. 

The highest level of phthalates we found in the Lunchly products was 1,900 nanograms. In our previous lunch kits test, the highest level of phthalates we found was 7,412 nanograms. That is less than the levels we’ve seen in some other supermarket staples and fast-food products CR has tested—which ranged from 0 to 53,579 nanograms per serving. While all the products we tested are below U.S. and European limits, some experts believe those limits should be much lower because some research shows health harms from phthalate exposure far below those levels. Therefore, the goal should be to minimize your exposure to them when possible.

On its website, Lunchly compares its products with versions of the Lunchables kits that also come with a drink and chocolate, focusing on calories and three nutrients: total sugars, protein, and electrolytes. CR reviewed the current nutrition facts panels on all the products. (Note: The Lunchables kits are not the same ones that CR tested for heavy metals and other contaminants in 2024. Those versions, which are shown in the chart above, do not come with a drink and chocolate.) 

When you compare just calories and the selected nutrients, at first glance it may seem like Lunchly is the better pick—lower in calories and sugars, and higher in electrolytes and sometimes protein. But if you take a closer look at the differences and examine the full nutrition facts labels side by side, as we do in the chart below, you’ll see that Lunchly kits really aren’t healthier. “I was open to the idea that they [Lunchly] could have created a healthier option,” says Jennifer Pomeranz, an associate professor of public health policy and management at the NYU School of Global Public Health. “And then I looked at the products. I was shocked—there wasn’t a difference [from other processed lunch kits].”

The Lunchly kits have 30 to 90 fewer calories than Lunchables. “That’s a small difference, especially when you consider the calorie requirements of growing children,” says CR nutritionist Amy Keating, RD. “Children need a certain amount of fuel to get through the day.” Eating a kit from either brand would provide only 11 to 20 percent of the recommended daily caloric intake for a moderately active 13-year-old boy.

More important than the calories is what makes up those calories, says Erica Kenney, ScD, an associate professor of public health nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston. There can be a lot of refined carbohydrates in both brands of lunch kits, and little fiber. The body processes refined carbs like it does sugar, burning through them quickly and causing a boost in glucose (blood sugar) levels, which may lead people to crave more food later. Meals with fiber take longer to digest and keep you full for longer, Kenney says.

Whether you compare total sugars (which include sugars that are naturally in a food and any added to the food), as Lunchly does, or added sugars (the type health experts say you should limit), Lunchly comes out ahead. That’s largely because the Prime Hydration drink that’s part of the Lunchly kits is mostly water with flavorings, sweetened with the sugar substitutes sucralose and acesulfame potassium. The Capri Sun drink pouch that comes with the Lunchables kits contains water, sugar, fruit juice, and monk fruit, another sugar substitute.

The American Heart Association recommends that kids and teens get no more than 25 grams of added sugars a day to help prevent heart disease and obesity. “Still, replacing sugar with artificial or even natural sugar substitutes, like monk fruit or stevia, may not be an improvement,” Keating says. According to the World Health Organization, those sweeteners are not effective at controlling weight or reducing the risk of heart disease or type 2 diabetes. Some of them are also associated with an increased risk for certain cancers, heart disease, diabetes, depression, and gut health issues. WHO says they shouldn’t be used for weight control, including by children, and other experts recommend that kids avoid those sweeteners.

Protein is probably the hottest nutritional buzzword. A countless number of foods tout their protein content on the front of the package, including Lunchly and Lunchables. But the amount of protein in comparable kits from both companies is practically the same. “The emphasis leads people to think that protein is something we’re lacking in our diets, but that’s not the case,” Keating says. Protein needs vary by age and weight. Kids ages 4 to 13 need 0.43 gram per pound of body weight a day. That comes out to about 22 grams for a 50-pound 8-year-old and 43 grams for a 100-pound 12-year-old. According to the latest available data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, kids between the ages of 4 and 13 are getting more than that—an average of 57 to 71 grams per day.

Like many sports drinks, Lunchly’s Prime Hydration drink contains added electrolytes (such as potassium). Those are minerals that regulate fluid balance and muscle contraction, among other things. You lose electrolytes through sweat, but that doesn’t mean you need to get them from a sports drink. 

Lunchly’s Us vs. Them comparison focuses on the drinks in both kits. It claims that the Prime drink contains 400 mg of electrolytes and the Capri Sun drinks in the Lunchables kits have 55 mg of electrolytes. That seems like an important difference, but experts say those added electrolytes in a drink are completely unnecessary for kids. Sports or energy drinks may be helpful if you’re a competitive athlete or marathon runner, but kids don’t need high levels of electrolytes to stay hydrated—water is fine. “Daily electrolyte needs can be met by a healthy, varied diet,” Keating says. Plus, there are healthier ways to get electrolytes, she says. Food contains electrolytes, too. (As the chart above shows, the total amount of potassium in both Lunchly and Lunchables kits can be much higher than what’s in their respective drinks alone.) “The potassium in the Prime drink is about the amount you would find in a cup of orange juice or a banana.”

Sodium is a concerning nutrient in Lunchly’s meals that isn’t mentioned on the Us vs. Them page. Even though these are relatively small meals, they supply between a third and nearly half the maximum amount of sodium—1,500 mg—that 4- to 8-year-olds should have in a day and 28 to 41 percent of the daily limit for 9- to 13-year-olds. That’s quite similar to the sodium levels in Lunchables meals.

As we did in our 2024 test of lunch kits, we measured the amount of sodium in the Lunchly kits and compared it with the sodium levels listed on the product packages. For the most part, the sodium in the kits we tested then and now, while not exactly the same as what was on the package, did not vary much from the amounts on the labels.

Excess sodium in kids’ diets is a big health concern. Eating too much sodium may contribute to high blood pressure in children and adults. Kids who eat a lot of sodium are approximately 20 percent more likely to have elevated blood pressure than those who eat low-sodium diets, according to the American Heart Association. And about 14 percent of children in the U.S. ages 8 to 19 already have prehypertension or hypertension, according to a 2024 study presented at an American Heart Association conference. Plus, kids who eat high-sodium diets may develop a preference for salty foods that lasts into adulthood, making it more difficult to cut back later in life.

Lunchly’s Us vs. Them breakdown also doesn’t mention saturated fat or fiber. Too much saturated fat can increase blood cholesterol levels and raise heart disease risks. The saturated fat levels in the two brands of kits are very similar. Fiber is a nutrient kids should be getting more of, but most lunch kits don’t provide much. The pizza and the meat, cheese, and crackers kits have 2 grams or less of fiber. The nachos kits from Lunchables and Lunchly have a bit more, 3 and 4 grams of fiber, respectively. 

In the end, though, a healthy diet isn’t just about comparing levels of nutrients. The quality of the foods that supply them is just as important. “Lunch kits are highly processed foods,” Keating says, containing additives, and often too much salt and sugar (or sugar substitutes), refined grains, and processed meat (like pepperoni and deli turkey). Those processed meats are of particular concern, she says, because studies have shown that eating even small amounts (an ounce or two a day) regularly can increase the risk of certain cancers and cardiovascular disease. 

The marketing of lunch kits, especially Lunchly, is powerful, and that also raises red flags for experts. “Kids look up to these guys,” says Kenney of Harvard, of the social media influencers promoting Lunchly. “You feel like you’re the kid that is totally out of the loop if you aren’t part of this culture, participating in what these influencers do,” she says. “I’m concerned [influencers] have a much stronger hold on kids’ brains and kids’ decision-making than classic marketing,” like kid-friendly packaging and cartoon characters. Ultraprocessed foods are already appealing, Kenney says. Marketing the kits in this way could make them even harder to resist, she says.

“The majority of kids’ diets should be made up of whole foods, but it’s not realistic to expect that they’ll never eat a lunch kit or other ultraprocessed food,” Keating says. If lunch kits appeal to your child, it’s okay to let them have one every once in a while. But you can also try to recreate the lunch kit experience by making your own. “Kids are attracted to the variety of little bites and the interactive nature of the kits—you get to decide just how to put the meal together,” Keating says. Get a multi-compartment lunch box (like a Bento box) and fill the containers with different foods your child likes. Below are some ideas for truly healthier lunch kits:

• Whole-wheat pita bread cut into bite-sized pieces; guacamole; cubes of mozzarella, cheddar, or Monterey Jack cheese; sliced cherry tomatoes and cucumbers; grapes; and a cookie.
• Hard-boiled egg, baby carrots, and celery with a container of ranch dressing; tortilla chips; and berries.
• Mozzarella balls, halved cherry tomatoes, olives, whole-grain crackers, hummus, and melon cubes.
• California sushi rolls, frozen edamame (will defrost before lunch), baby corn (canned), and sliced kiwi.
• Cheese tortellini (precooked), a small container of marinara sauce for dipping, sliced bell peppers, popcorn, and a granola bar with whole oats.