The best spice of the month clubs carry both common and unusual spices and blends so that customers can have the comfort of ingredients they know and love as well as the ability to try new dishes. Their websites are easy to navigate, subscription plans are both simple to sign up for and to cancel, and the spice subscriptions sound appealing to the average consumer.
Best Spice of the Month Clubs
Best Overall: Piquant Post Best Value: The Spicery Best on a Budget: SpiceBreeze Best for International Spices: Spice Madam Best for Hot Spices: Raw Spice Bar Best for BBQ: BBQ Rub of the Month Club
Why We Chose It: Piquant Post’s subscription box features several spice blends from a new region every month, and includes recipe cards. ProsRegional global focusIndividual spices for purchaseGood value ConsNo spice choicesOnly one sizeBest value involves long commitmentWith prices ranging from monthly to a full year’s subscription, Piquant Post has a subscription level for everyone. Choose from $10.99 a month prepaid for a full year, $11.99 monthly prepaid for six months, or be billed monthly at $12.99. This price gives you four packets of spice blends monthly. Each will come from a specific region in the world, along with recipes for each blend. Orders ship within two to three business days, as long as you place your first order between the 15th and 25th of the month. In addition to the spice blends that are sent with your monthly subscription, you can also order small quantities of other spices, both individually, and as blends. From Cuban Mojo to Bali BBQ to Vietnamese Pho, Piquant Post makes cooking new meals as easy as possible. Spices are always fresh ground in small batches, so they are sure to be lively and fragrant. Shipping is free and included in the price. Customers say that they enjoy the spices, and note that regions are often similar for months at a time. If you like to take your culinary trips around the world slowly, this box is a perfect choice. Why We Chose It: The Spicery has eight different food offerings with three duration options each, and all serve up a full meal’s worth of dishes. ProsFun, unique choicesModerate pricingSpices for entrees and sides ConsPrices are in poundsShipping costs extraThere’s no greater variety when it comes to spice subscription boxes than The Spicery. It offers eight different choices: World Kitchen Explorer, Friday Night Curry Discoverer, Date Night, Indian Restaurant Favorites, Meat Free Magic, Spicery Highlights For 2, Food Truck, and Easy Kit. Each of these is available for durations of three, six, or 12 months, and ranges in price from $8.87 when you prepay for 12 months, and $11.25 per month when you pay for three months. Shipping costs extra if you’re outside of the U.K., but you only pay once per shipping when you select the duration of your subscription. It tacks on about an additional $26 to the United States for the three-month duration, which breaks down to just shy of $9 per month in shipping fees. Besides offering so many different types of boxes, The Spicery’s club is unique in that rather than sending you spices for a few different entrees, they instead choose to help you make one entire meal. Each box contains the spices you need to make an entree as well as numerous side dishes that go along with the main. There are recipe cards included for all dishes, and the entire meal will serve four. The exception is the Easy Kit, which is designed for people who are culinary novices; it comes with spices and recipes for two different, simpler meals. Why We Chose It: For less than $10 a month, SpiceBreeze enables you to make two new meals of three servings each. ProsModerate pricingAuthentic global cuisinesMeals in under 30 minutesRewards points ConsNo ingredient choicesFixed monthly shipping date (15th)With the promise that you can “cook global meals with ease,” SpiceBreeze makes cooking with new spices just that, a breeze. Every month you’ll receive a kit with spice blends for two meals of three to four servings each, along with the recipes and fun facts about the dishes and the countries they originate from. Boxes start with their mini box option and no matter if you pay upfront or monthly, the pricing is $9.90 per month. Alternatively, you can opt for a larger box: The Family Size box provides six servings per meal for two different meals, and the Plus box comes with three different spice blends (for three different meals) with three servings each. Pricing for both the Plus and the Family Size is $13.90. Choose to pay upfront, or prepay for three, six, or 12 months at a time. The pricing is the same regardless of your payment plan. Once you’ve chosen your box size box, you then can answer questions about your culinary tastes to help create your own personal menu. The spices are freshly ground, and SpiceBreeze promises that you won’t need any traditional ingredients to make them. Spices are all free of MSG, artificial colors, flavors, and preservatives. Why We Chose It: Spice Madam curates an entire mood, including music, for every meal you cook. ProsSingle country focus each monthFour to six servings of each spice mixMusic and cultural facts includedNonprofit donations ConsNo ship day flexibilityNo customizationSome hard recipesThe payment plan you choose is your “itinerary” for your culinary journey with Spice Madam. In this spice subscription service, every month you will receive four different spice blends that have four to six servings each. Each blend comes with a recipe, music to listen to while cooking, and cultural facts about the country that the spice blend and recipe are from. Spice Madam chooses one country per month, so all of your spices and recipes that month will be from the same area. Pricing is $25 a month if you go month to month or prepay for three months, then lowers to $23.33 if you choose to prepay for six months, and then drops to its lowest price of $20 for a full year at a time. Shipping is free throughout the U.S. Recipe difficulty is indicated on the recipe cards, with one chef hat for easy, two for moderate skills required, and three hats for a more difficult to cook recipe. Customer service is available via email if you have trouble creating any of the recipes. Special diets are accommodated, with suggestions for how to make each recipe vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, or pescatarian. Spice Madam donates a percentage of proceeds to charities that improve education for children, particularly in the culinary space. Why We Chose It: Using transparently sourced spices from around the world, Raw Spice Bar sends as many spice blends monthly as you’d like. ProsTransparent sourcesSmall batchFreshly ground ConsHigh price per spiceSmall packetsNo spice choicesRaw Spice Bar offers a level of customization uncommon to spice of the month clubs by letting you choose exactly how many spices you want to receive each month. Their monthly option is $12 per blend, while their three-month, six-month, nine-month, or annual plans offer additional savings. Plus, when choosing your plan you can specify if you would like an omnivore or herbivore recipe to accompany your spice delivery. Shipping is included in the price, and you can cancel anytime. It’s a great choice for people seeking hot spices for two reasons: for one, they offer less common traditional spice blends that utilize heat, and they also have a large selection of individual spices available for separate purchase. Raw Spice Bar can also help introduce you to cuisines you may not be familiar with, as well as spice blends you haven’t heard of, and recipes are always included. Their spice blends are highly rated by customers. Beyond the recipes and spices sent monthly, Raw Spice bar keeps the recipes up on their website from older boxes. So if you choose to buy additional spices or spice blends outside of your monthly box, you’ll have the option of utilizing their recipes. Why We Chose It: Delivering only rubs made for barbequing, this is the most BBQ-specific spice of the month club out there. ProsAward-winning rubsLocally famous BBQ restaurantsFull-sized containers ConsOnly one rub a monthNo flavor info availableNo ingredient info availableFans of grilling, smoking, and barbequing will rejoice with BBQ Rub of the Month Club. With the company’s Rub of the Month Club Basic package, you’ll receive a full-sized container of a spice rub that is specifically made for grilling and barbecuing. The containers range in size from 4-12 ounces, meaning they will last several grilling sessions. Pricing is $71.91 per three months, and the cost stays about the same whether you choose a three-month subscription, six months, or 12 months. In addition to the rub-only option, they also offer a combo package, which includes both a rub and a grilling sauce. This package costs double the rub-only one, at $81.91 per three months. Shipping is free throughout the United States, and boxes ship the first week of every month. BBQ Rub of the Month Club sources their spice rubs and sauces from locally famous and award-winning barbeque restaurants and chefs, meaning you get to taste the offerings of restaurants in places that you might not ever visit. For those seeking a more comprehensive grilling experience, the site also sells grills, smokers, hot sauce, and prime quality meats.
How to Choose the Best Spice of the Month Clubs
To select the spice of the month club that’s right for you, there are several factors to keep in mind:
Value: How many spices will you get for the price and in what quantity? Make sure the serving sizes are appropriate for whoever you’re feeding regularly. Variety: Know how adventurous you want to be before choosing a spice of the month club. For ones with traditional, global recipes, be sure you’re open to trying new cuisines regularly. If you aren’t, choose a spice club with blends and seasonings that sound familiar.Easy to cancel: Cancellation policies should be clearly stated on the box’s website.Cooking time and skill required: Some spice of the month clubs are clearly for cooking novices, while others cater to more advanced cooks. Choose a club that aligns with your skills, as that will give you the best experience when cooking with the spices.
Spice of the Month Clubs vs. In-Store Purchase
Retail spices are usually sold in larger quantities than spice clubs offer. If you’re looking for bigger quantities than are common for the monthly deliveries, choose a club that also has their spices available for purchase in bigger packages too. With spice of the month clubs, you are paying for the novelty of trying new spices and spice blends, as well as for the recipes that often accompany them. Expect to pay more for subscription boxes than you would for in-store spices.
Are Spice of the Month Clubs Worth It?
Spice of the month clubs are worth the price for anyone looking to branch out in the cooking arena. While the cost is higher per ounce than if you were to buy the spices retail, the clubs enable you to try new spices without having to commit to an entire bottle. In turn, this can save you significant money due to less potential waste.
Can I Receive International Spices With Spice of the Month Club Membership?
Most spice of the month clubs offer international spices. Many even feature them regularly, with monthly spices and recipes highlighting a country or a region.
Are Spice of the Month Clubs Best for Baking or Cooking?
These clubs cater to cooks more so than bakers. We weren’t able to find a single club that offers only baking spices. Some clubs may offer some baking spices in their rotation, but for the most part, spice of the month clubs are only about savory cooking.
Methodology
To highlight the best spice of the month clubs out there, we looked at everything available, which was about a dozen well-known clubs. We evaluated the subscriptions based on value, variety, ease of navigation through the signup and ordering process, and quality of spices. As there were few spice of the month clubs that even referenced where their ingredients were sourced or whether they were organic, we made a point of mentioning when sourcing was available. Most spices of the month clubs grind their own spices in small batches, so this instead became the benchmark. Premium quality options are available for those looking to spend more, such as from Burlap and Barrel.
