Food

Nom Nom vs The Farmer’s Dog: The Battle Of Fresh Food Brands

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A bowl of Farmers Dog next to a photo of a dog eating nom nom out of a bowl on the counter

In an increasingly competitive market for healthy dog food, Nom Nom and The Farmer’s Dog are two of the leading companies that offer fresh meals personalized for every single canine customer. These subscription-based brands don’t come cheap, so it’s important to learn about what they offer before signing up for your pup. We explore their recipe options, nutritional value, customer service, and many other features to help you decide.

Visit Nom Nom’s Website | Visit The Farmer’s Dog Website

Nom NomFarmer’s Dog
Meal/Plan VarietyBrown checkmark (Yes)
Nutritional ValueBrown checkmark (Yes)Brown checkmark (Yes)
Meal PersonalizationBrown checkmark (Yes)
PricingBrown checkmark (Yes)
Customer Service & ReputationBrown checkmark (Yes)
Overall WinnerBrown checkmark (Yes)
Visit WebsiteVisit Website

Meal/Plan Variety

Both Nom Nom and The Farmer’s Dog offer beef, chicken, turkey, and pork recipes. All of The Farmer’s Dog recipes are grain-free, while Nom Nom offers one grain-inclusive option. Their turkey recipe includes brown rice for those of you who prefer whole grains in your pup’s diet. Is a grain-free diet safe for your pup? The FDA has not found a significant link between grain-free dog food and heart health. However, it’s wise to talk with your vet before switching your dog’s diet if you have any concerns. 

However, that’s not the only reason we’ve chosen Nom Nom as the winner in this category. Nom Nom also gives you the option of choosing half or full meals, although this is only offered for dogs weighing 40 pounds or more. Being able to purchase half meals is a fantastic way to improve your dog’s diet while decreasing costs. Just mix in the fresh food with your existing dog food for a nutritious boost. Nom Nom is one of very few fresh dog food brands that gives you this option. The Farmer’s Dog does not.

It’s also important to note that both of these companies ship your food in pre-portioned packaging, which makes mealtime a breeze. There’s no need to measure out food and store unused food for later.

Nom Nom logo

Meal/Treat Variety Winner: Nom Nom

Nutritional Value

Both The Farmer’s Dog and Nom Nom use all-natural, responsibly sourced, whole-food ingredients in their recipes developed by veterinary nutritionists. All recipes meet Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) guidelines for a complete and balanced diet for all life stages. Both companies also only use USDA human-grade ingredients in all of their recipes, which are slow-cooked to preserve nutrients.

Although this isn’t a major deciding factor in our comparison, Nom Nom doesn’t prepare meals in kitchens licensed for human food production (currently, one of several guidelines for a pet food brand to be able to call its food human-grade). The Farmer’s Dog uses USDA-certified kitchens and is considered human-grade dog food.

Both The Farmer’s Dog and Nom Nom also add fresh vegetables, fish oil, and essential vitamins and minerals to their animal proteins. You can also feel good about giving your pup either company’s meals because they contain no fillers, preservatives, or artificial ingredients (and no corn, wheat, or soy for allergy sufferers).

Nutritional Value Winner: Tie (Nom Nom & The Farmer’s Dog)

Meal Personalization

Nom Nom and The Farmer’s Dog have online dog profiles that you fill out so they can personalize your pup’s meals. Both sites’ profiles include your furball’s breed, gender, age, current weight, and body condition (which indicates if your pup is underweight, ideal, or overweight).

Most personalized fresh dog food services also ask for your pup’s activity level (including The Farmer’s Dog). But Nom Nom doesn’t. A more important difference, however, involves the specific health concerns you can add to your dog’s profile.

The Farmer’s Dog’s profile includes more than 15 health issues (allergies, gluten or grain insensitivity, ear infections, digestive issues, arthritis, etc.), with the option of adding any other health issues not listed. On the other hand, Nom Nom only lets you inform them of four general health concerns — food allergies, a sensitive stomach, a dry or flaky coat, and arthritis or joint pain. We give our nod to The Farmer’s Dog in this category for a more extensive personalized profile.

the Farmer's dog logo

Meal Personalization Winner: The Farmer’s Dog

Pricing

According to each company’s website, The Farmer’s Dog’s meals start at $2 per day, and Nom Nom’s start at $2.40 per day. Both companies base their pricing on how much food your dog needs and on the recipes you choose. They determine this by the profile you fill out for your pup, including weight, ideal weight, body shape, breed, age, activity level, gender, and health issues.

The pricing below is based on quotes we ran at the time of publishing. All were for a two-year-old mixed-breed dog at an ideal weight with no health issues. These are also for each company’s chicken recipe for a better comparison of pricing.

Dog’s WeightNom NomThe Farmer’s Dog
10 pounds$28/week$23.99/week
40 pounds$59.67/week$51.29/week
60 pounds$70.91/week$60.15/week

Both companies offer free shipping, and you can cancel, skip, or pause your subscription at any time. The Farmer’s Dog comes out on top due to lower pricing and more flexible delivery frequency options than Nom Nom.

the Farmer's dog logo

Pricing Winner: The Farmer’s Dog

Coupons

The Farmer’s Dog: Our readers have access to 50% off your first box. No code is needed; use this link, and the discount will be applied.

Nom Nom: Our readers have access to save 50% off your first order of Nom Nom; no promo code needed. Use this link to get started!

Customer Service & Reputation

Both companies have a sound reputation for producing high-quality fresh food, with no dog food recalls in their history. One fairly common complaint we see with all fresh dog food services is that the food is partially or thoroughly thawed upon delivery. From our extensive online research, Nom Nom gets more complaints about thawed food arriving than The Farmer’s Dog.

Regarding customer service, both companies offer support seven days a week: The Farmer’s Dog through phone and email, and Nom Nom via phone, text, email, and bot chat. While Nom Nom has more contact options, The Farmer’s Dog beats out Nom Nom in the overall quality of support.

Simply put, we’ve seen more complaints about unhelpful customer service, billing problems, and difficulty canceling with Nom Nom vs The Farmer’s Dog. But it’s important to point out that we’ve found hundreds of positive customer reviews for both brands.

the Farmer's dog logo

Customer Service & Reputation Winner: The Farmer’s Dog

What’s Our Verdict?

Both of these companies are excellent healthy options for your pup. But The Farmer’s Dog gets our nod in this battle of the brands because they’re generally less expensive, have a more extensive pup profile, particularly for health concerns, and have fewer customer complaints compared to Nom Nom.

On the other hand, if grain-inclusive fresh food is important to you, Nom Nom beats out The Farmer’s Dog. And Nom Nom’s offering of half meals (for dogs 40+ pounds) may be an enticing option for your budget.

the Farmer's dog logo

Overall Winner: The Farmer’s Dog

If you didn’t find exactly what you were looking for in this comparison, we’ve dug deeper into these companies with individual reviews of The Farmer’s Dog and Nom Nom, including our personal experiences. And see how Nom Nom and The Farmer’s Dog compare to other top-rated fresh dog food delivery services.

Our Methodology

We analyze hundreds of dog food brands and individual formulas to provide our recommendations for the best nutrition. Each of the following elements helps us determine the best dog food for any dietary need. Our in-depth research includes:

  • Scrutinizing all ingredients included in every formula
  • Having firsthand experience with our dogs for many of the foods we recommend
  • Assessing the guaranteed analysis for every formula, including protein, fat, fiber, and caloric content
  • Investigating the latest scientific studies on dogs’ nutritional needs and benefits of ingredients
  • Researching the specific dietary needs for breed sizes and health conditions
  • Reading hundreds of customer reviews
  • Staying informed on every dog food recall
  • Diving into every pet food brand’s history and reputation
  • Keeping on top of pet food trends

Unlike many other review sites, we give unbiased reviews based on countless hours of research. Our goal is to provide our readers with the healthiest options for their pups.

Why Trust Canine Journal?

Sally has researched and reviewed hundreds of different dog food brands and specific formulas. She’s an expert at analyzing dog food ingredients based on current nutritional guidelines and scientific studies for the healthiest food for our pups. She’s part of a team of dog specialists at Canine Journal who have over a decade of experience in researching, testing, and writing about everything you need to know to keep your pup healthy and happy.

Sally Jones

Sally has over 25 years of professional research, writing, and editing experience. Since joining Canine Journal (CJ) in 2015, she has researched and tested hundreds of dog accessories, services, and dog foods. In addition, she brings decades of experience in health sciences writing and communications and is the CJ resident expert on canine health issues. Sally holds a BA in English from James Madison University and an MA from the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Journalism & Mass Communications. Her work has appeared in several notable media outlets, including The Washington Post, Entrepreneur, People, Forbes, and Huffington Post. Sally is currently a pet parent to a rescue dog, Tiny, and three rescue cats.

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