Nom Nom Now vs. Ollie – Reviews and Ratings of the Best Fresh Dog Food Subscription for Your Puppy in 2021

Fresh dog food is the newest trend in the dog food industry. Instead of the usual kibble and wet dog food most of us are used to, these fresh food options look more like the real food you’d find at the grocery store.

Fresh foods lack many of the preservatives that other pet food types contain. They also aren’t overly processed, which means you can see what you’re feeding your dog. Many pet owners report improvements in their dog’s health after beginning a fresh dog food.

As you can see, there are many reasons you might want to consider feeding fresh food to your dog. Your next step is to decide which dog food delivery service you wish to use. There are many fresh food subscription services out there, like pet plate and the farmer’s dog, but two of the most popular ones are Nom Nom Now and Ollie. Both of these dog food brands deliver fresh food to your front door that is specially formulated for your canine.

However, despite their apparent similarities, there are a few differences between these two brands. We took a scientific approach and carefully looked at each brand’s macronutrients, formulation, quality of ingredients, convenience, price, veterinary endorsement, personalization options, and customer service.

Advantages of Fresh Food Dog Food

Healthier for the Dog

Just like for humans, fresh dog food is often just better for your dog. Kibble and wet food are often heavily processed and contain many excess ingredients, including preservatives, dyes, and even artificial flavors. We know that many of these additives are not great options for us or our canines.

Instead, human-grade, fresh dog food is often a healthier choice when formulated correctly. While we can create fresh food at home, we lose the benefits of having a veterinary nutritionist’s input on food creation. This is where delivery dog food comes in handy. You get the benefits of fresh food with the benefits of veterinarian formulation.

In the end, investing in a healthier, higher quality food upfront often makes our canines healthier. Healthier dogs need to go to the vet less, leading to lower vet costs and fewer health emergencies. As you can imagine, feeding your dog fresh food is an investment in their health that pays off.

Convenience

We’ve all ran out of dog food at one point or time. Then, you’re stuck with a hungry dog and no food to give them, forcing you to run to the store at a terribly inconvenient time.

With a meal delivery service, you don’t have to worry about this. Your dog’s food is delivered right to your door regularly. You never run out and can forget about needing to run to the pet store at 7 o’clock in the morning.

Personalized Macronutrients for your Dog

Just like people, not all canines need the same diet. Your dog’s breed, age, activity level, and even medical history all factor into their dietary needs. You can personalize fresh dog food to your canine’s particular needs. Both Nom Nom Now and Ollie have multiple formulations available, allowing you to select whichever one your pup would benefit from most.

Quick Comparison of Nom Nom Now vs. Ollie

Price

Viewing the price on both Nom Nom Now and Ollie requires you to fill out a form with your pup’s information. This allows both sites to calculate portion sizes based on your pet’s current weight, ideal weight, activity level, and a few other factors. Ollie also takes into account whether or not your dog is neutered. You will also have to answer information about your dog’s current wet or dry food.

We played with both calculators a little bit, and in the end, both foods ended up being about the same price no matter what size or breed dog you have. Ollie was just a few dollars cheaper in some cases. Both brands also include a first-order discount, allowing you to save a little on your first box. At the time of this review, Ollie’s cut is a little higher.

Ingredients and Recipe Options

Both Nom Nom Now and Ollie use current AAFCO standards for all of their dog food formulations. Their human-grade ingredients are also high-quality, and all foods come with meat as at least the first few ingredients. Both companies have four different meal plans. Both have beef, turkey, and chicken flavors, while Ollie has a fourth lamb flavor, and Nom Nom Now has a fourth pork flavor called porkalicious potluck. Overall, both companies have enough options for even picky eaters.

Delivery Options

Both services send food to your door regularly. Nom Nom Now allows you to choose between a few different delivery options, while Ollie also allows you to select a flexible delivery option. You can change your delivery selection at any time through both companies.

Packaging

Shipped in containers designed to keep the food frozen, both boxes are designed to keep your food cold throughout the delivery process. If your box is delivered while you’re at home, there is no need to worry since both companies created their boxes to keep the food frozen while you’re away. Both types of food are delivered in vacuum-sealed bags.

Once your food is delivered, Nom Nom Now suggests storing one week’s worth of food in the fridge. If you opt to receive more than one week’s worth of food at a time, you should put the rest in the freezer.  Nom Nom Now has a one-bag-one-meal system, so there is no measuring or scooping necessary.

Ollie requires you to store all your food in the freezer except what your pet needs to eat that day. Food will stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, however. Ollie does require you to follow some measuring guidelines when feeding your pet.

Quality

Both companies use quality ingredients and feature at least a few grain-free options. Nom Nom Now uses only whole, human-grade foods that are sourced from USA and USDA approved facilities. Each formula is developed by Dr. Justin Shmalberg, ensuring that each is nutritionally complete for your canine.

Ollie uses the highest quality meat around. Their chicken is hormone-free and comes from human-grade farms. Lamb comes from free-range, pasture-raised farms from the US and Australia. They use “superfoods” like cod liver oil and chia seeds in many of their products, though we should point out that there is no scientific evidence for the “superfoods” trend. They do not have a veterinarian on staff as far as we could tell, however.

Who is It not For

Fresh food is much healthier than a standard commercial dog food, but the convenience and fresh ingredients come at a cost. Owners who buy it are investing in the best option possible for their pet. While it’s not outrageously priced, expect to invest about $3.50 a meal, which equals $50 a week for 14 meals (you will get 50% off your first order if you sign up through the link we provide).

Why It’s Great: Nom Nom Now

• This company has a veterinarian on staff, ensuring that food is designed to the utmost quality and is nutritionally complete for your canine.
• You may store their food in the refrigerator for up to a week. If you opt to get a week’s worth of food at a time, it is very straightforward just to toss everything in the fridge and forget about it — no need to worry about thawing portions out before each mealtime.
• Each bag contains one portion, so there is no need to measure. It is quick and easy.

Why It’s Great: Ollie

• Some ingredients are farm-raised and pasture-fed, which might be necessary for some pet parents.
• Somewhat cheaper depending on the plan.

Complete Review of Nom Nom Now vs. Ollie Formulas

Nom Nom now Formulas

Macronutrients (Dry-Matter Basis):

• 33.33% Protein
• 16.67% Fat
• 23.33% Carbs

This is one of the best foods we have ever reviewed. It does not contain any controversial ingredients, like peas or lentils, and has a high protein content. Carbohydrates are low at only 23.33%. It is nutritionally complete and formulated by a veterinarian. Plus, turkey is often not an allergen for dogs, so this should work well for even dogs with sensitive stomachs and skin.

Watch Dr. Justin Shmalberg (a board-certified specialist) explain the ingredients:

Macronutrients (Dry-Matter Basis):

• 37.04% Protein
• 16.67% Fat
• 35.19% Carbs

Flaws but not dealbreakers: While this formula does include quality beef as the first ingredient, we were a little disappointing that this was the only meat in the first five ingredients. However, eggs in the third ingredient and is a quality source for many of the nutrients pets need.

We flagged the inclusion of russet potatoes and peas, as both of these ingredients have been mentioned in an FDA warning about heart disease in dogs. Peas especially have been reported in this link.

Since Nom Nom Now is formulated by an expert in the field of animal nutrition, their recipes are optimally balanced to support the needs of pets of all life stages, even those who may have issues absorbing the primary nutrient in question, taurine.

While the FDA has yet to reach any firm conclusions from this investigation, they are working closely with experts to see if a nutritional link may exist for some of the impacted pets. We are closely monitoring their progress, as well as all other research related to this issue.

As a dog owner, if you have any concern at all that your dog may be at risk for, or maybe showing symptoms of a heart condition like DCM, we encourage you to consult with your vet. Early diagnosis greatly improves outcomes.

Macronutrients (Dry-Matter Basis):

• 40% Protein
• 26.08% Fat
• 24% Carbs

With such a high protein content, it was hard not to give this food a 5/5. It checks off almost every box we consider when rating each meal. The macronutrient content is near-perfect, nearly every ingredient is high-quality, and it meets AAFCO standards.

However, it does include sweet potatoes as the second ingredient, which has been tentatively linked to DMC in dogs by the FDA. Because of this, we couldn’t give it the 5/5 it would otherwise deserve.

Macronutrients (Dry-Matter Basis):

• 30.77% Protein
• 23.08% Fat
• 34.62% Carbs

For similar reasons as the last review, the Nom Nom Now pork recipe is near-perfect. It has near perfect macronutrients and your dog will be getting the right amount of calories, and the right amount of nutrients to be healthy.

Flaw but not a dealbreaker: It includes potatoes as the second ingredient, but the carbohydrates are definitely within acceptable levels.

Ollie Formulas

Macronutrients (Dry-Matter Basis):

• 37.50% Protein
• 31.25% Fat
• 21.88% Carbs

We loved that it includes a meat source as the first two ingredients, however the other three components are linked with heart disease and Taurine deficiencies. This dog food also does not contain added Taurine like most do, but Taurine is naturally found in muscle meat and organs, so it’s nutritional profile is still excellent.

Macronutrients (Dry-Matter Basis):

• 35.71% Protein
• 14.29% Fat
• 39.29% Carbs

This food has plenty of high-quality meats early in the ingredient list and includes some extra fresh ingredients that will be beneficial to your dog, like cod liver oil and spinach.

Flaws but not dealbreakers: It includes peas as the fourth ingredient and did not include added Taurine to off-set this ingredient. The macronutrient content contained a higher level of carbohydrates. It would be more optimal to have a lower carb balanced nutritional profile.

Macronutrients (Dry-Matter Basis):

• 44% Protein
• 28% Fat
• 16% Carbs

This is an excellent choice for almost any dog. Firstly, turkey is one of those meats that not many dogs develop an allergy to. This means there is less of a chance your dog will react poorly to it. Secondly, the macronutrient contents are excellent. Protein is at 44%, which is higher than almost every other food we’ve tested. Thirdly, there are no peas or potatoes included. This means your dog won’t be at a heightened risk for DMC – a life-threatening heart condition.

Macronutrients (Dry-Matter Basis):

• 36.67% Protein
• 30% Fat
• 23.33% Carbs

With kale, butternut squash, and veggies, it isn’t hard to tell that this formula is going to be good for your dog. The macronutrient content is good, with carbs being under 30%. The fat is a little higher than we would have liked, but not to the point that it would be troublesome. Plus, they use meat sources as the first two ingredients.

However, this dog food does contain lamb as the main ingredient. It’s not a dealbreaker, but lamb is a non-traditional meat source for dogs, which means that we don’t have enough data about its long-term effects in a dog’s diet. Lamb is also lower in taurine than most meats, which can cause heart problems. Lamb has been linked by the FDA to DMC, a severe heart problem now running rampant due to dietary issues.

While Ollie argues that lamb is suitable for dogs with allergies, the opposite is true. Lamb has the same allergen as beef does, which means that many dogs will have an adverse reaction to it. If your dog can tolerate lamb, than this is an excellent food choice. But because many dogs may not do well with lamb, we couldn’t rate this as highly as some of the other recipes.

Learn more: Best Salmon Dog Food and Best Low Sodium Dog Food

Final Verdict: Nom Nom Now vs. Ollie

In the end, Nom Nom Now is our clear winner. The nutritional profile is easily superior to all commercially available foods out there. Nom Nom Now is more convenient than Ollie because no measuring is involved, and you can throw a whole week’s worth of meals in the fridge.  Both brands have excellent ingredients and don’t use fillers, but the Nom Nom Now recipes were better overall than Ollie’s. Nom Nom now included only proven protein as their primary protein source in all their meals and kept peas to a minimum.

While Nom Nom Now is slightly more expensive than Ollie, the few extra dollars is worth it for the quality fresh meals they offer.  Highly, highly recommend.