The Farmer's Dog vs Ollie: What Fresh Food Really Costs

Fresh dog food pricing does not work like a normal grocery aisle. The Farmer's Dog and Ollie both price by your specific dog: weight, age, breed, activity level, and recipe. Neither publishes a flat price list, so any number you find online, including the ones in this guide, is an anchor or an example, not a quote for your dog. Getting an exact price means running your dog's numbers through each company's own questionnaire.

Fresh food is priced per calorie, not per bag, so a 5-pound Chihuahua and a 60-pound Golden Retriever land on very different monthly bills on the same recipe. This guide pulls together what each company has published, what independent testers have paid, and where the gaps are, so you know what to expect before you start either signup flow.

Why these prices are quote-gated

Both companies calculate your price from a free profile you fill out on their site. The Farmer's Dog's FAQ describes plans as calculated this way, with no public price list beyond a single starting-at figure (thefarmersdog.com/faq, reported, as of July 2026). Ollie's meal-plans page publishes per-meal starting prices for both plans but still routes you through onboarding for your dog's exact cost (ollie.com/meal-plans/, published, observed July 2026).

Either way, any headline number is a floor, not a bill. Your dog's daily calorie need, set largely by weight and life stage, determines what you actually pay.

The Farmer's Dog: published anchor and reported figures

The Farmer's Dog's own FAQ text, surfaced in search results, states plans "start at about $2/day" (thefarmersdog.com/faq, reported, as of July 2026). That is the only company-published number available. The Farmer's Dog's site blocked direct page fetches during this research, so this figure is reported from search results, not pulled from the live page, and no fuller published range could be confirmed.

Third-party testing fills in more of the picture. Life With Klee Kai ran several test cases through The Farmer's Dog and published these figures (lifewithkleekai.com/the-farmers-dog-price/, third-party test, article dated April 2026, observed July 2026):

| Dog | Weight | Cost per day | Cost per month | |---|---|---|---| | Chihuahua | 5 lb | $3.61 | $83.10 to $108.25 | | Beagle | 21 lb | $5.97 | $137.40 to $178.98 | | Golden Retriever | 60 lb | $10.82 | $249.50 to $325.00 |

The same reviewer's own two Alaskan Klee Kai dogs, each around 15 to 16 pounds, came out to $4.18 per dog per day, or $251.04 per month combined (lifewithkleekai.com/is-the-farmers-dog-or-ollie-cheaper/, third-party test, observed July 2026), the cheapest of the brands that reviewer tested side by side.

Other third-party estimates run wider still: Petful reports a per-day span of $2.31 to $26.77 and a monthly range of roughly $70 to $800, depending on dog size and plan (petful.com/food/the-farmers-dog-cost/, third-party, observed July 2026).

Ollie: two plans, one published price ladder

Ollie is more forthcoming with numbers up front. Its meal-plans page states its Full Fresh plan starts at $1.57 a meal, and its Half Fresh plan starts at $1.00 a meal (ollie.com/meal-plans/, published, observed July 2026). Ollie's own blog goes further, publishing a size-band weekly table for both plans (blog.ollie.com/how-much-does-fresh-dog-food-cost/, published, observed July 2026):

| Dog size | Full Fresh, per week | Half Fresh, per week | |---|---|---| | Small, 3 to 20 lb | $22 | $15 | | Medium, 20 to 50 lb | $55 | $38 | | Large, 50+ lb | $69 | $41 |

That same blog post frames daily cost as starting under $4 a day for small dogs and running up to around $8 a day for fully customized large-dog plans (blog.ollie.com/how-much-does-fresh-dog-food-cost/, published, observed July 2026).

Third-party testing lines up nearby. Life With Klee Kai's two 15 to 16 pound test dogs cost $5.18 per dog per day on Ollie's Full Fresh plan, or $310.80 per month combined (lifewithkleekai.com/is-the-farmers-dog-or-ollie-cheaper/, third-party test, observed July 2026), slightly above what the same reviewer paid for those dogs on The Farmer's Dog.

Ollie's Half Fresh plan: the budget path

If cost is the deciding factor, Ollie's Half Fresh plan is the cheapest published route to real fresh food from either company. It mixes fresh food with Ollie's kibble rather than going all-fresh, and it starts at $1.00 a meal against the Full Fresh plan's $1.57 (ollie.com/meal-plans/, published, observed July 2026). The size-band table above shows roughly the same gap, about a third off the Full Fresh weekly price at every band.

Testing backs that up. The same two dogs that cost $310.80 a month combined on Full Fresh dropped to $258 a month combined on Half Fresh, per Life With Klee Kai's comparison (lifewithkleekai.com/is-the-farmers-dog-or-ollie-cheaper/, third-party test, observed July 2026). The same article also cites a $184 monthly figure for a half-fresh plan without stating which dog it applies to, so treat that number as unresolved.

There is no published Half Fresh option from The Farmer's Dog in the sources reviewed here. If a mixed fresh-and-kibble plan matters to your budget, Ollie's Half Fresh plan is currently the one with a public starting price.

Trial offers, as published

Both companies advertise a discounted first order rather than a free trial. The Farmer's Dog's offer terms, reported via search results, describe new customers saving 50% on their first box as the standard, year-round offer, though deal-aggregator sites, not the vendor, occasionally report promotions running as high as 60% off (thefarmersdog.com/content/offerterms, reported, observed July 2026). Ollie's FAQ page publishes 50% off your first box plus a free bowl and welcome kit, covering both the Full Fresh and Half Fresh plans (ollie.com/faqs/, published, observed July 2026).

Trial terms change without much notice on subscription food sites, so confirm the current offer on each company's site before you check out.

Get your dog's actual number

Every figure above is either a company's own "starting at" anchor or a specific test case run on someone else's dog. Your dog's weight, activity level, and life stage will move the real price from any of these numbers, since a 60-pound Golden Retriever and a 5-pound Chihuahua are not remotely the same bill.

The fresh food cost calculator takes your dog's weight, life stage, and activity level, works out a daily calorie target using the standard veterinary energy formula, and maps that to the published pricing from both companies. Use the fresh food cost calculator to see where your dog lands before you commit to either signup flow.

Every number on this page is an estimate built from published anchors and independent test cases, not a quote. Get an exact price for your dog directly from The Farmer's Dog and Ollie before you subscribe to either one.

FAQ

Is The Farmer's Dog or Ollie cheaper?

Neither publishes enough of a price list to say for certain across all dog sizes. In the one head-to-head third-party test available, two similarly sized dogs cost $4.18 per dog per day on The Farmer's Dog versus $5.18 per dog per day on Ollie's Full Fresh plan (lifewithkleekai.com/is-the-farmers-dog-or-ollie-cheaper/, third-party test, observed July 2026). That is one tester's own dogs and own order, not a guarantee for every size and recipe combination.

Why can't I just get a flat price for my dog's size?

Both companies calculate cost from your dog's daily calorie need, which depends on weight, age, activity level, and recipe, not size alone. That is why both sites route you through a questionnaire instead of a price list. A calorie-based tool, like the fresh food cost calculator, approximates that math without requiring your contact information first.

How much does the first box cost with either company's trial offer?

The Farmer's Dog's reported standard offer is 50% off the first box (thefarmersdog.com/content/offerterms, reported, observed July 2026). Ollie's published offer is 50% off the first box plus a free bowl and welcome kit (ollie.com/faqs/, published, observed July 2026). Both are first-order discounts, not ongoing pricing, and terms can change.

Are these prices still accurate?

Treat every figure here as a snapshot as of July 2026. Subscription food companies adjust pricing regularly, and neither company publishes a locked-in price list. Confirm current pricing on thefarmersdog.com or ollie.com, or run your dog's numbers through the fresh food cost calculator for a current estimate.

DogTally guides and tools are for information only and are not veterinary advice. Talk to your vet about your dog's health.