Different Dog review UK 2026: recipes, delivery and terms
What Different Dog sells, how its plans are set, what it costs to feed and deliver, and the storage and cancellation terms, from the brand's own pages.
Our verdict, in one sentence
Different Dog sells cooked fresh dog food delivered frozen, with 13 grain-free recipes, but it publishes no food price before sign-up and charges £3.99 for each weekday delivery (checked 21 October 2026).
Good for
- Owners wanting cooked fresh food with a wide recipe choice
- Owners who want a grain-free fresh food
- Topping up dry food (a partial plan)
Not ideal for
- Owners without freezer space
- Owners who want to see a price before signing up
- Areas it does not deliver to: the Highlands and Islands
Published prices
- Food
- Not published
- Delivery, Monday to Friday
- £3.99
- Delivery, Saturday
- £4.99
- First two boxes
- 20% off (max £80)
From differentdog.com and its terms, checked 21 October 2026. The food price is shown after the sign-up questions.
Visit Different DogNo star rating: we do not score brands without a published method.
How it works
- Answer questions about your dogAge, weight, neutering and activity. The questionnaire recommends grams a day, and you choose a full plan or a partial plan as a topper.
- Choose recipes13 recipes, around 60% meat or fish, with no grains or gluten. A Health+ range includes a low purine and phosphorus recipe for dogs over 12 months.
- Delivery and storageCooked in Shropshire, blast frozen and delivered by DPD. Freeze on arrival; a defrosted pot keeps up to 5 days in the fridge.
Is Different Dog worth it?
Different Dog is worth considering if you want cooked fresh food and a broad menu: 13 recipes, all grain-free, around 60% meat or fish, with a first-box money-back guarantee of up to £50 (checked 21 October 2026). It is harder to judge on value, because unlike Butternut Box, Bella & Duke or Pure Pet Food it publishes no example price; its help centre says you can email or phone to be told the ongoing price before you commit.
On Trustpilot it scored 4.8 out of 5 from 2,678 reviews on 21 October 2026. If your dog does well on a complete dry food, fresh food is a preference rather than a need; our dog food comparison shows what complete dry foods cost per day.
Is Different Dog expensive?
Expect it to cost several times a dry food. Different Dog shows no price before sign-up, but it is the same kind of food as Butternut Box, at the same 130 kcal per 100 g, and Butternut's estimator showed £2.23 to £3.19 a day by dog size on 21 October 2026. Delivery adds to that: £3.99 a box on weekdays works out as shown below, depending on how long each box lasts.
- A box lasting 7 days: delivery adds about £0.57 a day.
- A box lasting 14 days: delivery adds about £0.29 a day.
- A box lasting 28 days: delivery adds about £0.14 a day.
Different Dog's help pages suggest a partial plan, used as a topper on other food, if a full plan is too dear; bigger, less frequent boxes also spread the delivery charge. It can change prices with four weeks' notice. For a full budget, use our pet cost calculator or see the cost of owning a dog in the UK.
How much Different Dog should I feed my dog?
Different Dog's sign-up questions recommend a daily amount in grams from age, weight, neutering and activity, and it says to treat this as a guide and update your dog's details over time. One pot is not necessarily one serving: a defrosted pot keeps up to 5 days, so it can be split.
Its Chicken Casserole label gives 130 kcal per 100 g. At that density the AAHA formula used in our dog food portion calculator gives a neutered adult about 250–290 g at 5 kg, 425–485 g at 10 kg, 715–815 g at 20 kg, and 965–1105 g at 30 kg a day. Use your dog's ideal weight; for a dog that needs to slim down, ask your vet for a target and see our dog food for weight loss page.
What owners say
Common praise
- Picky dogs eating the meals
- Responsive customer support
- Reliable delivery
Common complaints
- Samples or first boxes rolling into a subscription the reviewer did not expect
- Dogs refusing the food
- A long-standing customer said recipes changed and fewer suited dogs with allergies
Things to know before you subscribe
- It is a subscription: Signing up starts regular orders until you pause or cancel. An order already invoiced still processes unless you give at least 3 days' notice.
- Delivery: £3.99 on weekdays and £4.99 on Saturday, by DPD with a one-hour slot. No Sunday or bank holiday deliveries, and none to the Highlands and Islands. Refusing a delivery costs £10.
- Freezer space: Needed. Pots keep up to 10 months frozen and up to 5 days in the fridge once defrosted.
- Money-back guarantee: On the first box, up to £50, once per address. You must have fed it for at least 5 days and contact them within 28 days.
- Health conditions: For any diagnosed condition, check the recipe with your vet first; a commercial fresh food is not a substitute for a prescribed veterinary diet. If you are worried after a switch, contact your vet.
How it compares
Compare it with other fresh, raw and air-dried subscriptions in our dog food subscriptions comparison, read our Butternut Box review, or for a premium food you can buy by the bag or tin, our Lily's Kitchen review.
| Compared on | Different Dog | Butternut Box |
|---|---|---|
| Food type | Cooked fresh, delivered frozen | Cooked fresh, delivered frozen |
| Energy | 130 kcal per 100 g (Chicken Casserole) | 130 kcal per 100 g (average) |
| Published price | None | £2.23 to £3.19 a day by size |
| Delivery | £3.99 weekdays, £4.99 Saturday | Free trial box, then a fee |
| Recipes | 13, all grain-free | 12, 9 grain-free |
From each brand's own site and help pages, checked 21 October 2026.
What this review is based on · 8 sources, checked 21 October 2026ShowHide
What we did
What we did not do
Sources checked
- Different Dog homepage and offer · 21 October 2026
- Different Dog terms and conditions · 21 October 2026
- Different Dog delivery · 21 October 2026
- Different Dog Chicken Casserole (kcal) · 21 October 2026
- Different Dog help: how much does it cost · 21 October 2026
- Different Dog help: what is your food · 21 October 2026
- Different Dog help: puppies · 21 October 2026
- Trustpilot: Different Dog · 21 October 2026
Prices and terms change. Confirm on the retailer's page before you buy.
What changed in this update
- 21 October 2026: Upgrade: re-checked delivery charges, offer, recipes, storage and cancelling; added 'Is it worth it', 'Is it expensive' (with delivery cost per day) and 'How much to feed' sections, calories per 100 g, the money-back guarantee and the Trustpilot score, count and themes.
- 21 October 2026: Corrected: frozen shelf life is up to 10 months, as its help centre now states (we previously gave 6 and 10 months).
- 21 October 2026: Recipes, offer, delivery, storage and cancellation terms checked against Different Dog's site and terms.
Frequently asked questions
How much does Different Dog cost?
Different Dog publishes no price before sign-up; the cost depends on your dog's daily allowance and whether you feed it as a full diet or a topper. Delivery is £3.99 Monday to Friday and £4.99 on Saturday. New customers were offered 20% off the first two boxes (up to £80 off) when we checked on 21 October 2026.
How much Different Dog should I feed?
Different Dog's questionnaire recommends grams a day from your dog's age, weight, neutering and activity. At 130 kcal per 100 g (its Chicken Casserole label), the AAHA formula gives a neutered 20 kg adult roughly 715–815 g a day as a starting point. A pot can be split across meals.
Is Different Dog a complete food?
Different Dog says all its recipes are nutritionally complete and that 12 of its 13 are suitable for puppies. The low purine and phosphorus recipe is for dogs over 12 months only.
Is Different Dog food frozen?
Yes. It is cooked, blast frozen and delivered frozen by DPD. Keep pots in the freezer (up to 10 months) and defrost one in the fridge overnight; once defrosted it keeps up to 5 days.
Can I cancel Different Dog?
Yes. You can pause, change or cancel through your account, but an order that has already been invoiced still goes out unless you give at least three days' notice.
How does Different Dog compare with Butternut Box?
Both sell cooked fresh food delivered frozen, at about 130 kcal per 100 g. Butternut Box publishes an estimator (£2.23 to £3.19 a day by dog size on 21 October 2026) and delivers the trial box free; Different Dog publishes no price and charges £3.99 for weekday delivery.