Donald Russell review
Updated September 30, 2026 · TreatCue Editorial Team · Facts checked September 30, 2026
We earn a commission when you sign up through links on this site. Partner status can affect where a brand appears in our rankings.
Our verdict
Donald Russell is a GB food box specialist for households that want meat, seafood and gourmet items delivered next day without leaving the country. It scores 9.5 overall, with entry prices starting at £3 and next day delivery confirmed for its single market.
Key facts
- Best for
- GB households after next day meat, seafood and gourmet food boxes
- Price from
- £3 (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Free delivery threshold
- £50 (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Next-day delivery
- Yes (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Markets
- GB (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Legal entity
- Donald Russell Limited (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Headquarters
- United Kingdom (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Founded
- 1974 (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Support channels
- Email, Phone, Help-centre (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Products
- Meat, Seafood, Gourmet
- Sourcing
- Grass fed, Free range, Local
- Official website
- donaldrussell.com
Apps and profiles
- Elsewhere
- facebook.cominstagram.comyoutube.com
Pros and cons
Pros
- Entry price of £3 sits low against the brands ranked on price from, where it places 10 of 65.
- Next day delivery is confirmed, and free delivery starts over £50.
- Range covers meat, seafood and gourmet, wider than HelloFresh with meat and seafood.
- Sourcing is stated in plain terms: grass fed, free range and local.
- Support runs across email, phone and help centre rather than one route.
Cons
- Runs in a single market, GB, so it does not serve buyers outside the UK.
- Range is narrower than Zingerman's Artisan Cheese, which covers cheese, meat and seafood.
- Range also misses the snack and chocolate lines that Hungryroot lists at grocery, meat and seafood.
- Gourmet gifting is a side line here, while the range centres on meat, seafood and gourmet.
Who it suits
- GB households cooking at home who need meat and seafood in a hurry
- Shoppers who read sourcing labels such as grass fed, free range and local before buying
- Gift buyers wanting a gourmet food box delivered next day
Who should look elsewhere
- Buyers outside the UK, since it serves GB only
- Cheese and chocolate gift shoppers who want the range at Zingerman's Artisan Cheese
- Shoppers seeking a wider grocery mix than Hungryroot carries
Pricing
Donald Russell opens at £3, which places it 10 among the 65 brands ranked on price from. That entry point is the number most households react to, because a first box is a low risk test of a butcher and fishmonger rather than a long commitment. Delivery stops being a separate line once an order passes £50, so a family shop for a week lands without a second charge added at checkout. Site figures put a typical box at a median price per serving of €7.88, with the middle range running €5.25 to €10.51. The floor and ceiling across the site are €1.75 and €34.11, a spread that reflects choice of cut and size rather than a single subscription tier. Across 312 brands, 93.2% is the most common support route and 62.8% follows, which is useful context when a box arrives short. Two brands listed as alternatives sit at either end of the same comparison: Zingerman's Artisan Cheese, whose product types reach cheese, meat and seafood, and HelloFresh, which keeps to meat and seafood.
Who runs it
Donald Russell trades as Donald Russell Limited and is based in the United Kingdom, having been founded in 1974. The company serves GB, so anyone outside the UK is looking at the wrong checkout. Support is handled through email, phone and help centre, which means an order problem can go to a person on the phone rather than sitting in a queue of tickets, and the help centre covers the routine questions first. Reach is broad by site standards: 89.4% is common across 312 brands and 93.2% is the most common, with 30.7% and 7.2% the thinnest options. Within the meat and seafood ranking, 35 brands are compared, and phone support carries 72.7% there, above the site baseline. The gourmet food gifting ranking, with 50 brands, puts local sourcing at 48.6%, which fits a company buying from British farms and coast.
How Donald Russell compares
- 9.5 vs 8.5
9.5 vs 8.5
9.5 vs 8.8
9.5 vs 9.4
9.5 vs 8.9
9.5 vs 8.5- 9.5 vs 9.6
9.5 vs 8.5
- 9.5 vs 8.4
9.5 vs 9.3- 9.5 vs 8.9
- 9.5 vs 9.2
- 9.5 vs 9.9
9.5 vs 9.5It lists only meat and seafood and sits in a different market, making it a planned meal comparison rather than a butcher and fishmonger.
9.5 vs 9.1
9.5 vs 9.0- 9.5 vs 8.7
- 9.5 vs 8.7
Gift Baskets Overseas
TeaVivre
One World Observatory
Watsons Wine
Concert
IGP
Kontramarka
Jebsen Wines and Spirits
Hungry Hub TH
Parmigiano Reggiano
Albert Wines MY
Siang Shuai Cake
Jinbo Selection
Taze Cicek
Righetto
El Dorado Water Park
JUNANDUS Cake Shop Malaysia
VinWonders
ProLon Europe
Flor2u
Winelab
Xpresent
FlowerAdvisor PH
Megatix TH
Ferns N Petals QA
Bloomeroo
GetYourGuide
Ticombo
Gametime
Where Donald Russell is available
- Available
- United Kingdom
Countries from the brand (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Frequently asked questions
What does a Donald Russell box cost?+
Entry pricing starts at £3, and that figure ranks the brand 10 of the 65 brands compared on price from. Site medians for price per serving sit at €7.88, with a middle band of €5.25 to €10.51. Cost is a primary consideration for readers, since many boxes fall in that middle band.
Is delivery free on a Donald Russell order?+
Delivery is free once an order passes £50. Below that level, the delivery cost is the part that most changes the final checkout total for a small shop, so it is worth checking before adding a couple of small cuts to a basket. Next day delivery is confirmed alongside that policy.
Can a Donald Russell box arrive the next day?+
Next day delivery is available, which is the main practical reason to choose this brand over a grocery box. Site-wide, 51.3% splits evenly with 48.7%, so it is not a given. In the meat and seafood ranking the split is the same, at 52% and 48%.
Where does Donald Russell deliver?+
It serves GB, and the company is headquartered in the United Kingdom. In other words, this is a single market service and there is no international arm to fall back on. Readers planning a box for an address abroad should treat the market list as the first filter, before comparing prices.
How do I get help with a Donald Russell order?+
Support runs on email, phone and help centre, so questions can go to a person by phone, by email, or through the help centre for routine matters. Across 312 brands, 93.2% is the most common route and the help centre is close behind. In the meat and seafood ranking, phone support is stronger still at 72.7%.
What kind of food does a Donald Russell box contain?+
The range covers meat, seafood and gourmet, so a box leans on the butcher and fish counter rather than a full weekly grocery list. HelloFresh stays with meat and seafood, and Hungryroot reaches grocery, meat and seafood, so this is a focused range by comparison. It suits households cooking most meals at home rather than assembling a full shop.
How does Donald Russell source its food?+
Sourcing is stated as grass fed, free range and local, in the brand's own terms. Site-wide, 43.1% and 47.1% are the most common sourcing claims among 312 brands. In the gourmet food gifting ranking, 48.6% leads, which is the direction a gift buyer here would be buying into.
How long has Donald Russell been trading?+
The company was founded in 1974 and trades as Donald Russell Limited. Length of trading is a reasonable proxy for stability on food handling and delivery reliability, though it says nothing about prices. The legal entity and the founding year together describe a business with a long record in its home market.
Sources
- donaldrussell.com checked September 30, 2026
Backs: Founded, Headquarters, Legal entity, Price from, Products
“Donald Russell. Making Mealtime Memories Since 1974.”
- donaldrussell.com/pages/delivery-policy checked September 30, 2026
Backs: Free delivery threshold, Next-day delivery
“On all orders containing products worth over £50 (excluding gift vouchers), to a single UK mainland, or Scottish island address (excluding remote areas as detailed below) will be delivered to you for...”
- donaldrussell.com/pages/faqs checked September 30, 2026
Backs: Markets, Sourcing, Support channels
“We can deliver to any mainland UK address (not P.O Boxes) but some locations may have special delivery requirements.”
Compiled from 3 source pages, checked September 30, 2026. We did not open an account.
What changed
- September 30, 2026: axisScores cost was 9.4, now 9.5
- September 30, 2026: axisScores trust was 9.6, now 9.7
Donald Russell
GB households after next day meat, seafood and gourmet food boxes