Last Updated on May 29, 2026 by Kieran Beckles
UnKibble and The Honest Kitchen are two popular alternatives to traditional kibble, but which is better? I tested both with my dogs to compare ingredients, value, and overall appeal to picky eaters like my dog Skye.
UnKibble vs Honest Kitchen Quick Verdict |
 Both UnKibble and The Honest Kitchen offer higher-quality nutrition than traditional kibble, but if I had to choose one, I'd personally go with UnKibble. My dogs preferred it, it's more convenient to serve, and I found it offered a better balance of nutrition, simplicity, and value. That said, The Honest Kitchen is still a great option if you're looking for a human-grade dehydrated food and don't mind the extra preparation. Overall, UnKibble was the winner in my household. You can use "LIFEK50" at the checkout to save 50% off your first order. |
Having moved back to the USA in 2023, I’ve been eager to find the best fresh dog food for my Alaskan Klee Kai, considering the breed can sometimes be picky eaters with a sensitive tummy.
While we’ve typically been giving fresh pet food meals to Copper and Skye, we decided to try dry dog food after finding a lot of human-grade dog food in dry form.
UnKibble is the best value among the dog food subscription companies I’ve reviewed. They offer a custom scooper to provide truly personalized meals. It passed the taste test with my fussy Klee Kai, Skye.
The Honest Kitchen offers dehydrated recipes, another take on dry dog food. It lacks customization, but you can find the Honest Kitchen at your local pet store, which some pet owners may prefer.
In this comparison dog food review, we’re going to look at UnKibble and The Honest Kitchen, two dry dog food brands that offer human-grade options.
UPDATED: May 2026
We updated this comparison article in May 2026 to reflect the latest pricing updates after we retested The Honest Kitchen and UnKibble. We also added a table comparing The Honest Kitchen and UnKibble. As always, this article follows our dog food testing process to ensure accurate, honest, and experience-based recommendations.
UnKibble Or The Honest Kitchen Comparison Table
| Brand | UnKibble | Honest Kitchen |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Yes | No |
| Available in stores | No | Yes |
| Meal customization | Personalized | Lacks customization |
| Pre-portioned | Custom scooper | No custom scooper |
| Recipes | 3 recipes | 12 recipes |
| AAFCO compliant | Yes | Yes |
| My monthly cost | $164.40 | $310.80 |
| Cold storage required | Shelf stable | Cupboard |
| Picky Eater approved | Enjoyed | Liked |
| Best For | Picky eater | Variety |
UnKibble Or The Honest Kitchen: Our Verdict
Let’s cut to the chase: do we prefer UnKibble or The Honest Kitchen?
I’d recommend Spot and Tango’s UnKibble range for dog owners who want to ditch traditional kibble in favor of human-grade dog food.
UnKibble has redesigned the look of kibble by using fresh ingredients fit for human consumption (although I wouldn’t recommend you actually eat UnKibble; save it for your dogs!).
When I opened the UnKibble bag, I noticed their dog food looked a little different from regular kibble with specks of color highlighting the fresh fruits and vegetables in this Spot and Tango dog food.
Since you answer all their questions about your dog, I like that UnKibble provides a custom scooper to reinforce the tailored, pre-portioned aspect of their human-grade pet food.
My dogs love UnKibble’s chicken and brown rice recipe and beef and barley recipe. I’d recommend starting with those two recipes if you’ve got a fussy eater like me. They didn’t like their fish recipe.
Once mealtime was over, I loved the ability to pop UnKibble in the cupboard rather than having to make room in my fridge or freezer. It’s super convenient, no mess and still fresh whole foods.
The Honest Kitchen has a great range of proteins on offer, which I appreciate as a picky eater to satisfy. They’ve got typical proteins such as beef and chicken, but you can also feed duck and salmon.
It’s slightly cheaper than UnKibble. I paid $120 for their dehydrated food, while my personalized UnKibble subscription plan cost $164.40.
The Honest Kitchen requires more effort to prepare at mealtime because you have to mix their dehydrated food with some water.
UnKibble is better value than the Honest Kitchen. Of all the dog food I’ve reviewed, UnKibble would be one of my favorite dry dog food companies alongside Sundays.
What Is UnKibble?
UnKibble is a dry food range created by an experienced fresh dog food brand, Spot & Tango.
Spot & Tango wants to reshape how we view dry dog food through its UnKibble range, providing dog owners with a fresh approach to kibble.
UnKibble is made with human-grade ingredients, including USDA-approved meat and fresh fruit and vegetables, in limited-ingredient recipes formulated by veterinary nutritionists.
You won’t find any artificial flavors, artificial preservatives or other artificial ingredients in their fresh recipes, just real food that you or I might eat as part of our daily diet.
To get started with UnKibble, you’ll need to fill out their questionnaire so Spot & Tango can tailor your dog’s dry food to their specific needs.
UnKibble offers three recipes – beef and barley, cod and salmon and turkey and sweet potatoes. You can follow their suggest meal plan or make your choice if you want. They removed the chicken recipe from their menu in 2026.
Once you get your first UnKibble delivery, you’ll find a customized scooper that’s been made especially for your dog, whether they need to gain weight or lose weight.
I liked that UnKibble uses human-grade ingredients that I’d eat as part of a healthy diet, so I had peace of mind knowing Copper and Skye are truly eating a fresh-food diet.
When I received my UnKibble delivery, I loved that they included a customized scooper for their dry food. While a lot of human-grade dog food companies claim to tailor their food to your pet’s needs, not every pet food brand actually pre-portion their fresh food.
Copper and Skye had their own Spot and Tango scooper, which made sure they were getting the right portions because Copper needs to lose a few pounds while Skye needs to gain weight.
They enjoyed their UnKibble meals, especially the beef recipe. We had an excited Klee Kai at mealtime, as well as empty bowls and happy, content dogs. My Alaskan Klee Kai weren’t particularly keen on the fish recipe or the turkey recipe.
UnKibble claims to be 40% cheaper than fresh frozen meals, and based upon most human-grade dog food that I’ve reviewed for Life With Klee Kai, their dry dog food is cheaper.
Copper and Skye’s UnKibble cost $37 per week or $164.40 per month. I loved that I could pay less and still get dog food with human-grade ingredients that don’t take up fridge or freezer space.
Do you want to learn more about UnKibble?
We wrote an in-depth review of their dry food.
| UnKibble Pros | UnKibble Cons |
|---|---|
| Tailored plans | Only 4 recipes |
| 4 recipes | Costs more than kibble |
| Custom scooper | Can't combine with fresh easily |
| Best price of all brands reviewed | Klee Kai didn't like fish recipe |
| Transparent Labelling | |
| Klee Kai approved |
Who Is The Honest Kitchen?
The Honest Kitchen is a versatile dog food brand that offers a range of pet food, including dry and wet options. They’ve got two dry dog food formats: Clusters and Dehydrated.
Their Whole Food Clusters are made from natural ingredients to create human-grade food for your dog. Their ingredients that you’d typically find in your kitchen, such as ranch-raised beef, fruit and vegetables.
The Honest Kitchen creates the Clusters using a cold-pressed method before they’re roasted and dehydrated to retain all the natural nutrients, tasty flavor and taste of the ingredients.
Sundays or The Honest Kitchen?
We wrote a comparison article here.
The Honest Kitchen has Dehydrated dog food made with real, whole-food ingredients, gently dehydrated to lock in all the nutrients and taste.
When it comes to their Clusters, dog owners just need to pour into their dog’s bowl, but the Dehydrated food requires pet parents to add warm water and wait three minutes before serving.
Having browsed The Honest Kitchen’s website, I couldn’t find a sign-up questionnaire. There doesn’t seem to be a customized element to their human-grade dog food.
Should you feed The Farmer's Dog or The Honest Kitchen?
We compared these two dog food brands here.
We were approached by The Honest Kitchen to give their Clusters and Dehydrated food a go.
Having previously tested and reviewed a dehydrated dog food brand in the UK, I was intrigued to see how Copper and Skye would take to The Honest Kitchen.
They weren’t particularly interested in their Clusters, which didn’t surprise me because Copper and Skye tend to be picky eaters when it comes to kibble – especially Skye.
However, their Dehydrated dog food was more of a hit with my Alaskan Klee Kai. It’s more like wet food once you’ve added warm water, which helps extract more aroma from the dog food.
While Copper and Skye liked the Dehydrated dog food, it’s certainly a lot messier to add dry dog food to warm water before mixing it together.
From a dog owner’s perspective, the Dehydrated dog food format can add more hassle.
The Honest Kitchen is competitively priced: we paid around $110 for their dehydrated dog food. So it’s definitely an affordable option for dog owners.
UnKibble vs The Honest Kitchen Price Comparison
| Brand | UnKibble | Honest Kitchen |
|---|---|---|
| Daily price per dog | $2.74 | $1.83 |
| Monthly price | $164.40 | $110 |
| Annual cost | $1972.80 | $1320 |
Wrapping Up
We’ve reached the end of our comparison dog food review, taking a look at UnKibble and The Honest Kitchen.
My pick would be UnKibble by Spot and Tango, based on my experience reviewing and feeding these two brands to Copper and Skye.
My Alaskan Klee Kai enjoyed UnKibble, which made my life easier as a dog owner, since I didn’t have to deal with fresh or raw dog food.
Do you want to discover our best dry food recommendations?
We broke down our favorite dry food options.
We really appreciated having a custom scooper to use every mealtime to remove any guesswork from portioning Copper and Skye’s meals.
While UnKibble cost more than The Honest Kitchen, we believe the enhanced customization is worth the extra cost.
Kieran Beckles is an NCTJ-qualified journalist, a former pet nutrition student, and co-founder of Life With Klee Kai. He has been reviewing pet food and products since 2018, testing over 50+ brands, and has raised his dogs, Skye and Copper, since 2017. His work blends hands-on testing and nutrition knowledge to help pet owners make informed decisions.