Is Ollie Dog Food Worth It? Here’s What Happened When I Tried It With My Dog

If you’re here because you’re frantically Googling “Ollie dog food reviews” to figure out if it’s really worth the hype, you’ve come to the right place. I recently tested both the fresh and dry baked versions of Ollie dog food with my pup Freya—and spoiler alert: we were impressed. Freya is not exactly easy to please when it comes to her meals (especially during the summer when she loses interest in food), so the fact that she gobbles this stuff down says a lot. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s start with the basics and go from there.

First, here are the two different types of Ollie food that I’ll be covering below:

What is Ollie Dog Food?

Ollie is a subscription-based dog food brand that delivers fresh and baked dog food straight to your door. Their recipes are crafted with high-quality, human-grade ingredients and tailored to your dog’s specific needs based on a short quiz you fill out on their website.

All of Ollie’s food is made in the USA, and the company is headquartered in New York. The fresh meals are cooked in small batches in facilities that meet human food standards, then shipped frozen to preserve freshness.

You can choose between their Fresh recipes, which come in convenient vacuum-sealed packs, and their Baked recipes, which are gently cooked in small batches for a crunchy texture that still feels premium.

Ingredient Quality: What’s Inside Ollie Dog Food?

Let’s talk ingredients—because at the end of the day, that’s what really matters.

Each Ollie fresh dog food recipe starts with real meat as the first ingredient. I tried the Pork, Lamb, Chicken, and Turkey varieties with Freya (we skipped the beef one this time), and each one had the main meat right up front, paired with nutrient-dense organ meat like liver for an extra protein and vitamin boost.

You’ll also find:

✅ Fresh veggies like spinach, kale, peas, and carrots
✅ Whole fruits like blueberries or cranberries (depending on the recipe)
✅ Healthy grains like rice or oats (note: not all recipes are grain-free)
✅ Omega-rich oils like fish oil and sunflower oil
✅ Natural supplements like taurine and zinc for heart health and immunity

Here’s an example of the ingredient list (this is for the Chicken Dish with Carrots, Freya’s personal favorite):

Chicken, Rice, Carrots, Chicken Livers, Peas, Potatoes, Spinach, Cranberries, Tricalcium Phosphate, Salmon Oil, Salt, Taurine, Zinc Gluconate, Vitamin E Supplement, Ferrous Sulfate, Copper Amino Acid Chelate, Manganese Amino Acid Chelate, Vitamin D3 (Cholecalciferol), Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin), Vitamin B1 (Thiamine Hydrochloride), Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine Hydrochloride), Potassium Iodide.

As for the Ollie dry dog food (also known as their “Baked” line), we went with the Chicken with Carrots recipe. It’s made with deboned chicken, oats, sweet potatoes, carrots, pumpkin, and other recognizable ingredients—no mystery meat meals or artificial junk.

All in all, the Ollie dog food ingredients are exactly what you want to see: real, whole foods with names you can pronounce.

Close-up of Chicken and Carrot Fresh recipe

Features That Stand Out

Here’s what you get with an Ollie subscription:

• Fresh or baked dog food delivered to your door
• Real, human-grade meat is always the first ingredient
• Custom meal plans tailored to your dog’s size, breed, and needs
• No by-products, fillers, or artificial preservatives
• Flexible subscription options with free shipping
• Fresh meals arrive frozen and are easy to store
• Baked food doubles as a great low-calorie training treat
• Nutrient-balanced formulas developed by veterinarians

Freya checking out her unboxed Ollie dog food delivery

What I Like About Ollie

Let’s be honest—there are a lot of dog food brands out there claiming to be “premium,” “healthy,” or “all-natural.” I’ve tried more than a few of them over the years, and while some were amazing, very few have made me say, “Yes, I’ll gladly reorder this again and again.” Ollie is one of those rare exceptions.

Before we dive into the review, here’s a quick little unboxing video that I did. It’s not super fancy (I’m really awful at video, to be honest), but it gives you an overview of what to expect.

Here’s why it stands out so much to me:

Freya Actually Eats It—Enthusiastically

This was the first and biggest win. Freya isn’t the type of dog who dives into every bowl of food like it’s her last meal. She’s picky. If she’s not into it, she’ll walk away without a second thought—and during the summer, forget it. The last month or so we’ve been struggling to get her her regular kibble. Oh, she didn’t turn down treats or anything that we were eating, of course, but she would not touch her actual meals. We tried adding all sorts of dog food toppers (including baked chicken, cheese, and broth). She still turned her nose up more often than not.

Then we tried Ollie Fresh. I started by mixing a bit into her regular kibble just to see if it would help. Not only did she eat her entire bowl for the first time in weeks, but she actually started licking the bowl clean. She now eats all her food without any coaxing, which has taken a huge mental load off me.

She gets fresh Ollie for breakfast and a combo of kibble + Ollie Baked Chicken with Carrots in the afternoon. That combo works like magic for us.

Freya devouring her Ollie fresh Chicken & Carrots food

The Baked Food Is a Total Game-Changer for Training

The Ollie dry dog food (aka their baked recipe) is one of the best things I’ve added to our training toolkit. Most kibble doesn’t pass Freya’s “is this really a treat?” test. She’s not easily fooled—unless it’s something really tasty, she loses interest quickly.

But Ollie Baked? She’s totally into it. I’ve started using it in place of higher-calorie training treats during obedience practice and snuffle mat games. It’s got that perfect “crunch” that dogs love, and it doesn’t leave a greasy residue on my hands or treat pouch. Plus, I don’t feel guilty using it liberally since it’s nutritionally complete dog food and not just empty calories.

It’s genuinely rare to find a dog food that doubles as a high-value reward, but Ollie nailed it.

Freya trying Ollie Baked Chicken with Carrots food for first time

No Tummy Troubles (Even When Cold!)

Another win: zero digestive issues. Freya has a pretty sensitive stomach, and in the past, cold food especially hasn’t gone over well. She usually needs warm or room-temp meals, otherwise we’re dealing with rather “explosive” digestive issues (the less said about that the better, but let’s just say that it’s super unpleasant for her AND us). That made me nervous about feeding Ollie Fresh straight from the fridge.

But surprisingly? No issues at all. Even when served cold, she digested it just fine. We warmed it up a little at first, just in case, but quickly realized she could handle it cold—and even preferred it on the hotter days. That flexibility has made me way more consistent with feeding and saved me time in the kitchen.

Real Ingredients You Can Actually See

With the Ollie fresh dog food, you can literally see the ingredients. You’ll notice the chunks of real chicken, pork, peas, sweet potatoes, and even blueberries in some recipes. It doesn’t look or smell like dog food—it looks like something I could’ve cooked on my own (if I had the time or energy to do that twice a day).

That level of transparency is something I really appreciate. You’re not left guessing what your dog is eating. And when you’re feeding something daily, especially to a dog with sensitivities, that matters.

Even with the baked food you can still see a lot of the ingredients. I mean, it’s not quite as easy to pick out where the chicken ends and the veggies begin, but it still looks like

Ollie Fresh Chicken With Carrots

Convenient Packaging and Hassle-Free Feeding

I know “packaging” sounds like a silly thing to rave about, but honestly, Ollie has one of the smartest setups I’ve seen.

Each fresh pack is pre-portioned and vacuum-sealed, so it’s easy to thaw, store, and serve without creating a mess. They also send a super cute and helpful scoop and a storage container to keep things organized. I’m not always the most structured person when it comes to meal prep, but Ollie makes it really simple to stay on track.

Plus, if you travel or your schedule’s all over the place, the baked food is shelf-stable and portable. You can toss it in a bag for road trips or use it as backup when you’re staying somewhere without a freezer. So even if you’re planning to just give your dog fresh food, I still think it’s worth it to grab a bag of the baked as well.

Tailored Plans That Actually Make Sense

When you sign up for Ollie, you fill out a short questionnaire about your dog’s breed, age, activity level, weight, etc. Based on that, they calculate the right portion sizes and build a custom plan.

The amount they recommended was spot-on. No massive leftover portions, no scrambling to supplement meals because we ran out too early. It just worked.

Things to Consider

Ollie isn’t perfect for every pup or every budget (although it’s pretty darn close), so here are a few things to keep in mind:

• It’s not cheap. Depending on your dog’s size and appetite, prices can range from around $2/day for small dogs to $6+/day for large ones. The baked food is more affordable than fresh, but still more than most store-bought kibble.
• You’ll need freezer space. If you go with the fresh meals, make sure you’ve got room to store them. They ship frozen in eco-friendly packaging, but they do take up some room.
• You’ll need to commit to a subscription. Ollie is subscription-based, so while you can pause or cancel anytime, it’s not something you can just grab off the shelf in a pinch.
• Only one recipe is grain-free. All recipes except the Fresh Beef Dish with Sweet Potatoes include healthy grains like rice and oats.

FAQs

Bottom Line: Is Ollie Dog Food Worth It?

If you’ve made it this far, you probably already know where I stand—but let’s make it official.

Yes, Ollie Dog Food is absolutely worth it—at least in my experience with Freya.

I’ve tried a lot of different brands over the years. Some were fine, some were downright disappointing, and a few were pretty good but not sustainable long-term. Ollie, though? It checks all the boxes:

✔️ Real, whole-food ingredients you can see and trust
✔️ Tailored to your dog’s unique needs
✔️ Both fresh and baked options that actually taste good (according to Freya)
✔️ Super convenient subscription model that doesn’t feel like a chore
✔️ No digestive issues, even with a sensitive-stomach dog
✔️ Bonus: the baked food pulls double duty as a training reward

It’s not the cheapest option out there, and I wouldn’t expect it to be given the quality. But if you’re tired of watching your dog turn their nose up at dinner, or you’re constantly trying to hack together your own meal toppers just to get them to eat, Ollie might be the solution you’ve been looking for.

Even if you don’t switch 100% to Ollie, adding the Ollie fresh dog food as a topper—or using the Ollie dry dog food as treats—can still make a noticeable difference in your dog’s enthusiasm for mealtime.

And ultimately, that’s what it’s all about: feeding your dog something that supports their health, fits your lifestyle, and makes them genuinely excited to eat.