Hi guys, I’m an incoming frosh who’s found a roommate and we’re set on Wolman. She’s probably choosing the 14 meals/week (+375 dining dollars) plan, so I’m leaning towards that right now, but the 19 meals + 275 dollars plan sounds like a better deal lol. Which one is better in your experience? Thanks 
Given how you’ll be running around going to class, doing ECs, group projects and studying, trying to fit in more than 2 large meals a day is difficult (don’t forget the FFC is all you can eat). Most everyone I knew was on the 14 meal plan and we still struggled to fit all those meals in each week (they don’t roll over). I’m a 170lb male and the 14 meals were more than enough.
When I was required to get a meal plan, the only freshman options were Anytime Dining + 100 dining dollars and 14 meals + 250 dining dollars; there was no 19 meal plan.
In my experience, it’s always been better to get more dining dollars and fewer meal swipes. The only place you can use meal swipes is the Fresh Food Cafe. FFC is over by the AMRs, so kind of far from Wolman if you wanted a late-night snack, but if you’re on campus, it’s not a big deal. You can also use meal swipes to get “Meals in a Minute,” but the options are limited. On the other hand, you can use dining dollars at Levering, Bamboo Cafe, and Charles Street Market (CharMar), as well as FFC and Nolan’s.
The perk to having more swipes is that because freshmen have a lot more time to sit and eat lunch or dinner, or go to “late night” with a big group of friends, you might find yourself using up those meal swipes. Freshman year, I’d usually get lunch and dinner every day at FFC, and then go to late night 3-4 times a week, so it was more than 14 at the time. I still ended up wasting a lot of meal swipes each week on Anytime considering how many potential meals you’re paying for, so 14/week worked a lot better for me sophomore year. 19/week would have probably still been too much because then I got busy and didn’t eat in the dining halls as often. Also, while I ended up with a lot of unspent dining dollars at the end of each semester, some people blew right through them. So it really depends on the person.
Also note that you get a period of time to “test” out your meal plan and change it if it doesn’t fit. If you paid for a more expensive one, you get refunded the balance.
When I was a freshman I ended up going for anytime dining + 100 dining dollars - I lived in McCoy at the time. It ended up working out great primarily because I would be on campus all day (between class, ECs, meetings, etc) and could stop by the FFC whenever I wanted for the smallest cravings. For example I have been known to go to the FFC for a glass of milk or some ice cream.
It’s definitely true that dining dollars are - in terms of variety and food quality - better than meal swipes. However in my opinion the extra 100 dining dollars really isn’t that much especially considering that the prices at CharMar, Nolan’s, Levering, and co are pretty inflated.
In general though you’ll be fine either way. The freshman meal plans are designed to make sure you can - if you so choose - get through the year without spending additional money on food.
Go with 14. During the week, you probably won’t have time for a massive breakfast and can keep breakfast food in your room (this is what I did with cereal). I used my two meals on lunch and dinner during the week and then breakfast (which is much better) and dinner on weekends.