Next Sunday is Mother's Day, and while supermarkets can't be beaten for bargain blooms, there's something special about receiving a delivery of flowers, especially if you can't be with your mum on the day.
For those who live too far away from their mum or can't get to a supermarket, Google is awash with online florists vying for your business, making it tricky to choose a company you can trust. To help you, the Good Housekeeping Institute (GHI) put 20 brands to the test, to find the best online flower delivery services for all needs and budgets.
We've concentrated on the GH winners which can be sent UK-wide, and kept the prices below £40 including delivery to help during the cost of living crisis. Delivered flowers are never gong to be as cost-effective as dropping a supermarket bunch off yourself, but there are some reasonably-priced bouquets to make your mum's day, with most sites offering gifts from under £30.
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There are a couple of things to watch out for when ordering flowers online:
- Subscription services: If you would like to treat your mum to a regular delivery of flowers, companies such as Freddie's Flowers and Bloom & Wild are ideal, but make sure you know what you are signing up for - a one-off £10 voucher is not much of a saving if you end up paying £25 every month without knowing what you were signing up for;
- Delivery costs: Flower delivery companies advertise bunches from as little at £10 or £15 but it's only when you get to checkout you realise that delivery is not included and can cost up to £7.
Here's the best on offer, according to Good Housekeeping:
Best flower delivery service: Bloom & Wild
Score: 91/100
GH said: "Bloom and Wild’s website is a dream to navigate, offering a seamless browsing and ordering experience. Its bouquets are just as good; they arrived safely and impressed testers by looking beautiful for three weeks. As a result, our panel said they would use this company again and recommend it to friends and family."
Price range: £19 - £105
Choice under £40: There is an amazing choice of 86 flower gifts for under £40 including delivery. Luxury gifts can be added as extras such as hand cream and chocolates. Free next-day delivery is included in the price but if you want a specific day, timeslot or weekend delivery it will cost you from £5 extra.
Need to know: Bloom and Wild’s delivery options aren’t as extensive as some, according to GH, and next-day delivery isn’t available for all bouquets due to their seasonality. Flowers are delivered in letterbox boxes and a subscription is available
Best for International delivery: Interflora
Score: 88/100
GH said: "Working with its national and international network of florists, every bouquet ordered from Interflora is made and delivered locally. As a result, there’s more variation in the final product than many of the services on our list. However, all our panel received beautiful arrangements that meant they would recommend it to others. Most of the gift cards were hand-written resulting in correctly spelt messages. They also deliver far and wide."
Price range: £32 - £200
Choice under £40: There is a choice of 13 bunches and plants for under £40, with free delivery in the UK. International delivery is an extra £12 and if you want a specific day or time in the UK you'll have to pay extra.
Need to know: Interflora works with local florists so your delivery will come from a business near to your mum. Subscription available
Best for next-day delivery: Bunches
Score: 86/100
GH said: "Bunches offer next day delivery, seven days a week for just £2.99, so pick this brand if you need to get out of a sticky last-minute gift situation. The website has filters for occasion, type of flower and colour, and there’s a handy selection of payment options including Apple Pay and Google Pay. Our panel was pleased with the way the flowers looked and lasted, too."
Price range: £20-£48.50
Choice under £40: 64 bunches and gifts for under £36 + £2.99 delivery.
Need to know: Letterbox and subscription options are available
Best subscription service: Freddie's Flowers
Score: 84/100
GH said: "One of the first to offer a flower subscription, Freddie’s Flowers is ideal if you’re looking for a gift that keeps on giving, or to treat yourself to a regular dose of floral joy. These bouquets are smile-raisers from the moment you unbox them. The flowers have long stems and are carefully packaged in recyclable packaging, meaning they arrive undamaged and have lengthy lifespans (over two weeks for some testers). They’re oozing with wow-factor. One for aspiring florists."
Price range: £25-£55
Choice under £40: Two bunches as one-off gifts or four bunches as a subscription.
Need to know: For subscriptions, the cost is included in bouquet price; choose between weekly, fortnightly and monthly deliveries. For gifts, next day costs £5, but otherwise, it's free.
Best luxury bouquets: Haute
Score: 84/100
GH says: "Haute sells real head-turners, from the hand-tied bouquets to the hat box offerings. Our panel was delighted, and our experts found the website easy to navigate. Plus, you can order up to six months in advance – perfect if you’re a planner. The packaging was notably impressive – each orchid had its own water supply and were in a protective plastic sleeve."
Price range: £28-£100
Choices under £40: 18 bunches under £35 + £4 delivery
Need to know: Letterbox and Subscription available. £4 next-day delivery nationwide, seven days a week
Best supermarket flowers: Waitrose Florist
Score: 84/100
GH said: "Delivering seven days a week and with a website that lets you filter by colour, species and occasion, we found a lot to praise about Waitrose’s service. Our panel was suitably wowed by their bouquets, which they enjoyed for between 10 and 14 days, and there’s lots of variety among seasonal offerings, so you can tailor your order to suit your giftee."
Price range: £20 - £100
Choice under £40: 48 gifts under £35 + £4.95 delivery.
Need to know: You can add bonus gifts such as biscuits to your order of you wish. Delivery is £4.95, seven days a week and same day available Monday to Saturday. Letterbox gifts available.
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