The Block Market blog
What a meal plan actually costs per meal, what expires and when, and which tier is worth paying for. Every figure on these pages is read live from the school it is about.
- NYU
NYU meal plans, compared
Going down the NYU tiers does not simply buy fewer meals at the same rate. What each plan costs per swipe, and how much of its price is bundled dining money.
17 August 2026
- Pitt
Pitt's Weekly 14, priced per meal
A weekly allowance and a block of meals are not the same purchase, and only one of them has a meal count Pitt publishes. What each membership works out to per meal.
17 August 2026
- UF
What a UF meal plan actually buys
UF sells plans that come with meals and plans that are only money, and one of those has no cost per meal at all. What each kind buys, and when the swipes stop working.
17 August 2026
- CMU
Which CMU dining plan is actually worth it in 2026-27
The tiers differ by more than price. What each CMU dining plan buys per block, and how the first year and upperclass versions compare.
10 August 2026
- CMU
The real cost of a CMU meal block
Dividing a plan price by its block count gives the wrong answer, because part of that price is bundled dining dollars. Here is the figure that is left.
10 August 2026
- CMU
What happens to unused CMU blocks in December
Blocks and bundled dining dollars expire at the end of each CMU semester and do not roll into spring. What that means for the balance on your card.
10 August 2026