There's a Disney dining plan calculator that can help you figure out the numbers. I recommend trying it.
1:20am on 1/15/26 by
Rhondak0000
I agree with crunching the numbers. But it's very hard to save any money with the dining plan.
1:36am on 1/15/26 by
njhyndman
I love it and always beat the house. The free drink mug is the best at 5 dollars a soda or hot tea
3:18am on 1/15/26 by
WorldTraveler34
Are you only doing QS or will you be paying for some TS meals ?
6:28am on 1/15/26 by
burfe1501
Probably only the QS one. The TS one is another 4-500 dollars. And we arent big TS people. I'll check out the calculator! :)
8:53am on 1/15/26 by
tlrg4488
We share a lot of meals so we've never found it worth it
8:56am on 1/15/26 by
cdlla
Now the resort mugs are great, on the other hand, as mentioned above - 5 drinks and you're ahead with those.
8:57am on 1/15/26 by
cdlla
The touring plans blog also has a few articles on the DP. I think if you don't drink alcohol it's hard to find value. Maybe if you're a huge user of the mugs. But you could just buy the mugs and skip the dp.
10:03am on 1/15/26 by
evamarie320
Average of $30 per person per day for 2 meals and a snack each (and mugs) is pretty good. Kids free dining in 2026 makes the plans a better deal even without alcohol. The mugs are $23, so if you're going to drink soda and eat even 1 QS/d, might as well.
10:08am on 1/15/26 by
TumbleMonkeys
Sorry, I was multitasking and misspoke, but I think it's a good deal if you plan to eat the two QS (rather than spending a lot on meals that aren't included).
10:18am on 1/15/26 by
TumbleMonkeys
For reference, DD22 and I only spent $422.94 in five days on food and alcohol in December. We split some QS & snacks, but other times had our own QS meals and ate at Steakhouse71 lounge. Even on trips w/ some TS meals we spend about $75 per day.
10:43am on 1/15/26 by
JenniferB1975
If you don't drink alcohol I would say it's not worth it.
6:42pm on 1/15/26 by
danilynn1217
It could be okay with the kids but you would need to work for it. Best to check the app for menus and see what you can order and whether it will be around $60 a meal. I just tried with Regal smokehouse at Epcot. Adult meals around $15 and kids around $8.
6:57pm on 1/15/26 by
seren77
2 kids 2 adults $46 plus tax. Add the drinks for $5 per person and you would be ahead a little. You have to have soda or another beverage every meal and choose your entrees wisely.
6:59pm on 1/15/26 by
seren77
That being said, WDW usually has other discounts like room only offers so I am not sure whether this offer is good enough to give up on other deals.
7:02pm on 1/15/26 by
seren77
My general rule is that the dining plans are never cost-effective unless they're a) free; or b) for whatever reason you have to hide the actual cost of WDW dining from someone; or c) you're prepaying the whole trip.
7:06pm on 1/15/26 by
Ali Ababwa
@seren, the 2026 free kids dining plan can be combined with room/package discounts so that wouldn't be a factor. I'm usually anti-DDP but we're doing it this year with 2 adults, 2 kids and 1 under 3.
7:11pm on 1/15/26 by
HalfBludPrincess
@HalfBlud, that is pretty cool! I would personally add the QS dining plan with that many kids. Heck if the kids are big eaters, maybe even the more expensive one could work going to buffet style restaurants.
9:18pm on 1/15/26 by
seren77
How do I determine if a meal is included on the dining plan? It says to look for the logo but I'm looking on the mobile order pages to see if what we would normally order would be included but I don't see logos anywhere
7:30am on 1/16/26 by
tlrg4488
If you go to the restaurant's main page on the app (by searching the name or the map, not via Mobile Order), there's a section for Dining Plan information. Clicking that says if it's included, and what type/how many credits it uses.
7:34am on 1/16/26 by
TumbleMonkeys
Actually it just says if it's included! Its page on the Disney World website is where it says number/type of credits.
7:36am on 1/16/26 by
TumbleMonkeys
Thank you!
8:38am on 1/16/26 by
tlrg4488
Absolutely not without alcohol but you have to do the numbers if you are getting kids meals for free. I don't have kids that would qualify. But no where close to break even without alcohol.
10:49am on 1/16/26 by
JodiF