MEL Science Kits Review [January 2024] (2024)

If you, like our team, think science is great, we are on the same page. There are many courses on Coursera or Udemy, where you can learn some topics like math, physics, or chemistry. But if you want your kid to get interested in STEM from an early age, MEL Science offers a solution. Thus, let’s find out what MEL Science kit is and review what it has to offer.

What is MEL Science?

This is the company offering science kits for kids that works on a monthly subscription basis. They have five different lines for children: STEM for kids, Coding for kids Physics, Chemistry, and Medicine. These include hands-on projects. The subscription box for experiments is delivered to your doorstep once per month, and you also get access to AR lessons and live science classes with professional teachers.

Their products work best for children ranging from ages 8 to 14 but recently they have extended their products and now they also can be used by adults (Medicine course).

The company was founded in 2015 and has a headquarter in London, UK. It is operated in 35 countries where its toolkits can be delivered. The company won a number of awards in 2020, including The EdTech Awards 2020 as the best VR/AR solution, The VR Awards 2020 as VR Education and training of the year, and others.

MEL Science Kits (“Courses”)

So, the company offers five lines of kits called “courses”. Let’s review each one briefly.

1. MEL Science Chemistry kits

Chemistry kits for ages 10–16+ is probably the most popular line by MEL Science. It includes over 20 sets like Chemistry & light, Chemistry & electricity, Etching and Plating, Sugar snake, and a lot more. Most of the sets are not too simple and obvious and use different materials and experimental flows. This line gets positive reviews from customers and indeed helps kids get interested in Chemistry.

For instance, the set called Egyptian night shows what factors affect reaction rates by showing how liquid darkens in an instant.

Another example of Chemistry kits is Tin. It shows how electric current can induce a chemical reaction and introduce the difference in reactivity of various metals. It is done by allowing a kid to grow a small tin hedgehog on the surface of a zinc pellet or watching tindendrites grow in a Petri dish.

2. MEL Science Physics kits

Physics course for ages 8–14+ includes 15 sets like Alternative energy, Magnetic levitation, Electric motor, Luminescence, Arthroscopic fluid, and Colorful stress patterns, among others.

For example, the Alternative energy set allows kids and teens to learn about various sources of energy and observe energy transformations. It includes components for building a wind power station, solar power station, and electric generator.

3. MEL Science Med kits

Medicine is the first line designed for all the age groups–older kids, teens, and adults (the recommended age is 14–99+). This is a new line but it is already has become popular among people interested in medicine but who are not professionals in this field. It can also be a good learning tool for teens who are considering a medical career.

The course includes 7 sets: two sets focused on Dentistry, two sets related to Pharmacy, Surgery, Therapy, and ECG.

For instance, Surgery is a set to learn basic surgical skills and techniques. With this set, you can make incisions in artificial skin with a real scalpel, use surgical needles, apply different types of stitches, and more. This way, the course shows different types of surgical techniques and suture material and teaches how to properly hold surgical instruments.

Here are also two courses by MEL Science for young kids.

1. STEM kits (for kids ages 5–9+) include over 30 science projects related to science, technology, engineering, and math. Within this course, you can find such projects as Space rockets, Liquid sand, Hydraulic lift, Pneumatic press, Electric Boat, Sound Waves, and others. Each one is an eco-friendly construction model.
2. Coding (for ages 4–7+) is a course designed for the youngest group of kids and is aimed at teaching them the basics of coding without using any computer or program. It includes six projects: coding with your hands (learning programming concepts with wooden blocks), assembling 3D puzzles, making a rover execute your commands, and learning with books, additional games, and lego.

How MEL Science Works

1. Subscribing

First, you need to choose the course (STEM for kids, Physics, Chemistry, Coding, or Med), later you can switch to another line at any time. Moreover, you can choose all of them. Then, you need to enter your email to receive the order info and tracking updates. The next step is choosing a subscription plan, and the final one is the checkout process.

2. Receiving the MEL Science kit

After you subscribe, you will receive a new STEM box delivered to your door every month. The service is available in a number of countries. Check the list here.

3. Educational platform and lessons

Meanwhile, the company provides access to their educational platform which includes 70+ VR and live lessons.

MEL Science Subscription Boxes

Each box can be used for up to three experiments and contains the materials, equipment, and instructions. The boxes are organized by age so they are pretty safe. However, it is recommended that an adult watch or help out with experiments.

MEL Science Pricing

The pricing depends on three factors: whether you billed monthly or annually, how many experiment kits per month you choose (three is max), and whether you pick the Med box (as this is the most expensive kit).

Here is how much MEL Science costs (the pricing is for the US).

1. One “regular” kit (STEM, Chemistry, Physics, or Coding) costs $29.90/mo (billed monthly) or $20.90/mo (billed annually).
2. The Med kit is $64.90/mo (billed monthly) or $48.70/mo (billed annually).
3. If you choose two kits (two regular kits) per month, you’ll need to pay $45.90/mo (monthly) or $35.90/mo (annually). If you choose one regular kit + Med kit, you’ll pay $47.40/mo or $34.80/mo correspondingly.
4. If you opt for three kits per month, this will cost $59.90/mo (monthly) or $54.90/mo (billed annually).

In all cases, you can opt for an annual subscription to pay less.

MEL Science Reviews

Our experience with MEL Science

We tried the Chemical kits by MEL Science and our experience is positive. The kits are of high quality, pretty robust and well designed for the price point. However, some components rarely can still be fragile. The instructions are easy to understand.

The experiments are well-structured and help children learn the concept (meanwhile, adults can explain the science to the kids using these sets). Meanwhile, the experiments are not trivial and include diversified components as well as outputs.

Finally, MEL kits are useful for homeschooling as a supplement.

As for the downsides, you can’t choose the exact set–you just get one of all sets within the category. However, you can stop the MEL Science subscription at any time.

MEL Science Reviews: What Customers Think

The following reviews are taken from Trustpilot.

Positive reviews

Positive reviews on MEL Science dominate as parents and grandparents think the company offers a great science toolkit that their children or grandchildren enjoyed.

Check out some of them:

“I bought a monthly subscription for a whole year as a birthday present for twin boys. A quality product and great service. The boys loved every month when the package arrived.”

“My grandkids loved the chemistry program. Well worth the money.”

“We subscribed to both the physics and chemistry kits. [..] The experiments are good and demonstrate the concepts well but are short enough that they take minimal time and effort to complete. The experiments aren’t the standard baking soda and vinegar reaction experiments. [..] My kids are 10, 12 and 14.”

“My son is 7, and he was engaged and able to do most of the experiments on his own while I helped with the instructions. There are multiple experiments per kit, and you can try them more than once. [..] Appreciated the app and especially the Virtual Reality viewer and app.”

“These science kits are awesome! There are several really fun experiments with good directions and my daughter really felt like she was doing “real” science. I especially recommend the live lessons- my daughter loved them and liked that she could put questions in the chat.”

“During the pandemic we had to homeschool 2 children (10 and 13) – for both of them the science curriculum was weak, my wife and I have both a scientific background and the kits REALLY helped us to keep the lessons interesting and interactive.”

Negative reviews

Most complaints regard customer service which is not responsive enough and the delivery service which not always work as supposed. Customers say some of them do not receive the second kit that they have paid for it.

Here are some reviews:

“If I could just talk to someone to buy their products. All I get is an answering machine with NO call backs. I don’t think they have a clue what customer service is.”

“No option to return them, even unopened.”

“It is good for learning prospective but very poor delivery and customer service. was impressive in beginning of subscription but not happy last 3 months.”

“The first kit arrived quickly but it took 2 months to get the second kit -only after contacting the company. Still have not received the third kit. ”

“Is this the only way I am going to be able to get customer service to answer? We received our started kit really fast with the first experiment and have been waiting for the 2nd one for a month now.”

MEL Science Alternatives

MEL Science vs KiwiCo

Both companies offer monthly science kits for kids and teens. MEL Science has 4 lines right now focused on STEM subjects; KiwiCo has 9 lines and offers wider packages with a focus more on crafts and design (while also offering STEM subjects).

KiwiCo products are designed for almost all age groups (it has both kits for toddlers and adults); MEL Science is centered around 5-14 age groups but recently has added a new line, Medicine, suitable for adults as well.

MEL Science also offers VR lessons and live science classes which are not offered by KiwiCo.

Check more in the MEL Science vs KiwiCo comparison table below.

Is MEL Science Worth It?

Yes, the company is value for money with its monthly science kits for kids and teens. It makes learning fun and is able to engage a kid enough to gain new knowledge through hands-on experiments. However, there are concerts with their slow shipping service and unresponsive customer support.The reason here might be that the company is pretty young and growing too fast to fix those issues timely. Still, MEL Science kits seem good to try.