A small format chest freezer doesn't take up much space and holds a ton of food. A 5 cu. ft. one will hold a month's worth of food ( about 175 pounds) for one person in a 2 ft. by 2 ft. footprint while sipping electricity.

That's the thing: it's a choice with pros and cons. On one hand there's an up front expense, you need to invest time in planning, shopping, cooking, and you need to find/make space to store food.

On the other it quickly pays for itself, it'll bring your food costs way down, and you can make better tasting/healthier meals in lieu of exclusively eating out or ready to eat meals. You can still use the later for more variety: you're just saving money by doing it less.

One mini fridge should be plenty of space to fit about a weeks worth of meal prep for one person. I know this for a fact.