3 Reasons Instacart Grocery Delivery Service Is A Big No-Go For Me
This is not an Instacart review. My opinions and experiences are solely based on my situation.
Iâm self-employed and set my own hours.
I work from home and donât have kids.
Publix Supermarket is a 3-minute drive from me.
Well, that does itâŠ
I shouldnât need to use Instacart unless Iâm lazy, right!?
Just like everyone should stop paying for cable television.
And quit drinking lattes.
I mean, thatâs what âmoney/social expertsâ seem to think.
But thereâs much more to it than just that.
I do have friends, many of whom have kids.
I hear all of the adventures of âdragging them along everyplaceâ (their words, not mine!).
I hear the wishes of âIt would be great to have X brought to meâ.
I totally get it!
Hell, Iâd love to have someone bring me 5 cases of bottled water and other supplies, especially when building my emergency preparedness kit.
I still canât bring myself to use this grocery delivery service, not because Iâm cheap, but for other reasonsâŠ
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How Does Instacart Work?
Before we get into the three main issues, this is something that has been brought up numerous times.
No one seems to be able to answer with authority anymore the question of âhow does Instacart work?â
Some regions require an Instacart Express subscription.
In some regions, you can simply order and pay the fee.
Sometimes the fee can be waived.
None of this information is transparently available on the Instacart website.
Many people in the comments on this very article state as much.
Apparently isnât as simple as signing up, ordering, paying, and knowing exactly how much your Instacart order will cost anymore.
If I was desperate to have a grocery delivery service available to me, this would be a 4-part article!
Alas, it isnât so letâs get to my actual complaints about Instacart!
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I Donât Trust Instacart Shoppers
Personally, I know my mother taught me how to shop.
She showed me how to use coupons, not obsessively to the point where the search would outweigh the benefit, but like a normal person.
She taught me how to look for the best quality groceries.
And most importantly, she taught me that everything has an expiration date.
Thatâs right, itâs not just the produce.
Or the meat.
Or the dairy.
Even pantry and dry-packaged items have expiration dates.
This is where my mistrust comes in.
On the site, I donât see anything about qualifications except for age, availability, and ability to lift heavy loads.
Simon over at the Rideshare Dashboard has a pretty in-depth overview of the Instacart job signup process for being an Instacart shopper.
He specifically mentions the fact that viewing training videos and passing the associated quizzes is no longer a requirement for becoming an Instacart shopper.
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There is also some talk about actual in-person training which doesnât seem to inspire much confidence either.
So, who is to say that when I place an order, the person who does the picking will have any knowledge about shopping other than what food is what?
If I order meat, will they just grab a package that comes close to the amount of weight I desire, or will they actually inspect it for quality (fat content or color)?
Will they know that eggs need to be checked to make sure they arenât cracked on the bottom and stuck to the carton?
Hell, will they even open up the package to see if the eggs are cracked on the top?
You might want to read this article about cracked eggs and bacteria.
If I order produce will the picker know how to test fruits or vegetables for freshness?
I have a hard time paying for a service that is 50-50 at best to deliver me the best quality items available at the time.
Now, this isnât to say that all shoppers are badâthere are always good and bad people in any line of workâbut a generalization isnât a shot at anyone in particular so please understand that if you or someone you know is a shopper/driverâŠno one is speaking about them personally!
However, there are instances of Instacart shoppers purchasing products for their own use on the customersâ dime which doesnât help alleviate any trust issues and not just in one instance, but across the country.
I guess that can happen when you have to pay for an expensive car on tips.
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I Donât Trust Instacart Fees/Pricing
Just today, I tried a little experiment.
I had just come back from that Publix which is around the corner from my house.
Yes, in the middle of the morning on a FridayâŠthatâs one of the best parts of a business owner.
But I digressâŠ
I decided to go to the Instacart website and test out the prices.
Unfortunately, I had to create an account first, which I also find to be a pain in the ass, and donât really trust sites that donât let you see how they work without giving over your personal info.
Hesitant as I was, I did it so I can gain access and see what the prices were like.
Now, I did read the FAQ about pricing and averages and data feeds and all before doing my comparison.
That in and of itself gave me pause because if you have all of these disclaimers, you are essentially saying that your prices probably wonât match the storeâs prices.
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Itâs basically just an excuse to charge even more on top of the standard grocery delivery service/subscription fees.
Anyway, the first thing I looked at was Fresh Express Baby Spinach because I knew that I had just bought it and remembered the price I paid was $3.99 each BOGO.
I did a search on the Instacart Publix section and found this:
The BOGO is correct, but the pricing is off.
And just to compare it to what the store itself advertises in the current circular:
Notice in the 2nd image, it says âSAVE UP TO $4.19â?
That means the most expensive Fresh Express product that Publix sells under this sale costs $.40 more through Instacart.
Want another one?
Good, because I tested another one from the Publix ad simply to see if there might be something to this.
This time I tested a 5lb bag of Organic Russet Potatoes:
So this one even tells you that itâs on sale and displays the âsavingsâ as well.
But compared to the one from the Publix adâŠ
Sure thereâs no picture on this one, but it really doesnât matter because the Instacart image is just a plain bag and anyone who has ever been grocery shopping knows, those 5lb bags always are branded.
Getting back on trackâŠ
The Publix ad shows, again, a lower price.
And remember that âsavingsâ Instacart displayed?
Well, it appears they not only charge more than the store does, but also calculate everything differently, reflecting larger price savings than Publix offers.
And I tried a bunch of other items too, but I wasnât in the mood to start clipping images of everythingâŠyou can do your own test to see how your area stacks up.
It just doesnât sit well with me.
If everything is $.40-$.50 more expensive and you are paying for the service on top of that I call bullshit real quick!
Sure, the store may dictate the pricing via Instacart, but hereâs the real problem:
Instacart is getting money from the store to provide the service and from you in the form of fees/subscriptions.
That is double-dipping, and that is where my big issue with the price differences comes from.
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Instacart Isnât Partnered With All Of My Stores
This may be insignificant to many people.
Thatâs cool because this is only pertaining to my personal reasons for not using the service.
If any of you are friends with me on Facebook or follow my Facebook Page or Instagram feed youâll know that mention an Italian market frequently when I talk about food (and if you arenât, go follow NOW ? )
Thatâs because 90% of the items I buy from it beats the pants off of any of the national/regional supermarket chains.
And in case youâre wondering, I mostly buy fresh meats/produce and cook my meals from scratch rather than buying prepackaged foodsânot a judgment, but it does clarify why I donât get much use out of a big supermarket.
Hereâs the thingâin my area, there are 4 options for using Instacart, and my main store isnât one of them.
Side note: Instacart is in a bunch of Aldi stores which is a place I definitely think people should give a shot!
So, when it comes to the one I do go to that is in my service areâPublixâI only go there for the BOGOs, and occasionally when I get coupons for $5 of $50 in the mail direct from the store itself (which is like 1 month a year).
And when I go, I may end up spending between $15-$25, which makes even a $5 delivery fee a relatively HUGE amount!
Itâs kind of like those dumbass pizza chains that give you a $7 pizza after applying the promo code but then charge a $4 delivery fee (and they all suck anyway hahaha but you get my point).
If you shop frequently or in a larger volume than I do and can get that fee down to a tiny relative value, thatâs greatâŠit just doesnât work for me.
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Instacart And Store Receipts
A big issue stems from the pricing differences and receiptsâor not getting the original.
Some people have come to me to argue that you donât get the original receipt from the store because you are buying from Instacart.
The argument is that as a reseller you shouldnât get a receipt showing what the original cast was the same way you donât get a receipt from the store showing its own purchase price in addition to your copy.
The fault with that argument is simple:
Instacart isnât buying items to store and sell later via its website.
Instead, the company is providing a personal shopping and delivery service.
This is exactly why you should get the original receiptâas a personal services company, you should be allowed to compare what the cost difference is between doing it yourself and what the Instacart costs add.
Personal shoppers do exactly thatâspend the clientâs money at cost and add their fee on top.
Thatâs an important piece of the puzzle for a lot of people.
People who budget their time and money want to know if the added cost is worth outsourcing grocery shopping as opposed to doing it themselves.
Itâs not a minor thing for a lot of people, especially when they take the time to really break it all down and see a sometimes large percentage increase in cost by using the service.
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Instacart Customer Service
It does seem as though there is one âbright spotâ about using Instacart for a grocery delivery service.
The reason I put bright spot in quotations is that I firmly believe that with the best companies you will never hear anything about their customer service (good or bad) because they deliver from the start.
But I digressâŠ
It seems from most accounts and especially down in the comments that Instacart customer service is pretty good.
As mentioned in point #1 above, there have been many instances of Instacart shoppers buying their own items on the customerâs order.
I definitely can understand some peopleâs worry about becoming an identity theft victim in these circumstances.
Alerting Instacart customer service seems to quickly resolve the issues.
This appears to also go for underwhelming selections picked by the Instacart shoppers.
Again, while I think itâs terrible to have to even contact Instacart customer service for these negative issues, at least they are given the latitude to fix it quickly.
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Update For 2020 & Beyond
I hate talking about hot-button or âmoment-in-timeâ issues, but this needs to be addressed.
(To be clear, I am not using the names or buzzwords here specifically because I am not trying to capitalize on those searches)
A lot of people are starting to comment about how life is changing for them.
Using Instacart and similar grocery delivery services can certainly make life more manageable, particularly if you unexpectedly find yourself home with children for an extended period of time.
Or if you are elderly.
Or have a compromised immune system.
Having Instacart deliver the groceries will certainly allow you to practice (extreme?) social distancing or at the very least insulate yourself.
Trust me, Iâm acutely aware of the importance of this as my mother is immunocompromised due to a kidney transplant.
This all goes back to my main pointâthat I have questions about the service.
Never do I say you should not try Instacart.
I never even say that itâs a bad service.
Never do I say these people shouldnât try to earn a living.
So, especially now with the situation impacting the way we go about our daily lives, itâs important to understand that I am simply voicing my own personal concerns about Instacart.
If shopping using the Instacart grocery delivery service makes your life easier, go for it.
If it makes you feel safer, use it.
Again, you need to do what works for you and your particular situation, regardless of what anyone else has experiencedâincluding me!
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Wrapping Up
Look, not everyone is going to agree with me.
I not only recognize that fact, I expect it.
I also realize the marketing agencies are all over the negative trying to convince people of how great Instacart is via ad campaigns and social media.
Plus, I actually wrote about how personal finance should be tailored to the individual and not used as a blanket or a one-size-fits-all type of deal.
So, sure you may be like many of my friends and not want to drag screaming kids up and down the aisles of your grocery store (againâtheir words, not mine!).
You may not care that youâre paying higher prices on top of the service fee because any amount would be worth having that task off of your shoulders.
The quality or shelf-life of your food may not even matter because you never even considered it important yourself.
You may have the money in your monthly budget to pay for the convenience.
Thatâs all cool with me.
Again, this is all due to my own personal manner of handling my food needs and my personal living situation, and yours may vary greatly.
Iâm just voicing my own concerns because I hear about people using the service or waiting for it to be available and I keep thinking about those three things each and every time.
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Your Turn
Have you ever tried Instacart? Tell us your experienceâgood, bad, ugly it all helps! And if you havenât used it yet, what are the reasons for your own hesitance? Share your experiences in the comments below!