Instacart is a leading grocery delivery and pick-up service in the US and Canada that allows customers to order groceries and other products online from a wide array of local stores through a website or mobile app. Instacart itself does not hold inventory but connects shoppers with personal shoppers who pick, pack, and deliver the orders to the customer's location, often within a few hours or the same day. Customers can shop from multiple stores at once, schedule delivery or pick-up, customize item substitutions, and track their orders in real-time. Instacart also partners with over 1,800 retailers and reaches the vast majority of US and Canadian households.
How Instacart Works:
- Customers create an account via the app or website.
- They select a store from the available local retailers.
- They add desired items to their virtual cart with options for substitutions or refunds if items are unavailable.
- Checkout involves selecting a delivery or pickup time and completing payment.
- A personal shopper then picks the items at the store and either delivers them or prepares them for pickup.
- Customers receive real-time updates and can communicate with the shopper about their order.
This process makes grocery shopping convenient, enabling people to get groceries delivered to their doorstep or ready for store pickup without shopping themselves.
