Saving Money with Grocery Delivery and Pickup

Even if you’re able to get to the grocery store, these days, many people are finding that using grocery delivery and pickup is a helpful alternative to browsing the aisles of the grocery store with their lists. 

Whether you’re trying one of these options for the first time, trying it again after a break, or it’s something you use regularly, I hope this post can give you lots of helpful tips and guidelines for saving money with grocery delivery and pickup. I’m going to cover the basics of each option in case you’re unfamiliar, and then I’ll share my best advice for saving money.

Saving Money with Grocery Delivery and Pickup

How Grocery Delivery Works

The first step with grocery delivery is choosing a service. Some individual stores have delivery through their own sites (Walmart, Safeway, Kroger, Whole Foods, Harris Teeter, and Food Lion, for example), while other stores do delivery through services like Instacart and Shipt.

Some of these sites and services have their own apps that allow you to place your order on your phone, although I usually find it’s easier to do it on my computer. It’s up to you. When you’re ready to place your order, it’s time to look at your meal plan and decide what you want to buy. Remember that depending on the delivery service, some items might be marked up to a higher price than you’re used to. You will also have to pay some kind of delivery fee (sometimes it’s a flate rate; someties it’s a percentage of your order).

Now you’ll need to schedule a time for the groceries to be delivered (note: some sites have you pick this time before you place your order). It’s usually an hourlong window during which your groceries will come to your house. And hopefully, the delivery person will let you know when they’re on the way!

While your order is being shopped, sometimes you may hae the opportunity to communicate with the shopper. Depending on the service, they may talk to you if they can’t find something or if they are attempting to substitute an item that is out of stock.

Finally, you’ll receive your groceries, pay for your order, and tip the delivery person (usually done in the app). Remember that these shoppers are working hard to get you exactly what you ordered, so make sure to tip them well! You’re paying for the luxury of not having to go to the store.

How Grocery Pickup Works

Like grocery delivery, with grocery pickup, you’ll need to decide which store you want to get your groceries from. Unlike grocery delivery, most grocery pickup is serviced by store employees (rather than using a third party service like Instacart or Shipt). Some stores that currently offer grocery pickup are Walmart, Target, Aldi, Kroger, and Food Lion (although some are only available in certain areas).

The process is similar to grocery delivery in that you place your order and schedule a time (usually an hourlong window) when you’ll go to get your groceries. You’ll usually get an email shortly before your order is ready letting you know it’s ready and informing you of substitutions so you can decide whether you want them or not.

One thing that is usually true about pickup as opposed to delivery is that you can sometimes use coupons. For example, all of Kroger’s digital coupons are valid on their pickup orders. And stores like Target sometimes offer specials that are only valid for pickup orders.

When it’s time to pick up your order, you usually go to the store and call a number or check in on the app to let them know you’re there. When the groceries are brought to your car, you’ll have the option to send back any substitutions that you didn’t want. It’s also a good idea to make sure everything you’ve ordered is there!

Note: You can now use Ibotta with Walmart Pickup!

Benefits of Grocery Delivery and Pickup

There many obvious perks to using grocery delivery and pickup:

• You can shop for items from the comfort of your own home
• You don’t have to leave your home/car
• You can keep track of exactly how much you’re spending
• You can check to see if you already have items in your pantry
• It saves you time to spend on other things
• You may get better products and/or more than what you expected and paid for

The last item has been especially true in my experience with Walmart Pickup. If the item you chose is out of stock, they’ll substitute something as close as they can find. But, for example, one time I ordered a certain product that came in a 32-ct package. They substituted it with a different brand, which was fine, but that product came in 28-ct packages. So to fulfill my order, they gave me 2 of the 28-ct packages, but they charge you whatever you had intended to pay for your initial item. So in the end, I got almost twice what I had ordered.

Cons of Grocery Delivery and Pickup

As I’ve shared, there are lots of benefits to grocery delivery and pickup, and the process to use them is pretty simple. That said, there are still some downsides that I want to make sure I mention.

For example, sometimes you might still need to go to the store if they’re out of certain things. Their substitutions are not always something you want, and sometimes things are out of stock. If you’re at the store, you can look around and make a new plan, but with grocery delivery and pickup, you’re at the mercy of what they bring to you. You can’t call an audible.

These options can also be expensive compared to going to the store yourself when you take into account delivery fees, tips, and potential product markup. (But you might decide this is worth it!)

There is also the downside of not being able to use physical coupons, or, in some cases, any coupons at all. If this is how you get your grocery budget down, then grocery delivery and pickup may just not seem like a great option for you.

Other Thoughts

You’ll have to decide whether you want to try these options as an alternative to going to the store for yourself. You might decide to use them for certain seasons, such as when you have a new baby or when you have sickness in your home.

Remember that if there’s a problem with your order that you don’t realize until later, always call customer service. They will always try to make it right and usually offer a refund or coupon code for your next order if it’s a serious issue. It’s in their best interest to retain you as a customer, so be honest if something isn’t right!

You’ll also want to make sure this really will fit into your grocery budget. A $6 delivery fee may not seem that bad on one order, but if you’re ordering every week, that adds up to more than $300 over the course of the year.

Do you use grocery delivery or pickup? Let us know in the comments what you think!