Is Instacart+ Worth It?

The quick answer? It really depends on how often you use it.

The idea of having items delivered to your door is nothing new. People have been doing it by shopping with Amazon for years.

But during the early days of the pandemic, a lot of people got into the habit of using services like Instacart for grocery delivery. Of course, back then, people were intent on staying out of stores for fear of getting sick. These days, the typical consumer might feel more comfortable with the idea of shopping in person. But even so, services like Instacart offer their share of value.

For one thing, you may be the sort of person who just plain doesn't like leaving the house or being in crowded places. If that's the case, Instacart can spare you the hassle of having to shop in a busy supermarket.

Plus, you might work a demanding job and have little time left over to do your grocery shopping. Using Instacart could free up hours in your week and give you one fewer task to worry about.

Of course, Instacart isn't free. You'll pay a higher price for the items you want than what your local store will charge you, and you'll also be subject to delivery fees that can add up. But if you sign up for an Instacart+ membership, those fees will be waived for orders above $35. And so you may want to consider getting a membership.

How Instacart+ works

With Instacart+, you get unlimited no-fee deliveries for orders over $35. The service costs $99 if you put an annual membership on your credit card upfront. If you don't want to do that, you can pay $9.99 a month instead.

On its website, Instacart says you can save $7 per order on average with Instacart+. So if you're paying the annual membership fee of $99, or $8.25 a month when you break it down, you're practically making your money back right there. And you're easily making it back on your second order. To put it another way, even if you only place two Instacart+ orders a month, the service will likely pay for itself.

Is Instacart+ right for you?

Maybe you don't have a car (either because you live in a big city or you simply don't want to deal with auto loan payments and car insurance), and so you tend to fall back on grocery delivery a lot. Or maybe you're self-employed and have so many requests for your services you have to turn clients down. In either scenario, it's pretty easy to justify the cost of an Instacart+ membership and the use of Instacart to begin with.

Not having a car can be a pretty big barrier to shopping for groceries efficiently. Remember, Instacart offers you the option to load up on bulk items from stores like Costco. Without a vehicle, transporting bulk items just isn't doable.

Plus, if you're self-employed and make $80 an hour doing what you do, it's easy to justify spending $8.25 a month on Instacart+ if it saves you several hours of grocery shopping a month. Granted, even with Instacart+, you'll face a markup on the items you buy compared to the price you'll pay at the store. But let's say the average Instacart+ order you put in costs you $20 extra due to that markup. Even so, if your hourly rate is high enough, paying for delivery is an easy call.

All told, an Instacart+ membership could be a great deal for you. And if you're not sure, sign up for the free two-week trial the company is offering and check it out before committing to paying the full $99 a year.