Top 10 Instacart Competitors and Alternatives

Top 10 Instacart Competitors and Alternatives

Instacart is a grocery delivery company that also provides pick-up services. The company primarily operates in the US and Canada markets. Initially, Instacart started its operations in San Francisco in 2012. Since then, the company has become a prominent name in the industry. The company currently employs over 10,000 employees in its current markets.

Instacart holds the second-highest market share in the industry. The company is relatively new compared to its top competitor. Despite that, it has provided significant competition to others in the industry. Instacart generated over $1.5 billion in 2020 for its impeccable services. The company has improved significantly since its inception.

Despite its success, Instacart does not operate in a competition-free industry. The company competes with various other brands for its market share. Among these, the top 10 Instacart competitors and alternatives include the following.

1.    Amazon Fresh

Amazon is undoubtedly one of the most prominent names in the tech industry. However, the company has also expanded its operations to other areas. One of these includes a grocery delivery service known as Amazon Fresh. The company delivers this service in most US cities and some international locations. These locations include India, Singapore, Berlin, Hamburg, London, Milan, Tokyo, Munich, etc.

Amazon Fresh started its operations in 2007, well before Instacart. At the time, the company wanted to focus on various metropolitan areas and partnered with local speciality stores. Amazon allows customers to check availability for goods through their ZIP code. In 2020, the company also launched its physical stores in various locations.

2.    Walmart+

Walmart is a prominent name in the American multinational retail corporation industry. The company operates a chain of hypermarkets, discount department stores and grocery stores from the US. In 2021, Walmart reported over 10,500 stores and clubs in over 24 countries. While the company has been active in this industry for decades, it has only recently introduced its Walmart+ feature.

Walmart+ is a membership program from Walmart that the company announced in 2020. The company launched this service shortly after discontinuing its shopping service, Jetblack. Through this service, users get free home deliveries for a membership fee. Currently, it offers much cheaper rates than Instacart and many other competitors.

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3.    DoorDash

DoorDash is an American company that operates in the online food ordering and food delivery industry. The company operates from San Francisco, California. Currently, it holds a 56% market share in the US, making it the largest food delivery company there. The company competes with Instacart through its delivery services. However, some users may view it as a food delivery company only.

DoorDash started its operations in 2013. Over the years, it has grown significantly to become the most prominent name in the food delivery industry. In 2021, the company signed a deal with Albertsons Cos. By doing so, DoorDash offers on-demand grocery delivery. This expansion creates direct competition for the services provided by Instacart.

4.    Shipt

Shipt is one of the primary competitors and alternatives of Instacart. The company operates in the delivery service industry under Target. Currently, Shipt is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama. Initially, Shipt started as a standalone company in 2014. Due to its immense popularity, the company got acquired in 2017 by Target for $550 million.

Shipt generated revenues of $1 billion in 2018. The company became a subsidiary and hasn’t disclosed its performance since then. However, most experts believe its business to have grown further. In the same year, Instacart only generated almost half of those revenues. Shipt competes in the same primary market as Instacart. Therefore, it poses a significant threat to its business.

5.    FreshDirect

FreshDirect is an online grocery delivery service in the US that started operations in 1999. The company worked from New York City and covered the New York Metropolitan area. Since then, it expanded its operations to other counties. Currently, FreshDirect covers several cities and offers grocery delivery, where it also competes with Instacart. The company also holds the highest market share for the industry.

FreshDirect has been one of the oldest names in the grocery delivery market. The company packs groceries and meals for its customers using a JIT manufacturing process. Through this practice, the company reduces waste and improves quality and freshness. The company started when online food and grocery delivery wasn’t popular. However, it has remained successful and competitive over the years.

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6.    Thrive Market

Thrive Market is an American e-commerce retailer which offers a membership program. The company provides natural and organic food products. Founded in 2014, Thrive Market aims to simplify the supply chain for its products. The company focuses on eliminating the markup applied by brick-and-mortar grocery stores. Through its membership model, the company offers various incentives as well.

Thrive Market offers its users over 6,000 products. These include organic and non-GMO foods. On top of that, the company also focuses on ethical business practices. Thrive Market allows its users to filter and search results by over 70 different lifestyle and diet choices. The company offers free delivery for its products through its platform. This way, it serves as a decent alternative to Instacart.

7.    Peapod

Peapod Online Grocer, or Peapod, has created a market as an Instacart competitor. The company operates in several US cities, headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Peapod started its operations in 1989 and is an experienced name in the market. The company is a subsidiary of Ahold Delhaize, which owns several similar brands.

Peapod online grocery service was once one of the most prominent services in the market. However, its popularity has waned since then. Peapod has been one of the first names in the industry to offer online grocery shopping. The company has been offering its services through its website since 1996. However, the company has suffered since its inception due to better alternatives, including Instacart.

8.    Google Shopping

Like Amazon, Google is one of the most prominent names in the technology industry. The company has existed for decades and primarily operates a search engine. However, Google has also diversified its business through other operations, including Google Shopping. Formerly known as Google Product Search or Google Products, this service allows users to search for products online.

Google Shopping is primarily a price comparison tool for various vendors. Google Shopping started as Froogle, as a price comparison service. At the time, it used Google’s web crawler to index product data from websites. Later, the company changed its name to Google Product Search. Google Shopping does not offer delivery services. Despite that, it poses a competitive threat to Instacart.

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9.    Cornershop

Cornershop started its operations in 2015 as a Chilean company. The company offered on-demand food and grocery delivery service. Currently, Cornershop operates under Uber, which bought over 50% of its stock. Uber also announced it intends to purchase the remaining stock soon, making Cornershop a fully-owned subsidiary. Currently, it operates in over eight countries in the Americas.

While Cornershop is one of the more recent names in the industry, it poses a threat to Instacart on several levels. With Uber’s expertise, the company seeks to compete with various other brands in the industry. Cornershop also offered Uber an entry into the market, almost similar to its primary services. Primarily operating outside the US, the company is looking to make a name for itself in the industry.

10. Dumpling

Dumpling is a grocery delivery app that works differently from some other names on this list. The company started its operations in 2017 and currently operates from Seattle, Washington. Initially, the company focused on challenging the status quo in the gig economy. The company also provides its users with the resources to migrate from Instacart.

Dumpling works with shoppers to offer a shared customer experience. In its services, it is similar to Uber or Lyft. However, it allows service providers to pick orders from different grocery shops and deliver promptly. Dumpling believes in strengthening the human relationship among online and real-life retail shoppers. The company provides one of the best alternatives to Instacart.

Conclusion

Instacart is a grocery delivery company that primarily operates in the US and Canada. The company offers various services through its apps and platform. Currently, Instacart is one of the highest-ranking companies in the market share. However, it also faces some competition. Some of the top Instacart competitors and alternatives are available above.

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