I see several discount stores offering free pickup of your online orders for grocery and other items. Our local Walmart has this service, and they will even load your car with your order.
Has anyone used these services? Do you have any tips for those of us who are novices?
I've used Instacart when I'm too tired to go shopping.
You can also try Peapod and Shaws.
Best Wishes,
Leslie
I haven't used the service. I do see cars picking up their orders frequently and haven't heard of any complaints on our neighborhood app.
I think I may give it a go next week to see how it goes. I'll report back.
I know I have gotten adds from Walmart, Fred Meyer, Albertson’s and first order of $75.00 is $25.00 off and free delivery to your house 🏠. My in laws do it and enjoy it 👍. It’s free delivery all the time. When you go to the store site you can actually pick size, brand name, etc. I have done it with Costco and worked great 👍. They are all thriving for your business 😉. Ken 🐾🐾
From what I understand about Costco’s delivery is that yes the delivery is free, however you will pay more for the products. When ordering, it says on the website that items may be less in the warehouse. I don’t know about the other stores but would like to learn from you all
My husband gave me a shirt that is perfect for me for winter. When we went back to Costco, they were already gone. I ordered several online, but noticed they were each $1 higher than the store price. For that item, I was willing, but wouldn’t necessarily be interested if more than that.
Yes. Online differences are small, however can add up and if you are ordering a
Lot. I live half hour away so sometimes it is worth it to order on line to save time and gas
works great
For me I need to see what I'm buying. My idea of fresh and worth purchasing is different from someone else
That’s been my concern—fresh food. I read that you may reject anything that doesn’t suit you, but I can’t imagine anyone being as picky as I am about fresh produce!
That is why I don't entertain the idea. I have issues when my mother pick something up for me.
At least at the stores I usually go to the produce is up front, so I might try the pickup service for all but that. That way, I wouldn’t have to cover the huge store for the other items.
That’s what a friend of mine recommends—have WalMart pick up the stuff that can’t go wrong but buy meat and produce yourself. I haven’t tried it but she swears by it.
I am very picky 🤗 I'm so grateful for my husband. He do alot of shopping if I can't.my daughter use apps for everything. I tell her it's making her lazy!!!!😂😂 use it if you can. I miss being able to run around the store.
Contemplated it, strongly. Two reasons why I haven't: 1) I never have cash for tip money on hand and 2) I don't want to give up a part of myself that enjoys grocery shopping. Okay, grocery shopping is difficult, since the MS causes sensory overload and then my head is spinning and I get drained. By the time I'm done and back home, I'm popping a pizza in the oven instead of cooking a meal. But I did it myself!!! 
Totally on the “I want to do it myself” and wagon. However it is becoming increasingly more difficult.
I was told that employees are forbidden to accept tips for loading groceries into car and can actually be fired if they do. This was at Fred Myer, not sure about Walmart or others
Toward the end of shopping I just want to cry and lay down on the store to rest for a half hour while before finishing. Of course then I would NEVER be able to get up. Luck for me my husband will bring the groceries in for me.
He said offers and does the shopping for us more and more. I do not like that he has to do that as he is picking up the slack in so many ways. Think I need to let go and start ordering on line to do pick up.
That's a great point. It might not only save ourselves a lot of time, energy, and bother, but our families, too. Plus, choosing exactly the product I want online prevents a lot of calls from my poor husband trying to find what I want.
I have looked at it thinking of the future. The stores near me have pick up but so far no delivery. I no longer drive but so far my husband does but I wonder what we'll do at the time he doesn't. My son lives in a town about half an hour from here and he gets his groceries delivered all the time.
Since I can drive, the free pick up and loading sound great!
I just became eligible to drive again!!!!. I'm so grateful to God!!!! I told my Dr I say you relax and I can only drive my Walker from the front door to the back!!! I'm being VERY OBEDIENT to the social distancing rules.
Yes I love the pick up service! So convenient & free at Walmart! I usually do my large grocery/pantry items with Walmart, no more going from isle to isle...you have your own personal shopper do it for you! Especially with the summer heat already upon us in the southeast it’s a no brainer😜 Have a splendid weekend!
Sounds wonderful!
Oh yeah..no tipping allowed at Walmart either, just a friendly thanks & smile 😊
I have yet to try this but it is a very good idea.
I doubt that they check the bananas for Brazilian Wandering Spiders. We brought one home and I almost lost my mind when my husband told me about it.
youtube.com/watch?v=pQYWBmk...
Now I’m afraid of bananas! Bananaphobia! Lions, and tigers, and bananas! Oh, my!
Don't use the banana phone before you check for those spiders!
The next time I went to that store, I told the cashier about it and she said they must have missed that one as they're supposed to check in the back after deliveries for those kind of things.
She also told me that one of the boys in back keeps them as pets WHEN he finds them. Delightful! 
Service not available in my area but my grocery store is only 2 miles away. 
When available, I will probably try it as it would be an option when I cannot go by myself. Always nice to have options!
I thought that I was strange with my banana phobia, but nice to see that someone else has an aversion to bananas as well!
I wonder if it would be helpful to request it. Perhaps, if they get enough requests, the store will consider adding this service. Can't hurt to ask.
I have asked many times. When they have enough interest, perhaps they will offer the service.
Just my 2 cents worth, I noticed when produce shopping at Walmart, their pre-packaged produce items IE salad mixes, tomatoes, etc. are maybe 10-15% higher than if you went to another store and purchased the same. I wonder if anyone here has used the shopping service and compared prices vs in store shopping?
I use delivery from Fresh Thyme grocery and from GreenBean (which includes local farms in the Midwest and they cover several states). Fresh Thyme is overpriced and sometimes the produce is not fresh, so beware. It’s cool that they will refund your purchase...but I actually want what I order 🙄 I don’t buy eggs from either of them because I like one brand with super dark yolks that they don’t offer.
We are also tribe members at Seven Sons in Indiana and they deliver grass fed/finished meats and some dairy, and products you will not find in stores. We have ordered from Grassland meats also and the quality was similar.
I use Instacart and Shipt all of the time they are great local grocery stores, Whole Foods, Petco, Costco and many more
Tip on the app on the credit card and they carry it in my kitchen for me
Life changing
I feel like if I don't get the stuff myself then they would get my order wrong. ❤🌷
If I try it next week, I’ll let you know.
I haven't used the pickup service but have used online grocery ordering for home delivery regularly for 10 years now. Often it has been Safeway but more recently I've been trying InstaCart. It's been a great way to save time and energy. Usually the items have been correctly chosen and in good condition. Problems have been corrected. There were a couple of major foulups--deliveries that didn't show up or were entirely too late--but not a bad track record, I think.
Is the Instacart expensive?
It depends on the size of your order, what store you're ordering from, and a number of other factors. There's a service charge tacked on also, and the tip can be included. I've used it only a few times but each time it was over $10 for a delivery of a week's groceries--not bad, I think. The Safeway might have been about the same. Supposedly the customer pays the same prices for items as in the store you're doing the online shopping from.
I frequently use Walmart Grocery pickup. It is so easy, just takes a little planning ahead if wanting to pick up on busy days. Our Walmart is half an hour from home, but only 15 minutes from work, so I usually pick up after work and then head home. It's a lifesaver when the kid has practice and I don't have time to spend an hour in the store. I don't use it for produce or fruits too often, but they have done well selecting avocados and shredded lettuce for me.
Here's the best part- you can get more than just groceries (laundry detergent, deodorant, over the counter meds, pet food, etc). We usually buy our groceries at Aldi or Ruler Foods and get the household items at Walmart. It saves so much time and energy not having to go from one end of the store to the other. If it's available in the Grocery App, you can put it on your order. You can scan barcodes at home to get the exact items you want, which takes away the worry of selecting the right item. I'm a little picky about some things and want specific brands but you can mark to accept substitutions or not when placing the order. A loader (ahem, personal shopping assistant) also told me once that if I have forgotten anything and need to go into the store, I can park in the pickup spot, go get what I need, and then check in when I'm back in my car and they'll bring the order out in a few minutes.
I highly recommend giving Pickup a try if you have a Walmart that offers it. There is no fee for using it, just a $30 minimum order.
Thanks for sharing your experience! I think I'm going to try using the pickup service today. Since pharmacy and produce departments are at the front of the store, I can still go in for those types of things, but not have to traverse the huge store for other things.
I usually have to go in for pharmacy as well. Like you said, at least that stuff is at the front. Finding out they would bring things other than groceries was the best news ever! No more wandering around with a heavy cart.
I think you'll really appreciate just how easy it is.
The walmart here in my town does not have online and pickup service yet. this walmart here is slow to offer.
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