I Did Instacart for a Day

If you have ever ordered groceries and have had them delivered, or even curbside pick up, you may have wondered what goes on behind the scenes. I am here to give you a small glimpse at what goes on as an Instacart shopper, and also if you've ever wondered what it's like to be a shopper or if the pay is worth the struggle then keep reading.

I have been an Instacart shopper for almost one year and before we dive in here are some basics. There are two types of orders :

1. Shop Only

2. Shop and Deliver

Shop-only orders are when you go to a store, shop for the items, pay for the items, but you leave them at the store for the sutomer to pick up. Shop and deliver orders are exactly the same except, instead of leaving them at the store you load them into your vehicle, drive and deliver them to the customer.

Instacart shoppers are not grocery store employees, they are independent contractors and are not affliated with the store in which they shop.

Shoppers will see a "batch" pop up on their smart device and they have the option to review and to accept. Here you see how many items, distance, and if there is a tip. For those that order often, this is where shoppers can see if there is a tip or not, and trust me that will determine how quickly your order is shopped, no one wants to shop and order of 78 items with a zero dollar tip.

You go to a store and you look at each item, you have to scan the item by the barcode on your phone to ensure you have the correct item. There are also chat options to speak with the customer. For those who order it's a good thing to be in case a replacement is made and you do or do not agree, sometimes waiting on the customer to review will set the shopper behind.

Now the good part. I typically work a few hours for Instacart and make a decent amount. In this experiment, I worked Instacart for a full 8-hour workday. I also had a one-hour lunch and took my time. In 8 hours I completed 6 batches. I worked roughly from 10 am to 6 pm. I was very picky with my orders as well, not accepting e first order that popped up and I took my time. I made a total of 123.28. About half were tips, that is another reason tips are important. On average that was a little more than 20 dollars an hour.

So keep in mind because almost half were tips, you average a little over 10 dollars an hour.

All in all, Instacart is great for everyone. You are allowed to have people with you, so if you have kids it is also great for mothers as well. It's awesome supplemental income and can also be a full-time job.