Instacart
Instacart is an American online shopping company. It operates in retailing, specializing in grocery pick-up and delivery services. It is a privately owned company by Maplebear Inc. Instacart was launched back in 2012. The headquarters of Instacart is located in San Francisco, California, United States. The founders of Instacart include Apoorva Mehta, Max Mullen, and Brandon Leonardo. The current Chief Executive Officer is Fidji Simo.
Peapod
Peapod Online Grocery (US), LLC is also an American online shopping company. It also operates in the online grocery industry. Peapod is a subsidiary. Meanwhile, Ahold Delhaize is the parent company. It was established back in 1989. The founding members of Peapod included Thomas Parkinson and Andrew Parkinson. The headquarters of Peapod is located in Chicago, Illinois, United States. The current Chief Executive Officer of Peapod is Jennifer Carr-Smith.
Instacart vs. Peapod, Which is better?
Now we get to the focal point of our article. Both Instacart and Peapod are operating in the online grocery industry. Both are well-settled companies. Both Instacart and Peapod have a wide variety of products that are easy to purchase; however, the question arises, which one of these is better. Instacart is more convenient and efficient as compared to Peapod. Instacart would provide you with products from the grocery store or supermarket of your own choice concurrently the Peapod would provide you with the products from the supermarket of their choice. At the same time, the prices of Peapod are pretty economical as compared to Instacart. The price difference may be as much as 25%. So if you can afford to add some extra dollars to your bill, then Instacart is the go-to store, or else Peapod is still a decent choice.
In-depth Analysis
Instacart and Peapod, both of them, are online grocers. Looking at their areas of operation, Instacart operates in about 5,500 cities in the United States and Canada. Simultaneously, the Peapod is offering its services in about 24 cities, mostly the major ones from the United States and across the Atlantic. In addition, they provide their customers with an app through which customers can shop from these sites. Another vital feature that they share is that they converse with their shoppers if any product is unavailable.
Talking about the unique features of Instacart that set it apart from Peapod, it is available in 26 states plus most of the major cities of the United States. In addition, the delivery is quite prompt. Groceries are delivered within one or two hours of the order. There is also a unique option of scheduled delivery on the same day.
One more thing that sets it apart from its competitors is choosing a local store from where we want our products to be purchased. Unlike Peapod, they do not own any warehouse, nor do they act as a grocery store on their own. Instead, it becomes a partner with numerous local stores or chain stores. It helps the shopper to purchase any specialty product of their choice.
Now coming towards the Peapod, it is present in various locations, including
- Midwest
- New England
- Mid-Atlantic
- South Atlantic
Another exclusive discount that they offer is the delivery fee reduction. The delivery fee is reduced for orders that are more than $100. They do not shop from the stores as per their customer’s demand, but they offer almost all conventional mass-market supermarket brands. That is their most significant selling point. They act as a supermarket on their own. They do not have any physical locations; hence, all items are available online. Peapod has its warehouse where the items are all stored. Another notable feature is the doubling of manufacturer coupons. This doubling may rise to 99 cents.
Conclusion
Instacart makes the shopping experience quite exclusive. We get to choose the products from our desired stores or brands. But this exclusivity comes with some higher pricing. The reason is that Instacart has partnered with some of the major supermarkets and brands around the country. Hence the pricing is higher than the in-store shopping at these brands or supermarkets.
On the other hand, Peapod does not offer this much exclusivity; still, they do offer products from almost all of the supermarkets and brands. They have their warehouse where all of the items are stored. These items are then delivered as per the orders from the customers. Peapod has been operational for about 32 years; meanwhile, Instacart has been in the industry for about nine years. These both have established themselves and are the biggest competitors to each other. As for our findings, Instacart offers exclusivity but at a slightly higher price than Peapod. Peapod does not offer such exclusivity even though they offer products from major brands around the United States.
