Seeing that Costco is a warehouse club, and often follows a different set of rules, it has many shoppers wondering if Costco delivers perishable groceries (and non-perishables) to your home. Well, I’m here to set the record straight and answer all of your questions so you can easily setup your next same-day Costco grocery delivery order and have it sent directly to your front door. I hope this information clears up any confusion you had.

How Does Costco Grocery “Online Delivery” Work?

Costco Grocery is a Same-Day online grocery delivery service powered by Instacart.

Essentially, you just shop the Costco Same-Day Grocery site and make a list of everything you want delivered directly to your front door.

Once you’re done with your grocery list, you simply submit it and it gets assigned to an Instacart personal shopper in your area.

Also, when checking out, you select the exact delivery window that works for you as you need to be home to accept the delivery.

What Does It Cost to Use This Delivery Service?

Costco members can use Instacart’s delivery service for free, BUT….

Items you buy via Costco Grocery will have a slight markup compared to the “in-warehouse price”.

Download the Costco app on your smartphone and do a quick price comparison with Costco Grocery on your computer to see what the actual markup is.

A good rule of thumb seems to be 10 – 17% higher prices using Costco same-day grocery delivery.

Plus, you should always give a tip to your personal shopper, especially if they go out of their way to find substitute products for you.

PRO TIP: COST VS. CONVENIENCE

Before you poo-poo the higher prices using Instacart, keep in mind factors like time, gas, and convenience. For me personally, I’m saving 35 minutes round trip in driving time, plus about 45 minutes to shop the store and checkout. When we had young kids and were doing sports every weekend, and most school nights, it was worth the extra $20-25 for me to save close to 2 hours on a busy day.

Exactly What Items Will Instacart Deliver from Costco?

Instacart will deliver all the perishable items that Costco sells.

Think things like perishable groceries, meats, produce, and seafood.

They’ll also deliver non-perishables like canned goods, healthcare items, pet food, electronics, books, beverages, and snack foods.

They’ll even deliver alcohol and bakery items.

For alcohol purchases, you’ll need to verify your age before you add booze to your shopping list.

See Also: 4 Things to Know Before Buying Alcohol from Costco

PRO TIP: LOOK FOR 20% OFF INSTACART GIFT CARDS

Costco offers a 20% discount on buying a $100 Instacart Gift Card. They sell a $100 gift card for $79.99. They limit you to 2 per membership but you can use the gift card on same-day Costco grocery delivery. It basically pays for the Instacart markup and then some. Be sure to sign-in to your Costco account to trigger the $79.99 price.

Will the Costco Pharmacy Also Deliver?

Yes.

Costco will happily deliver your meds from the Pharmacy independent of Instacart.

This means Costco will mail your pharmacy items themselves and they will NOT be picked up by your personal Instacart shopper.

See Also: 8 Must-Knows Before Using the Costco Pharmacy

Do I Have to Be a Costco Member to Get Grocery Delivery?

Yes.

You must be a current Costco member in order to use the Instacart same-day delivery service.

See Also: No Costco Membership? 8 Things You Can STILL Do In the Warehouse

What is the Minimum Order Amount to Qualify?

For Same-Day Delivery, powered by Instacart, you need to order at least $35.

For 2-Day Delivery, you need to order at least $75 worth of merchandise to get free delivery.

What If I Don’t Need the Item Today? 

If you need items like coffee, toilet paper, laundry detergent and other non-perishable BUT don’t need it right away, you’ll want to opt for Costco’s 2-Day Delivery by shopping on the regular Costco website.

The benefit of shopping this way is you WON’T get hit by a delivery fee when you order at least $75.

See Also: 6 Ways Shopping on Costco.com Differs From the Costco Warehouse

What is “2-Day Delivery” from Costco Grocery?

Just to clarify, this is the Costco 2-Day Delivery that I talked about above.

Great option when shopping for non-perishables as you won’t get hit with delivery fees on $75 or more.

What Happens If Costco is Out-Of-Stock on an Item?

This where things get kinda cool.

If your personal shopper finds that one of your items is out-of-stock, they’ll actually reach out to you via text or a phone call to discuss a substitution.

If there isn’t a suitable substitution available they’ll simply refund you the money for that item.

How Late In the Day Can I Create my Grocery List?

It simply depends on the availability of personal Instacart shoppers in your area.

So if there are less shoppers in your area, the cut off time may be sooner than in large metropolitan areas.

When using Costco Grocery, you’ll be able see what dates and times are available for your order during checkout and plan accordingly.

It will provide two hour windows based on availability.

If you live in a small town and you’re logging on between 3 – 5 p.m., you might have to wait until the following day to get your Costco order delivered to your front door.

Keep in mind that Costco warehouses close at 8 p.m. in most locations.

Ask the Reader: Have you ever taken advantage of the same-day Costco Grocery delivery service? Would you recommend it and why? Please let me know in the comments. 

By Kyle James

Kyle James( Owner/Founder )

I started Rather-Be-Shopping.com in 2000 and have become a consumer expert and advocate writing about out-of-the-box ways to save at stores like Amazon, Walmart, Target and Costco to name a few. I’ve been featured on FOX News, Good Morning America, and the NY Times talking about my savings tips. (Learn more)