Top Instacart Earners Reveal Biggest Earning Secrets [Sponsored]
Shopping with Instacart is one of the most popular gig jobs in 2021: you can do it in your spare time, you typically drive less than you would with rideshare, and interactions with customers are minimal.
Instacart batches usually consist of everyday groceries, household items, and more from stores in your area. You shop the orders and deliver them to the customers. Sounds easy, right?
At this point, you may be wondering what shopping with Instacart is like, and what some of the top Instacart shoppers are making. At The Rideshare Guy, we have access to thousands of drivers and couriers, who we survey regularly about their perceptions and experiences in the gig economy. Below, we talked to some of the top Instacart shoppers about the platform, their earnings, and more.
This post is sponsored by Instacart but, as always, opinions are our own.
Shopping with Instacart
Instacart is a technology company that utilizes an app that connects personal shoppers with customers who need items like groceries—and sometimes even alcohol—delivered. Instacart uses independent contractors to shop for customers to get the items they want.
Being an Instacart “Full-Service Shopper” offers flexible work where you choose when you want to provide services while helping out those in your community who either can’t or choose not to shop for themselves.
Top Instacart Earners Share Their Biggest Earning Secrets
Please keep in mind, we cannot guarantee a repeat of these outcomes and individual earnings will vary. These are all individual stories that may or may not reflect what’s available in your market.
$2,000 in one week!
RSG’s Elijah shared some amazing stories he’s experienced about earnings as an Instacart shopper. One shopper he spoke with was averaging about $25 an hour during the pandemic.
In one week’s time, this Instacart shopper earned $2,190.07.. This was with a total of 50 batches and almost half of his earnings were made of customer tips.
The tips alone totaled $1,060.43. With tips, this shopper averaged about $37 an hour that week. Without tips, it was still about $19 an hour!
His top tips for Instacart shoppers include:
- Don’t drive too far away from where you live—this can help minimize your drive time and how long you might be stuck in traffic.
- Focus on a few stores and get to know them really well—the better you know the store, the more efficient a shopper you can be. Time is money!
- Play to your strengths—if the meat counter makes you struggle, don’t choose batches with a lot of fresh meat in the order; if you don’t know the spice aisle very well, avoid those orders if you can.
Warehouse shopping
A guest writer for us shared his experience shopping with Instacart where he focused on warehouse orders. Robert shared that he made over $19,000 in 2020 only providing services part-time.
Why warehouse orders? In his experience, it’s typical that they are high dollar orders that have a lower number of items to shop for, often making it a win-win for shoppers. People are ordering in bulk from warehouses, which may make things easier or harder for the shopper.
Robert stated that his vehicle is big enough for larger items if need be, but for someone with a smaller vehicle, that would be something to look out for before accepting a batch.
He also likes warehouses because there are a limited number of items available to shop for in the first place. They only have, say, 3,700 unique items, when an average grocery store might carry 20 different types of pickles, for example.
Single-day of earnings
Tyler, a contributor for The Rideshare Guy and an Instacart shopper himself, wanted to see just how much he could earn in one day as an Instacart Full-Service Shopper. In an 8-hour day, he made $143.36. $61.55 of that was tips. In total, he averaged almost $18 an hour.
Check out his full experience: Making Money As an Instacart Shopper!
Take More Than One Order
Yes, shopping for more than one order can seem stressful – at first. But it’s actually a great way to make more money! Below, we share what exactly you need to know to handle double orders, plus we break down the simple way to know you can successfully (and profitably) accomplish this double order! Instacart Shopper Training: How To Handle Double Batches
Overall, being a Full-Service Shopper with Instacart can be a worthwhile endeavor depending on your market, available batches, and other factors. Right now, Instacart is offering guaranteed earnings promotions in rotating markets weekly, so make sure to sign up here and see if there’s an incentive in your city today!
-Paula @ RSG
