Is Instacart for sale?
Grocery delivery company Instacart is exploring a potential sale, according to multiple media reports. The move comes amid intensifying competition in the grocery delivery market and structural pressure from larger rivals.
Bloomberg reported that Instacart has been working with an investment bank to evaluate its options. It also reported that the company has been in sale discussions with its biggest competitors, Uber Technologies and DoorDash.
Both Uber and DoorDash have aggressively expanded into grocery delivery. Reuters reported a potential takeover by either company could bolster the buyer's online grocery delivery ambitions by combining Instacart's established marketplace and retailer ties with its own vast delivery network and customer base.
Instacart saw total revenue grow 14% to $1.043 billion in the second quarter of this year, compared with the same period last year, and gross transaction value also grew 14% year over year (YoY). Instacart saw orders grow 9% YoY to 90.3 million in the quarter ended June 30.
Instacart started trading on the Nasdaq in September 2023. It has since made moves to ensure its staying power, most recently by implementing an AI shopping assistant and partnering with Meta’s Muse.
However, these actions may not be enough, as more food retailers are following industry giants Walmart and Amazon and investing in their own proprietary apps, direct delivery memberships and micro-fulfillment automation.
According to the latest Brick Meets Click Grocery Shopper Surveys, e-grocery now accounts for 20.9% of all U.S. grocery spending, the highest share on record, after third-quarter sales rose 20.7% from the same period in 2025. YoY growth has now topped 20% for eight quarters running, supported by shoppers who order more often and a pool of monthly buyers that keeps getting larger.
This article was first published on Canadian Grocer's sister site, Progressive Grocer.
