How earning with Instacart works
Earn what you need, when you need it
The choice is yours
How much you work, which batches you take, and how far you drive — it’s all up to you. To help you make the best decision, you’ll always see the key details upfront, including:
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Upfront pay
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Store
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Delivery distance
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Number of items and units
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Batch earnings and expected tip
Choose the batch that's right for you — you're never penalized for not accepting a batch.
Earnings overview
Batch pay
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Promotions
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Tips
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Total earnings
Batch pay
Batch pay reflects the total expected effort it takes to complete a batch (including travel to the store and to the customer, quantity and weight of items, and expected time needed to shop the batch). Batch pay may increase if a customer adds more items before checkout. If applicable, batch pay may include heavy pay or boosts. The batch pay you see upfront will never decrease as long as the batch is completed as accepted, and is separate from the tips you may receive from customers. You can view your earnings, including a breakdown of batch pay and tips, after you complete a batch in the Earnings section of the Shopper app. Batch pay is based solely on job-related criteria, such as driving distance, number of items, and expected shopping time. It is never influenced by a shopper's protected demographics or characteristics. Shoppers who are offered the same batch at the same time will always see the same batch pay.
Boosts
Boosts are extra pay added to some batches when there aren't enough shoppers in the area to meet the customer demand and shoppers therefore may be further away.
Heavy pay
Heavy pay is included as an additional component of batch pay applied to qualifying batches if there are several heavy items and is always at least $2. This is denoted by the "heavy pay" tag on the batch evaluation screen.
Promotions
Instacart offers promotions as additional earnings opportunities for shoppers when there is high customer demand. Promotions may be offered at an individual shopper level on one or more batches. Learn more about the types of promotions offered in the earnings section of the Shopper app.
Tips
Shoppers always get 100% of the tips customers give. If a batch is fulfilled by more than one shopper, the tip will be split evenly between the shoppers. We know tips are a critical component of shopper pay, which is why we've introduced these additional features. Customers can increase their tip for up to 14 days after delivery, but can't decrease it after 2 hours.
Tip protection for zeroed out tips
If a customer zeroes out their tip without reporting an issue with their order, Instacart will cover the amount of the tip that the customer removed, up to $10. This automatically applies to any tip that a customer zeroes out after delivery without reporting an associated issue with the order.
Customer education
We encourage customers to tip as a main way to recognize a shopper's hard work, and send reminders if they haven't yet tipped on an order. We also prompt customers to increase their tip anytime they rate a shopper 5 stars, as another way of recognizing great service from shoppers who go above and beyond.
Bad weather tips
Instacart encourages customers to tip more during times of bad weather.
Batch pay
Batch pay reflects the total expected effort it takes to complete a batch (including travel to the store and to the customer, quantity and weight of items, and expected time needed to shop the batch). Batch pay may increase if a customer adds more items before checkout. If applicable, batch pay may include heavy pay or boosts. The batch pay you see upfront will never decrease as long as the batch is completed as accepted, and is separate from the tips you may receive from customers. You can view your earnings, including a breakdown of batch pay and tips, after you complete a batch in the Earnings section of the Shopper app. Batch pay is based solely on job-related criteria, such as driving distance, number of items, and expected shopping time. It is never influenced by a shopper's protected demographics or characteristics. Shoppers who are offered the same batch at the same time will always see the same batch pay.
Boosts
Boosts are extra pay added to some batches when there aren't enough shoppers in the area to meet the customer demand and shoppers therefore may be further away.
Heavy pay
Heavy pay is included as an additional component of batch pay applied to qualifying batches if there are several heavy items and is always at least $2. This is denoted by the "heavy pay" tag on the batch evaluation screen.
Promotions
Instacart offers promotions as additional earnings opportunities for shoppers when there is high customer demand. Promotions may be offered at an individual shopper level on one or more batches. Learn more about the types of promotions offered in the earnings section of the Shopper app.
Tips
Shoppers always get 100% of the tips customers give. If a batch is fulfilled by more than one shopper, the tip will be split evenly between the shoppers. We know tips are a critical component of shopper pay, which is why we've introduced these additional features. Customers can increase their tip for up to 14 days after delivery, but can't decrease it after 2 hours.
Tip protection for zeroed out tips
If a customer zeroes out their tip without reporting an issue with their order, Instacart will cover the amount of the tip that the customer removed, up to $10. This automatically applies to any tip that a customer zeroes out after delivery without reporting an associated issue with the order.
Customer education
We encourage customers to tip as a main way to recognize a shopper's hard work, and send reminders if they haven't yet tipped on an order. We also prompt customers to increase their tip anytime they rate a shopper 5 stars, as another way of recognizing great service from shoppers who go above and beyond.
Bad weather tips
Instacart encourages customers to tip more during times of bad weather.
Total earnings
Batch pay
Batch pay reflects the total expected effort it takes to complete a batch (including travel to the store and to the customer, quantity and weight of items, and expected time needed to shop the batch).
Promotions
Instacart offers promotions as additional earnings opportunities for shoppers when there is high customer demand. Promotions may be offered at an individual shopper level on one or more batches.
Tips
Shoppers always get 100% of the tips customers give. We know tips are a critical component of shopper pay and have introduced features to support tipping.
Peak earning times
The peak earning times page helps you plan your shopping up to a week in advance so you can choose which day(s) and hour(s) work best for you. The chart shows how batch pay will adjust across the week based on projected customer demand in your area. Each week, we'll provide you with the details of which hours pay more per batch compared to the lowest paying hour that week, so you can shop during times that work best for you.
View and receive earnings
There are three ways to get paid:
Instant cashout
You can cash out your batch earnings within minutes after a delivery and your full earnings, including tip, 2 hours after delivery, for a small fee.
Free auto-payouts
With the Shopper Rewards Card powered by Branch, get automatically paid after every batch to your Shopper Rewards account — at no cost to you. Learn more about the Shopper Rewards Card.
Direct deposit
If you prefer direct deposits, you’ll receive payments weekly for services you provided the previous week (Monday-Sunday).
Frequently asked questions
How can I earn more?
Shop when and where it's busiest. Customer demand is often highest on weekends and holidays. Your shopper app shows you peak earning times to help you plan up to a week in advance.
When do I get paid?
You’ll receive direct deposit payments weekly between Wednesday and Friday for services you provided the prior week (Monday-Sunday). If you want access to your earnings faster, you can use instant cashout for a small fee. U.S. shoppers can also choose to sign up for the Shopper Rewards Card, powered by Branch, to get free auto-payouts after every batch.
How does heavy pay work?
To qualify for heavy pay, items in the batch that weigh 8+ lbs must total 50 lbs or more. Heavy pay is denoted by the "heavy pay" tag on the batch evaluation screen and is at least $2.
What types of orders can I take?
We offer three different types of orders - Shop Only, Delivery Only and Full Service (shop and deliver). A batch can include one or more customer orders, and can be from multiple stores. Your pay is based on the total batch.
Is pay the same in every region?
Some regions have state or local laws that change how Instacart operates and can affect shopper pay. Please visit the Help Center in the Shopper app to learn more about shopping in your region.
What happens if the batch is canceled?
If the customer cancels the batch after you’ve started working on the order you will be compensated for your time.
How does tipping work?
Customers can select a percentage of their basket size or input a specific dollar amount for a tip. If they select a percentage, the tip will vary from the initial batch screen if replacements or refunds are granted. If a customer zeroes out a tip without listing an order issue, Instacart will cover the tip up to $10.
What earnings details do I see after I complete a batch?
After you complete a batch you’ll see a total earnings breakdown on the batch summary screen (example screen below). The batch summary will show you a breakdown of how much you made in batch pay, promotions, and tips. All other factors such as distance, boosts, and heavy pay are included in batch pay.
Batch pay varies by market and reflects the total expected effort it takes to complete a batch (including travel to the store and the customer, quantity and weight of items, and customer demand). Batch pay may increase if a customer adds more items before checkout.
Tips are provided by the customer and are always 100% yours.
There are more details about the components of earnings on the above webpage.
