How to Develop Best Grocery Delivery App Like Instacart

In recent years, on-demand grocery app like Instacart is become quite popular. And much of the credit goes to the pandemic which forced people to stay in their homes.

With this boast from covid-19 induced pandemic, the market has been growing at a rapid rate. The online grocery delivery services market is expected to grow by $ 800.00 Billion from 2020 to 2025, progressing at a CAGR of 25.25% during the forecast period, according to Technavio.

The huge market potential has attracted a lot of businesses to develop apps like Instacart for their business or start-ups. And in this blog, we shall be looking at Instacart, how to develop an Instacart clone, and all things related.

Therefore, with this being said, let’s get right into it:

What is InstaCart? Stellar Grocery Delivery App Development

Instacart is an example of stellar Grocery Delivery App Development. This on demand grocery delivery platform was developed by Apoorva Mehta an Ex-employee of Amazon.

Established back in 2012, in the years leading up to now, it has become one of the largest grocery delivery platforms. Around 85% of US citizens use Instacart. Not only has this but around 60% of Canadian households used Instacart for grocery shopping.

Moving on, let’s look at some of the statistics about this platform:

• Instacart says they plan to hire 3,00,000 more delivery boys to meet rising demands.
• On demand platform have recorded the highest sales during the pandemic rising up to $700 million.
• In one of the latest announcements, the company raised $600 millionat a $7.6 billion valuation.
• Daily download rates of Instacart rose by 218%.
• Instacart saw 38,500 download per day.

These are some of the stats that show the amazing market potential. Much of the credit goes to the unique business model known as “no-inventory”. This has led to amazing growth and popularity of the platform.

This is all you need to know about this amazing grocery app development. And with this said, something that you might be wondering how these entire works does. We shall be looking at the same in the next section of the blog.

How Does Grocery Delivery App Works?

So, how grocery app works? This is a question that lot of you might have. And we shall be answering the same in this blog. Therefore, the working of an app like Instacart is, as mentioned below:

• The first thing you have to do is down this grocery delivery app solution from App Store or Google Play Store.
• The users have to share their location with the Instacart service provider and the app will automatically show you the nearest Instacart store.
• Moving on, user can choose from a wide range of grocery items. Once you are done with this, you can add them to the cart.
• Once in the cart you can choose when you want this to be delivered, and make the payment.
• After placing the order, the service provider gets a notification regarding the same on their side of the application.
• Soon, the items will be delivered to the address you put in.

Something that you must understand here is that there are two apps involved here. Namely, these are:

• App for Customer
• App for Shopper

This is what allows app like Instacart to work properly.

Since you are considering to Develop An Grocery Delivery App, it’s a good idea to know to learn about the different types of on demand grocery delivery apps.

Types of On Demand Grocery Delivery App

Every business has its own unique needs. And consequently, the business model followed by Instacart might not suit you. However, there are several different types of on demand grocery delivery app development that you can choose from.  

Here, we shall be looking at these different types in detail helps you decide which one you want to develop.

So, with this being said, let’s get right into it:

• Marketplace Grocery Delivery App

Marketplace grocery delivery app is a business model that is quite popular. What happens here is that, there is a dedicated team that is tasked with delivering the grocery items to the customer.

Now, this kind of solution is for the people or the “App Owners” that provide the ordered items from stores that they have partnered with.

• Single Store Grocery Delivery App

As the name suggests, this type of grocery delivery app is built specifically around the needs of a single store. Therefore, this app allows them to better manage their own store.

With that said, one can say that it is usually developed for store owners.

• Grocery Chain App

This is quite similar to the previous one we discussed i.e. the single store one. Now, what if you have more than one store, what if you have a whole chain?

This is where this type of grocery app development comes in. This allows them to manage groceries from a range of different stores or an entire chain.

• Custom Grocery Delivery App

As the name suggests, the custom grocery delivery app is completely built based on the client’s demand. Meaning from features to design and functioning, everything is personalized.

If this is what you want to develop, you can hire custom mobile app development services.

Now that we are done with the different types of grocery app development, let’s look at the reasons to develop such a solution.

Reasons to Develop Grocery Delivery App Like InstaCart

Now that we know what Instacart is, how it works, and what different types of grocery app development are, it’s time to look at the reasons to develop an app like Instacart.

These are, as mentioned below:

• Growing User Demand

The first reason for you to hire a Grocery Delivery App Development Company is the growing user demand.

You see, ever since the covid hit us, people knew they couldn’t just leave and get whatever they want as they used to do pre-pandemic. Firstly, because it isn’t the same and secondly because regulations wouldn’t let you.

Coming back, the only option left is doing it online. And this is where apps like Instacart come in. These apps allow the users to get groceries right at their doorstep and that too when they want it.

Consequently, as much as 80% of USA’s households use Instacart. In addition to this, as much as 60% of Canadian households do the same. This clearly shows the large user base. And the best part is, it is only growing as time progresses.

• Opportunity to Generate Record Breaking Revenue

With all of the various benefits, you can generate millions of dollars in the on-demand grocery delivery industry.

You see, this on-demand industry itself has become one of the largest worth billions. And solutions like Instacart have been generations 100s of billions in the market, and so can you.

• Next Step for Grocery Stores

We are going through industry 4.0, the fourth industrial revolution. And this one is all about integrating businesses with modern technology. You can see this in everything from automobiles to aviation and travel. It is safe to say, this also covers the traditional grocery stores.

This is to say that if you have grocery stores, you can highly benefit from integrating mobile app technology into your work. This doesn’t only make store management much easier but also allows you to reach to a larger audience.

This is yet another reason to consider hiring one of the mobile app development companies and developing your own grocery delivery app like Instacart.

So, these are some of the reasons to develop your own app lie Instacart.

How Do I Start My Own Instacart?

Considering that you have decided to develop your own app like Instacart, you might be wondering how exactly that can be done.

Well, the first step of Instacart app development is coming up with an idea. And this is what you have to do here.

Now, something that you need to understand is that this is something that you have to do on your own. No development company can help you come up with the market leading concept. Because if they could, they wouldn’t share it with you.

Nevertheless, there is a process that you have to follow, which is mentioned below:

1. Come Up With An Idea: brainstorm, ask for suggestions, come up with a new concept, figure out the market need, and do whatever you need to do to get an idea or a base to work on. And once you have this, you need to…
2. Cross-check the Idea: before you move forward you need to cross-check the idea. For this, you need to conduct research.
3. Monetization: monetization is an important part of developing a successful business as, without this, you won’t be able to generate revenue. Therefore, we shall be discussing the same in detail in the section below.

Monetization of Grocery Delivery App

Monetization refers to the use of different strategies that enable the application or the business model to generate revenue. And in this section of the blog, we shall be discussing various of these strategies used for generating revenue by apps like Instacart.

• Delivery Fee

This is one of the leading monetization strategies used by Instacart to generate revenue. Leaving the first order which is free, the platform charges delivery fees to provide you with your grocery at your doorstep.

This goes as follows:

• $5.99 for 2 Hour delivery
• $7.99 for 1 Hour delivery

Since you are developing a grocery android app clone, you can also follow the same strategy.

• Service Fee

In addition to delivery fees, grocery delivery platform also charges something known as service fees. In the case of Instacart, you can have to pay a service fee of 5% of the order total.

While this might seem a small amount but it can add up to create a huge revenue stream. So, you can ask your mobile app or custom web app development services to add the same.

• Partner Payments

Instacart is a platform that has partnered with many market-leading grocery chains. Here, Instacart being a grocery delivery platform charges these partners fees for improving their customer reach and improved sales.

If you are following the same business model as Instacart, then you can also apply the same monetization strategy.

Features to Include in Grocery Delivery App Development

Feature an essential part of creating a successful on demand grocery app. So, we shall be discussing some of the features that you should be including in your Instacart-clone app. These are, as mentioned below:

How to Make Online Grocery Delivery App Like Instacart? Instacart App Development Process

Finally, it’s time we look how to look at the mobile app development process for creating an app like Instacart.

Here, we shall be discussing all the important steps, what happens in them, and what you should do. Since we have already prepared everything like features, monetization, and ideas, we shall be looking at all things technical.

With this being said, let’s get right into it:

1. Choose App Development Platform

The first thing you need to do is choose a mobile app development platform.

You can either hire android app developers or opt-out of iOS App Development. These are the two major platforms and the best one depends on your needs as well as personal preferences.

However, if you aren’t quite keen on any of the platforms, you can choose a third option which is hybrid app development, which gives you the best of both worlds.

Nevertheless, once you are done with this, we can move to the next step which is choosing the tech stack.

2. Finalize a Tech Stack

Tech stack refers to the technologies used for developing an app like Instacart. This includes programming languages, framework, toolkits, and so on.

MEAN Stack Development is a popular example of the same.

3. Hire Mobile App Developers

With all things finalized, you need to hire on demand app developers who will be creating your app into reality.

There are a few things that you need to consider. This includes:

• Their portfolio
• Technical Expertise
• Experience
• Communication
• Team size

These are what you should keep in mind when you hire mobile app developers.

4. Create an MVP

It is a good idea to create MVP before you start final stage of development. The app development company will create a bare-bone “minimum viable product” that works as a prototype.

5. Front-end Development

This is where all the features and designs of the grocery delivery app are created. Therefore, you can hire market-leading UI/UX Designers to create an aesthetic design.

Since we have already discussed features include in the same. We shall be moving to the back end development.

6. Back-end Development

This is where the on demand app development company will be writing the source code of the application. This is one of the most important and lengthiest processes.

That’s why you should be communicating well with the development side.

7. Testing & Deployment

Once the app is developed it has to be tested for any bugs or errors.

Moving on to the deployment, it highly depends on your choice between iOS and Android App Development Company.

Nevertheless, once the app is deployed you can start monitoring it.

How Much Does It Cost To Build An App Like Instacart?

The grocery app development cost highly depends on various different factors. Some of these are, as mentioned below:

• App Development Platform
• App Maintenance & Support
• Tech Stack
• Size of the App
• Type of Solution

These are some of the factors which may affect the development cost. Nevertheless, you can expect the development cost to be anywhere between $15,000 & $35,000.

Conclusion

Instacart is one of the best grocery delivery apps in United States of America dominating the majority of the market. Now, in this blog, we learned all about Instacart and creating a stellar mobile app like Instacart.

So, if you want to create a similar app, it is recommended that you consult a market leading grocery app development company that can help you with the same.

FAQ

Niketan Sharma

Niketan Sharma is the CTO of Nimble AppGenie, a prominent website and mobile app development company in the USA that is delivering excellence with a commitment to boosting business growth & maximizing customer satisfaction. He is a highly motivated individual who helps SMEs and startups grow in this dynamic market with the latest technology and innovation.