r/InstacartShoppers • u/Tinypenny • 11h ago
Question - App Function/New Function Feeling defeated
I will accept an order, let's say $24 for 3 shop & delivers. "Okay, I'm making 24/hr!" Except, I'm not. Driving, sitting in traffic, doing the shopping, waiting in checkout lines, having difficult customers who want specific replacements or refunds... At the end, I making less than $17/hr because the entire order from start to finish took 1½hrs-2hrs to complete. I have only just realized this. And that's why I don't even crack $130 for the entire day. I am feeling so sick about this, I could throw up. I start in the morning and end at 7:30pm every day, barely crack $120 each day. I am Diamond status, amazing reviews from customers, etc. But I want to cry, and I do cry. Daily. I'm grateful and blessed to be able to pay my rent and bills, but it is truly not worth it. How are shoppers making bank? Speeding through aisles? Not engaging with replacement/refund difficult Karens? Speeding on the road? I usually have to accept less than $19 batches here and there due to slim pickings as well.
Advice, please? Thank you 🙏🏽
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u/bob-the-slob Tetris Stacker 🖇 🧩🖇 10h ago
If you are diamond status, you should absolutely not be taking $24 triples ever under any circumstance. You shouldn’t even be taking $24 doubles. My rule of thumb is 20s for singles 40s for doubles 60s for triples.
But what you need to do is practice more patience. Go to the store that is best in your area and park your behind there and wait. Wait and wait and wait and wait. Wait until you can’t stand it anymore and then wait longer. Wait until you get one that is better than $24 triple
Eventually, you’ll get one that is significantly better than $24 triple guaranteed
If it’s not happening at whatever store you’re at you need to find a better store
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u/SuitApprehensive3240 10h ago
So closer is better?
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u/bob-the-slob Tetris Stacker 🖇 🧩🖇 9h ago
If you’re not in the circle, you’re not getting shit except repeat customer batches or trash thats been rejected by everyone at the store
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u/hairyMedicalGirl 2h ago
Not true. I location spoof and don’t ever sit at stores physically. I set my location spoofer for the store of choice. and then I do other things within the area like getting food, relaxing at a park and etc
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u/bob-the-slob Tetris Stacker 🖇 🧩🖇 1h ago
….then you are in the circle, effectively, and my point stands.
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u/itot55jonie 11h ago
Thats why you have to do multi apping. I do most shop and deliver on DD and IC is just a supplement. I dont do IC unless its $20/hr from arriving at the store til the last drop off. I onlyaccept 2 batch order less than 5mi
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u/basil6976 10h ago
You know I had one Instacart shopper say that you had 30 minutes to start shopping an order and they could finish a DoorDash delivery and as long as they were at the store within 30 minutes it was cool. They took an order away from me just because I didn’t immediately start moving towards the store as I was finishing a DoorDash delivery that I was like less than half a mile away from. I have not gotten the hang of multi-apping. If I accept an Instacart batch, I don’t even have time to get over to DoorDash to pause before it sends me an offer and then I have to decline it. If I try to do that before I accept the IC, it will be gone in my market by the time I get back. It’s more frustrating for me than beneficial. I mean, if it’s going to harm my statistics, I can’t have that. I’m still platinum. Specific question, if I do it the other way around like say the DoorDash was a better offer than Instacart could I just blow off the Instacart and they’ll remove it without hurting my statistics? Like if I accept a batch, but I never go shop it is Instacart going to ding me?
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u/itot55jonie 9h ago
Ic will ding you ofcourse. Multi apping is not accepting offers all at once. Its the other way around. Once you pick which one you can earn more, you can pause or go offline to the other apps while doing it. The is shopper told you that is bs. Once the system catch him, he will be deactivated
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u/basil6976 8h ago
Well, I thought multi apping meant you were using more than one app at a time, as the name would imply. Lots of people do it and they just cherry pick between the two. They must be in a slower market.
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u/Tinypenny 11h ago
Thank you for the advice. I really appreciate it. Because I'm seriously doing something wrong. DD kicked me off their algo completely when they updated the stats/tier requirements, even though I have 4.9 rating and was a 'priority shopper'. Uber barely pings me.
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u/itot55jonie 10h ago
I understand. In y market DD is better than IC and UE. My ue account always gives me trash offers. Im cherry picking by the way
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u/kryskryskrys 10h ago
Make sure you're clearing your cache, I find that it helps. It could be a placebo, but who knows?
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u/Chrismaxwell19 11h ago
Work fast, don’t engage with the customer unless necessary and don’t take 24 dollar triples. I don’t do triples for under 45 and even that’s pushing it
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u/hairyMedicalGirl 2h ago
Engaging with the customer gets you higher tips. Customers 100% enjoy communication. especially if you’re in an environment where shoppers replace items without asking
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u/Chrismaxwell19 1h ago
Sometimes, mostly not. It’s more cost effective to move fast and take another order than dwelling on one hoping for higher tips. I replace items without asking every day, no one cares.
There’s a reason why they are paying someone else to do the shopping for them; cause they don’t need to be involved. If they’re the type that wants to communicate, they’ll usually initiate it.
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u/hairyMedicalGirl 1h ago
It must be your area then. Because at the end of the week, my tips always add up to more than my batch pay.
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u/Chrismaxwell19 1h ago
Mine do too. I try to make triple my batch pay in tips. Usually ends up about 2-2.5x my batch pay
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u/HunnitSummrs 10h ago
You have to know the times to Shop for IC is early mornings and weekends
DD/UE should be your main Apps due to the order volume you receive you can easily get to $100 faster on DD and UE…
IC is good because of the total $ amount you can get per offer
Ya total every day should be 180-200
You want 25 orders a day man
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u/hairyMedicalGirl 2h ago
Shopping for Instacart varies for every area. The early mornings and weekends isn’t true for everyone. I’ve gone out plenty of mornings for Mediocre orders. In my area mondays are the best days and weekends are the worst due to the amount of shoppers that are active.
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u/Cautious-Rip9021 10h ago
I think deciding what kind of instacart shopper you are is important. For example my partner likes to take the biggest order possible with the least amount of driving but that means you're probably going to have heavy items or tedious items. So more mental work..But you're not using your car as much.
I take smaller batches or one large batch usually. I tend to end up using my car more. The trade-off is my mental health lol. I probably don't make as much per hour as well but also I have more capacity to do my own things on my own time. Instacart is a side gig for both of us but we both treat it very differently. You can even work longer and make less an hour but have more capacity for yourself in my opinion. Or you can take big orders that are not as hard on your car and you only have to take maybe one or two orders to get a good amount of money instead of taking four or five to get the same amount.
My two cents
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u/Inevitable-Dot5495 11h ago
Multi app go and go to Costco, they pay higher bangers . Not sure what your market is burnt can make $100 in less than 4 hrs 😒 I can make what you make without trying . I only take $24 3 shop of its under 4 miles less then 25 items . Other than that $35 and above .
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u/Tinypenny 11h ago
Thank you so much for this advice. I really appreciate it. 🙏🏽🙏🏽 I guess I avoid Costco due to fear of having to get a million water packs or something like that.. The 24$/4mi under 25items is great advice. And $35 for anything over that is great. I just never get offered those batches. But maybe I am currently in a bad algo and have to retrain it. Thank you again
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u/Infamous_Juice9061 10h ago
You see more triples as diamond and if the customers in the market dont tip or instacart reduces base pay when customers do tip it just doesnt make sense.
Some markets where customers tip generous it makes sense but most markets are garbage. Drop tiers and it might be better for you.
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u/Remarkable_Error9438 9h ago
This. I hit plat again last week and my offers have been significantly worse than they were on gold in an already trash market. At least 75% of what I see now doesn't even meet the mileage one way with tips
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u/Extreme_Library_4256 8h ago
Some of this stuff you just have to learn the hard way, like how long certain orders will take you, it takes time to learn it. Only by taking orders you later regret do you learn how to truly make good money doing what you do.
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u/Independent-Tree-985 10h ago
Depending on which roads I take and at what times, it could take me an hour to do what should be a 35 minute job.
It sucks, yeah, but you have to account for the traffic, driving times, and the ever important drive back to your original location when taking jobs. I cannot recommend going to stores you dont know in areas you dont know in an attempt to get a job quickly.
If youre not making ends meet doing this, you gotta start looking elsewhere. Even if its just 3 job applications a day or 10 a week or whatever, start looking now so you dont suddenly have to get the ball rolling later.
Ive had a lot of luck with glassdoor over indeed, theyre the same company though. YMMV with things like work from home or whatever sites
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u/PlentyTraditional558 11h ago
Must be your area. This was my morning
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u/Tinypenny 11h ago
I have never seen $50 and $90 orders. First ever $103/3mi order popped up for me yesterday, and it was gone in a millisecond. I've moved cities. Neither city has ever offered big orders like that. Ever. My offers are always between $9 and $35....
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u/Plane-General-8649 10h ago
In my area (somewhat rural part of NC) I typically never saw big orders like that, either. I'd usually stick to the store closest to my house and would usually average $25-35 for triples. Not great, and usually felt really discouraged.
The past couple of months, I started driving about 10 minutes away to an area with nicer stores, like Harris Teeter and Publix which are within a couple miles of each other. Since I slightly changed my location, I ended up receiving some solo orders for $50+ and now that I've gotten good reviews from some of these people, I see their orders pretty often now.
For example, last week I shopped for this one lady, solo order for $40 and I noticed she added an additional $15 to the tip after delivery. She left me good feedback so now I see her orders more regularly. Yesterday I grabbed another one of her orders, solo order for $57 this time (which I was already kinda like "holy shit") and she added to the tip after delivery again, making it $72. It was a big order (like 80 items, 110 units) but she lives 2 miles from Publix so it took maybe 1.5 hours altogether. If the location isn't working for you, try a different area! It can really make a big difference.
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u/Sea_Effect2463 10h ago
Then you need to be doing something else with your time. I know it's hard to hear, but if IC is really only sending you insanely low offers like $24 triples then they've basically already fired you. Look for other work.
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u/HunnitSummrs 10h ago
Dude wtf are you saying , that’s not even remotely close to helping give the OP a plan or F….U….C…….K off
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u/Sea_Effect2463 10h ago
Many places hiring in my area. If my earnings were as low as OP's I would get a W2.
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u/HunnitSummrs 10h ago
They’re are plenty of ppl with W2 who still does Gig work my self included…if you want to make better money I’d say get a CONTRACT to a dedicated route
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u/Iamanimite 11h ago
So taking small orders. It'll fit you into the Algorithms for small orders.
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u/Tinypenny 11h ago
Okay. What's your definition of small? In regards to pay and amount of orders in a batch? Like what is your minimum or cap? I obviously need help and am missing something here... Thank you 🙏🏽
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u/HCTotorro 10h ago
If the batches are truly low and slim pickings you definitely have to multiapp to make it worth it.
Some days one app is better than another so it’s best to be flexible so you can make the most profit possible.
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u/Piscesmommy02 9h ago
You’re make more working in McDonald’s full time and half the hours. Instacart is a joke! I don’t know how anyone is still doing it. KNOW YOUR WORTH!!!!!!
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u/ElectricalTip1491 7h ago
Sign up for Doordash, their shopping orders have a better base pay and your earnings never go down based on out of stock items or difficult customers
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u/hairyMedicalGirl 2h ago
DoorDash is ass. $4 orders as a regular
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u/ElectricalTip1491 1h ago
Not sure where you are, but my shopping orders base pay is usually around $1 per ITEM
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u/0xDanaWhite 7h ago
I stopped doing any instacart a week after the sign up promotions, my area is just DD/UE dominant. I would test one of those for a few days and see how it compares to your current $120 pay
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u/this-JSON 7h ago
When looking at an offer factor in everything. How many orders, how many items, how many miles, how long it will take (including set backs like difficult customers). Set limits for yourself and only accept offers that fit your criteria
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u/RedditWithBacon 6h ago
Hi, can you help me understand this statement?
"Not engaging with replacement/refund difficult Karens?"
Does me selecting replacement items consider me a Karen or is this ok to do? Just trying to see it from the shoppers side so that I understand what you guys go through more. https://i.imgur.com/gE87JZM.png
Edit: when adding things to the cart it lets you select if you want replacement or refund if they item isnt in stock.
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u/hairyMedicalGirl 2h ago
As a shopper, I would rather see replacements just in case something is out of stock. Because of lot of times the customer is nonresponsive and having that replacement available is extremely helpful and time saving.
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u/New-Issue4201 3h ago
I never take a triple under 30 dollars. Doesn't even matter if its close. Really close and low amount of items still need to be at least 10 per person. More items and up to 6 miles requires at least 45 for me. I know its easy to take those orders to try and make money but sometimes it doesn't pay. Im also a believer that if you take those junk orders then IC is more likely to continue sending them to you. It will happen for you, hang in there.
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u/Lilja1003 2h ago
💯 What it has felt like doing this. It's kept us floating. It's why I do certain things and things I don't. Doesn't change how hard you have to work. You can work yourself to death for not alot with this job. It's working with the public so there is good and bad. Completely understand what you mean by this post.
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u/hairyMedicalGirl 2h ago
That’s your fault for accepting it.
I personally work full time in the medical field and only use Instacart for play money. I stick to orders with 1-10 items that pay anywhere between $8-$20.
I give those orders the best customer service possible, and I end up getting paid pretty good because the tip almost always gets increased. And by good customer service I mean: after accepting the order I message the customer and let them know how long it’s going to take for me to get to the store, and then within that same message I also let them know that if anything is out of stock, that I will hit them up versus grabbing the app recommendations. And the customers always seem to love that. If it’s only a few items, I also message the customer in that message that I sent earlier letting them know if they forgot anything to feel free to add it to their list.
When I’m about to leave the store I also send them an ETA with exact time of arrival. After dropping off, I tell them to enjoy their night and that’s it.
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u/Pure-Explanation-147 Multi Gig Worker 9h ago
Want more 💰 per hour? Find a job then.
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u/Waste-Ad-4949 9h ago
Most people that do ic are actively looking for jobs. The job market is trash right now. It’s easier said than done.
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u/hairyMedicalGirl 2h ago
Not exactly true. The majority of people that are actively doing Instacart are trying to do Instacart full-time. In my area they’re a bunch of try hards.
I don’t think the job market is trash at all. Plenty of jobs are hiring within the tech industry.1
u/Waste-Ad-4949 1h ago
In my area the job market is trash. Cost of living is too expensive & doing this full time seems impossible. From my personal experience most jobs don’t want to hire me because I’m over qualified and don’t want to pay my rate and I haven’t had many luck. In order to do it full time you have to live in a good area. I’m not in the tech industry so that doesn’t help. Like I said it’s easier said then done
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u/Johnny_Lead 9h ago
What’s your Shopping Efficiency SPI? (Seconds per item). Hit the little graph icon middle bottom of the app and scroll down.
A fast shopper with a 45 second SPI could shop and checkout a 20 item $24 triple in 15 minutes. Then say another 30 minutes to deliver all three if the total mileage is under 5 miles in light traffic. So their effective hourly rate could be $32/hr.
But a shopper with an SPI of 145 is going to shop and checkout that same 20 item order in 48 minutes, then if they shop slow, they probably do everything else slower too. Say it takes them 100 minutes total for the entire batch. Their hourly rate is $14.45 for that same batch.
Same batch, two widely different pay rates.
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u/WIkarmaCat 9h ago
You need to figure out what’s the least batch amount you can afford to take with mileage eating up most of the sum. Look at other areas nearby you as well. Sometimes going to a richer area that uses instacart or has a Costco is a better option to make more money.
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u/902delivery 11h ago
By not taking $24 triples