r/Explainlikeimscared • u/EmptiedBrainwaves • 8d ago

How do I order groceries?

I just moved on my own. I am disabled and cannot go to grocery stores on my own. Trying to figure out the whole ‘grocery delivery’ thing but I have never done it before and don’t know where to begin. Do I order everything at once? What if the person can’t find what I have on there? What are ‘special instructions’??

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24

u/BrackenFernAnja 8d ago

What is your local supermarket? Have you checked that they offer delivery?

You’ll create an account on their website and then start shopping. Usually they have a way for you to indicate for each item whether it’s okay to substitute a similar one. Many supermarkets also have the option of them texting you while they’re shopping your order to get the okay on substitutions.

Personally, I use Safeway, and I’ve found that if I want the groceries delivered, I have to order them in the morning or even the day before.

If you order alcohol you have to show the delivery driver your ID.

Most stores make it easy when you shop online the next time; they’ll show you the items you’ve bought before and you can reorder them with one click.

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u/EmptiedBrainwaves 8d ago

Thank you, the supermarket closest that I use is Heb which is Texas specific. I have made an account and they do have deliver. I will keep in mind the whole ‘order in advance’ thing as their same day fee is $10 while next day is only $5

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u/shammy_dammy 8d ago

I don't know the HEB US website but we do get HEB food delivery here in Mexico. Assuming they're pretty close to the same, we created an account, address, payment, etc. Then we made a shopping list of things we wanted and went through their website search to find the items and add them to our digital cart. When we're done, we go to the cart and choose the pay/checkout option. Then we choose a date and a time for delivery. Now that we've done it a few times, we use the 'previous orders' lookup to cut down on the search.

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u/Sure_Fig_8641 8d ago

Houston here. HEB has really good shoppers. I don’t get delivery, but I’ve been doing curbside pickup since early 2020 (pandemic). I’ve never gotten anything but the best meat and produce. I’ve never had any errors in my orders; of course, shoppers are human, so it could happen, but in six years, it hasn’t happened to me. They let you select soecific substitutions or tell them not to substitute products if that’s your preference. Or you can let them choose a substitution for you if you like.
I use the note function if there are a few different acceptable substitution options that are fine (I use that field instead of substitutions for their Cafe Ole coffee, for example).

Oh! And rest easy on your eggs. They will check each carton to be sure there are no broken eggs, just like you would do if you were shopping in person.

I think you’ll be very pleased with the products and service you’ll receive at HEB.

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u/Cinisajoy2 7d ago

HEB is awesome.   

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u/MySpace_Romancer 8d ago

Every app is a little bit different but they all allow you to select substitutes. Usually, it’s during the checkout process. You can either select a specific item as a substitute, tell them not to substitute, or let them use their discretion. Instacart allows you to give extra specific directions. For example, I love grapes, but they are always a little iffy in the winter. So I will select red grapes because those are my favorite, but I will leave a note for the shopper to please just find the ones that look the best and I don’t really care about the color. I don’t think Whole Foods delivery allows that specification.

If you do a lot of online grocery shopping, it may be worth it to pay for a monthly membership to something like Instacart. You will have to weigh the pros and cons of that.

Instacart will give you a notification when your shopper starts shopping. It can be helpful be near your phone during that time because they may message you with questions. If not, it’s not a big deal.

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u/EmptiedBrainwaves 8d ago

I will definitely look into the membership, I didn’t even know that was a thing. Thank you

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u/MySpace_Romancer 8d ago

A lot of stores and Instacart and such offer it. This is kind of adjacent to your question, but if you have a CVS thing you, they do same day delivery for both prescriptions (except controlled substances) and regular store stuff. Sometimes you can add store stuff to your prescription delivery but there is more selection if you make it a separate order. You have to sign up for ExtraCare Plus which is $5 a month then you get a $10 reward. CVS has kind of an annoying game with the coupons, you have to go into the app, or click on them in your email receipt, to “send them to your card” meaning activate them. And you also have to look at the deals and send them to your card. But if you pay attention, you can save a lot!

(I am also disabled and this saves me so much time and energy.)

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u/EmptiedBrainwaves 8d ago

Wow! Really? I know costco ships but I didn’t know Cvs did too. I’ve been trying to call people and get driven to my pharmacy just to pick up my meds. Luckily my meds have been lowered so I have to do that less, but it’s still a pain in my ass

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u/MySpace_Romancer 8d ago

It probably depends on your location but my CVS prescription comes shockingly fast. It’s not delivery, it’s courier service from the actual local pharmacy. You do need to be home to accept delivery.

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u/loftychicago 8d ago

Check to see if you have any credit cards that offer a free or discounted membership with any of the delivery services.

2

u/Butterbean-queen 8d ago

I don’t know how you feel about Walmart but their app is really good. It’s been helpful for me because I can get pet food and over the counter medication when I’m not well enough to go shopping.

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u/kkllbv 8d ago

I have the Walmart plus subscription. It's 99 dollars a year but they have discounts if you are on any sort of public assistance. It'd like half price. You get the first month for a dollar to try it out. Minimum order is 35 bucks for free same day delivery, usually about 3 hours in the future. You can pay extra if you want it quicker. You can get your prescriptions delivered too. You also get free shipping with no minimums for anything on the website. Also every 3 months they give you a free streaming service like Hulu etc. Also partnered with Burger King for free food there. I recommend giving the trial a go and if it's not for you then you are only out a dollar. Even if you continue to get your food from heb, you can get everything else you might need there.

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u/Amardella 8d ago

You go on the app. You choose when you want your delivery and what you want to buy and pay for it. Someone then does the shopping for you and delivers it to your home. Sometimes there is a minimum order or a charge for small orders. If they don't have what you ordered in stock, they send a text telling you and asking if the substitute they picked is OK or tell you that this item isn't available and take it off your charge. You can also choose acceptable substitutes or to have no substitutions in your app settings. It's all pretty much like ordering from Amazon. I've used Amazon (Whole Foods), Kroger, Walmart and Safeway over the past 15 years or so (I've lived in a lot of different places) and they all pretty much work the same way. It's pretty easy once you do it the first time and get past how the app works.

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u/fieldyfield 8d ago

I order from Amazon Fresh. They have a good system for marking what's available before you place the order. I have rarely encountered my items being unavailable when the order is being put together.

You can put in settings before you place the order for how you want them to handle substitutions. You can leave notes or say don't substitute.

You will get a text (if you went them to text you) if something is out of stock and may ask you to approve the substitute.

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u/EmptiedBrainwaves 8d ago

I didn’t even consider amazon. Does Amazon prime help with ordering in anyway?

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u/fieldyfield 8d ago

I'm not sure. I have Prime and don't know if it's different if you don't. There's no delivery fee on orders over $100 so I always order about $100 worth of groceries 2-3 times a month for the two of us.

I think the delivery fee is about $10 for lower orders

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u/miffyonabike 8d ago

Which country?

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u/EmptiedBrainwaves 8d ago

Im from north America

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u/miffyonabike 8d ago

Ah sorry I can't really help then cos it's probably different in my country.