Walmart is expanding its home grocery delivery service to 100 metro areas by the end of the year, and will also offer same-day delivery in New York City.
It marks Walmart's latest bid to rival Amazon, and the 100 new cities will add to the six metro areas in which Walmart already offers home delivery of groceries.
Walmart Home Grocery Delivery
Walmart currently has roughly 18,000 personal shoppers who pick the items customers order, then hand them off for delivery so the items get to the customers' homes. The expansion of this home delivery service to 100 more cities will involve the same process, with orders packed in a Walmart store and delivered to one's doorstep.
Some of the initial delivery partners will include Uber, according to the Wall Street Journal. This will build on an existing partnership that started in 2016, and more partners will join the venture later this year.
Walmart acquired Jet.com back in 2016 and it now looks like it will put it to good use. Jet will handle the same-day grocery delivery for NYC customers, promising to deliver the goods in one or two hours.
Walmart Home Delivery: Perks And Prices
With the delivery service reaching more markets, Walmart could convince more shoppers nationwide to make online purchases and have them delivered without hassle.
The home delivery service requires a $9.99 flat rate on top of the value of the groceries, but customers have to spend at least $30 on their items if they want home delivery. In other words, customers who plan to take advantage of this service should be prepared to spend a minimum of $40 on the groceries and the delivery.
On the other hand, those who already planning to shop for several items might find this delivery service to be a welcome option. It would eliminate the hassle of going to the store, picking up the items, loading up the cart, and carrying them to one's home. This could be a good solution for those with little time or desire to shop.
In addition to home deliveries, Walmart will also add more locations for curbside delivery pickup. Currently, this option is available at 1,200 Walmart stores, but it should reach 2,200 stores by the end of the year.
Walmart has yet to announce the exact 100 metro areas to which its home delivery service will expand but is expected to offer more information soon enough.
