DoorDash to acquire Instacart for $17 billion

The grocery delivery sector in the United States is consolidating rapidly as two major competitors join forces. DoorDash announced on Wednesday that it will purchase Instacart for $17 billion. The transaction is expected to significantly expand DoorDash’s grocery offerings while preserving the Instacart identity for existing users.

DoorDash began its grocery operations in 2020 during a spike in pandemic-era demand. Early adoption by major retailers was slow. Kroger, one of the largest grocery chains in the country, partnered with DoorDash in 2022 but initially restricted deliveries to flowers, sushi, and prepared meals from a limited number of locations. The scope of that partnership expanded in the fall of 2025. DoorDash now lists the full inventory of all 2,700 US Kroger stores on its platform. The company also added delivery services from Costco last month.

Instacart was founded in 2012 and focuses on grocery and convenience store delivery in the US and Canada. According to company filings, its network of 600,000 independent contractors completed 338 million orders last year. The company currently holds a market value of $14 billion. DoorDash, founded in San Francisco in 2013, started as a restaurant delivery service. It has since expanded into pet food and electronics. The company operates in 40 countries and completed more than 3 billion orders last year using a network of 9 million independent delivery workers. DoorDash has a market value of $73 billion.

Market research from Consumer Edge shows a shift in spending over the past five years. Instacart’s share of spending on US delivery platforms dropped from 26% to 18%. During the same period, DoorDash’s share increased from 44% to 59%. Uber Eats maintained a share of just under 20%.

Tony Xu, co-founder and CEO of DoorDash, stated that the acquisition combines Instacart’s grocery expertise with DoorDash’s logistics capabilities. In a statement, Xu noted, “Grocery is one of the hardest things to get right online. Someone has to pick a ripe avocado, find a substitute you’d choose yourself, and get the ice cream to you before it melts.” He added that the merger aims to give stores of every size more tools to unlock the potential of grocery delivery.

DoorDash said the Instacart brand name and app will remain active. Shoppers currently employed by Instacart can continue to fulfill orders under the Instacart name. Grocers will have the option to work with either Instacart or DoorDash. Customers of Instacart will gain access to 50,000 additional stores covered by DoorDash.

The deal leaves some existing partnerships in a state of uncertainty. Instacart currently provides delivery for Walmart. DoorDash stopped providing Walmart delivery in 2022. It is not yet clear how the two companies will handle that specific relationship moving forward.