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Vegging out: Some of the Boston-area grocery delivery services provide organic produce from local farms
Grocery shopping is one of the most time-consuming tasks necessary to make a household run. Luckily, several delivery services make this often-dreaded chore easier and more efficient. With many to choose from, we’ve compiled the best grocery delivery services in Greater Boston and broken them down by cost, delivery speed, and selling points to help you decide who to hand off your shopping list to.
AmazonFresh
$9.95 delivery fee (orders under $50)
$14.99/mo (in addition to Prime Membership)
Same-day delivery
Tipping optional
Amazon Prime members in Boston can shop for groceries and home essentials from local shops and restaurants through AmazonFresh. Customers place their order online and choose a one-hour time slot for delivery either in person (attended) or dropped off at their doorstep (unattended).
With attended delivery, customers receive their order in paper bags, and with unattended delivery, they receive their order in temperature-controlled totes. Unfortunately, customer pickup options are currently only available in Seattle.
Instacart
From $5.99 delivery fee (waived with $149 annual membership)
Same-day delivery
Tipping optional
Instacart can best be described as the Uber or Lyft of grocery delivery. The fee for the service can increase if there is a high demand for shoppers. Users are notified in real time when Instacart personal shoppers are scanning the desired items, and customers can even message them as they shop. Groceries can be delivered in as little as an hour.
Customers choose their items from local grocery stores, drugstores, or pet supply stores on the Instacart app. Then just select the time of delivery or a time to pick up from the store. Instacart shoppers are supposed to pay close attention to produce ripeness and expiration dates, and carefully handle delicate items like eggs. Customers can also give their personal shopper permission to make appropriate replacements when an item they ordered is out of stock.
Peapod
$6.95 delivery fee (orders over $100); $9.95 ($60 minimum orders)
Next-day delivery
Tipping optional
Founded in 1989, Peapod by Stop & Shop is also known as the oldest grocery delivery service. Though Peapod originally took telephone orders, it now lets customers shop online for produce, protein, cleaning products, pet store essentials, and meal kit items, and get everything delivered to their doorstep as fast as the next day. Items, especially the perishable ones, are packaged in special temperature-controlled containers.
As a bonus, delivery discounts are given on special days, and there is only a $2.95 fee for pickup from your local store.
Boston Organics
Free delivery/$5 delivery fee for deliveries made above the third floor of a building
Weekly scheduled deliveries
Tipping optional
Photo: bostonorganics.com
Farmers market to table: Support local growers by ordering their organic produce
Delivered to homes or offices in Greater Boston, Boston Organics offers produce boxes with USDA organic items from farms all over New England. The boxes range in size and price, from $27 to $60, and can be customized as all vegetables, all fruits, or half and half. The Dogma Box is a standard-size box that includes produce sourced as close to Boston as possible.
Add-on grocery items like snacks are also available for an extra charge. Unlike most traditional farm shares, Boston Organics has year-round delivery.
Depending on your zip code, deliveries are made on specific days of the week, and if bread or milk is included, orders have to be made at least three days in advance of the desired delivery day.
Click To Harvest
$9.95 delivery fee (orders under $69)
2–4 days delivery time
No tipping
Click To Harvest services all cities and towns in the Greater Boston area and delivers produce items from local farms within 100 miles of Boston. Customers shop online from select farms that use best practices in sustainable farming and treat their livestock humanely. Click To Harvest claims that products bought directly from their local farms are fresher by 5 to 10 days on average, compared to products bought from a supermarket.
In addition to feeling good about fresh produce, customers can also feel good about their social impact: Click To Harvest pays local farmers an average 75 percent of the retail price, more than any supermarket, according to its website.
