Does Walmart Deliver Groceries In 2023? (How It Works)

Does Walmart Deliver Groceries in 2023? (How It Works)

As an experienced online seller, I know how important grocery delivery services can be for ecommerce businesses. Getting familiar with major retailers‘ options is key to optimizing your fulfillment, logistics, and even sourcing.

So you’re probably wondering – does Walmart deliver groceries in 2023? How does their grocery delivery service work? Can it be useful for your business?

In this comprehensive guide, I’ll explain everything you need to know about Walmart grocery delivery:

Overview of Walmart Grocery Delivery

Walmart provides delivery of groceries from local stores to your house. They use third party services like DoorDash for the actual deliveries.

To check if your Walmart store offers delivery, look up your location on their website or app and see if you see the “grocery delivery” tag.

Here are the key things to know about placing an order:

• Minimum order: $30
• Delivery fees: Typically $7.95 – $9.95 depending on time slot
• Express delivery: Under 2 hours for additional $10
• Walmart+ members: Get free delivery including Express, even on orders under $35

Deliveries can be handed to you or left on your porch/in your apartment hallway, unless you order alcohol which requires ID. You‘ll get text and email updates on your order status too.

How Walmart Delivery Compares to Amazon Prime

As an ecommerce seller, you‘re probably very familiar with Amazon Prime‘s delivery perks. So how does Walmart‘s service stack up?

Here‘s a quick comparison of the grocery delivery options included with Prime vs. Walmart+:

A few key differences stand out:

• Amazon offers more flexibility for smaller orders with no minimum
• Walmart+ provides more consistent free delivery whereas Prime has order minimums
• Prime offers greater speed with same-day options that Walmart lacks

So Walmart edges out Amazon a bit on cost, while Amazon wins on convenience and quick turnaround times.

Using Grocery Delivery to Source FBA/Retail Products

As an Amazon seller, you can leverage Walmart’s grocery delivery services in some interesting ways.

A few possibilities:

• Find new FBA products: Browse Walmart’s selection to identify potential products to sell on Amazon. You can get a bunch delivered to evaluate.

• Check competitor pricing: Use grocery delivery to conveniently check Walmart’s prices on products you sell, or products sold by competitors.

• Source for retail arbitrage: Have orders delivered to you, then ship inventory into FBA. This avoids time spent in stores.

• Research private label opportunities: Identify product categories, pricing, supplier names, and packaging ideas.

• Tap into sales/clearance items: Keep an eye out for grocery delivery deals you can take advantage of.

Benefits

• Convenient sourcing without visiting stores
• Provides pricing intelligence
• Lets you easily evaluate new products
• Gain ideas for improving your offerings

Drawbacks

• Delivery fees cut into margins
• Some areas lack grocery delivery
• Less ability to inspect items beforehand

With the right strategies, grocery delivery services like Walmart’s can complement your existing sourcing processes. But you need to account for the fees and shipping costs involved.

A Look at Walmart’s Grocery Delivery Growth

Walmart has invested heavily in their online grocery services in recent years. And it’s paying off with strong growth:

• Walmart’s ecommerce sales grew 78% in Q1 FY 2022, with strength in online grocery.

• They have nearly 3,000 pickup locations and 2,700 same day delivery locations.

• 80% of the population lives within 5 miles of a Walmart delivery location.

• Online grocery is helping grow Walmart’s overall market share in food retail.

This massive expansion of delivery capabilities makes services like Express delivery and Walmart+ possible.

It also means grocery delivery is becoming a bigger competitor to Amazon Prime shipping. Walmart’s growth puts pressure on all ecommerce companies to match the convenience they offer.

As a seller, it’s important to understand changes in consumer preferences and shopping habits. Grocery delivery services are seeing huge demand. Aligning your business model with services like Walmart’s can help you capitalize on this appetite.

Tips for Optimizing Walmart Grocery Delivery

Here are some tips to use Walmart’s delivery services effectively and affordably as an ecommerce seller:

• Take advantage of less busy times to get the $7.95 delivery fee when possible
• Focus orders on lighter, smaller products to cut shipping costs
• Consider using pickup instead for bulkier items or large orders
• Check filler item prices against direct supplier costs to limit fees cutting into margins
• Factor fees into retail pricing for any items sourced via delivery
• Review sale papers for deals – you can still use paper coupons on delivery orders!
• Split orders to take advantage of order minimum waivers for Walmart+ members
• Use delivery windows strategically to ensure someone is available to receive alcohol orders

Getting the best value out of Walmart’s grocery delivery involves some planning and optimization. But the convenience can be worth it and help you scale your ecommerce business.

Does Grocery Delivery Make Sense For Your Business?

Looking at the pros and cons, is grocery delivery a good option for your ecommerce operations? Here are a few key questions to consider:

What is your current sourcing strategy? Delivery services work best complementary to other sourcing channels you already use successfully. It likely shouldn’t fully replace visiting stores and warehouses.

What types of products do you sell? Delivery works best for shelf-stable, smaller items. Bulky, heavy, refrigerated, and fragile products come with more delivery challenges.

How much do delivery fees eat into margins? Do the math to see if spending $10+ per order makes sense versus other product costs.

Can you leverage time savings effectively? The convenience is only valuable if you take advantage of the freed up time.

How flexible is your operation? To optimize delivery, you’ll need some flexibility in product selection, order timing, bundle splitting, etc.

While services like Walmart delivery open up new possibilities, they require adaptation to realize the benefits. Keep assessing the value proposition as your business evolves.

The Bottom Line

Walmart’s massive grocery delivery expansion provides online sellers with intriguing new sourcing and order capabilities.

But navigating the fees, limitations, and competition with Amazon Prime requires savvy optimization. Take time to strategize how grocery delivery could complement your existing ecommerce operations.

The convenience and product selection it unlocks may justify utilizing Walmart’s services in creative ways. But analyze the costs and benefits closely through regular experimentation and review.

I hope this overview gives you a better understanding of how Walmart grocery delivery works in 2023. Please let me know if you have any other questions! I’m always happy to chat more about optimizing ecommerce fulfillment.