This review is not endorsed by Walmart. Referral links may be included. All opinions are my own. 

I will always remember 2016 as the year that I stopped going to the grocery store. It started with my subscription to Shipt, which allows you to order groceries from Publix online and have Shipt shoppers buy the groceries for you and bring them straight to your house. It’s absolutely amazing, but not without it’s costs (the yearly membership fee is $99 and you get a slight upcharge in your groceries…nothing major, but it’s there…and tipping is not required but also not discouraged). It is the ultimate in stress-free shopping since you never leave your house and if you have a Publix nearby, it’s worth checking out (my referral link gets you $10 in free groceries and I believe they offer a 30 day free trial so you can try it out before committing to the membership fee).

So when I heard Walmart was in on the game to help busy moms like me take grocery shopping off their list of things to do, I was very intrigued. For me, another one of the problems with Shipt is the fact that Publix charges an arm and a leg for their produce, so I rarely buy any there. They do have excellent B1G1 sales, but beyond that, prices tend to be steep. So even when I’m using that service, I have to supplement with a trip or two to the grocery store to not totally blow our food budget each month. Walmart has the prices I like, but I don’t especially like having to go shopping there because it is hard to find help if you need it, and because I don’t like to go shopping with my kids (takes twice as long) and if I have time without the kids, grocery shopping is the last thing I want to do with that time.

Walmart is currently offering curbside pickup of your groceries, which you order online. As long as you order $30 or more of groceries, there is no charge and prices are no different from what you pay if you shop inside. And there’s no membership fee. The groceries don’t come to your house, but you only have to go to the parking lot to get your stuff.

It sounded almost too good to be true, but I’ve used the service 3 times now, and I LOVE IT!!!!

I wanted to offer some tips for your Walmart grocery pickup order to help you have a fantastic experience.

1. Sign up through a friend so that you get $10 off your first order. This isn’t necessary, of course, but why not get $10 off? My referral link will hook you up!
2. Put the Walmart grocery number in your contacts (it will be provided to you at checkout). You will receive a call when your order is ready, and you will call that number back when you are in the parking lot (there are designated parking spots for grocery pick ups). Best to have the number easy to recognize and access.
3. Be prepared to grocery shop a day before you need your groceries. So far, every time I’ve tried to order groceries (and I’m always shopping very early in the morning) the first available pickup times are either late in the afternoon that day or even the following day. I’m sure they are working out supply and demand kinks, and I also have to remember that at least for now, Walmart is taking the financial hit here by hiring employees to shop for you without actually charging you more. So it’s not going to be as convenient as it possibly could be, and that’s ok by me. But don’t expect to grocery shop online and be able to pick up your stuff 2 hours later.
4. Make use of the essentials section. Walmart keeps track of what you order, which is perhaps a little creepy, but also extremely helpful. If, for example, you have a favorite brand and flavor of almond milk, you can very quickly get it re-added to your cart just by looking over your essentials. It makes the online shopping experience take even less time, which is fantastic.
5. Think beyond the grocery list. I added a pencil sharpener and printer paper to my last Walmart grocery order. It was no problem! I’m guessing that anything on Walmart.com that is listed as being available for same day store pickup is eligible to go on your order. Woo hoo!

I’m not sure how long Walmart can continue to offer this service without some sort of convenience charge, but for now, it’s completely free and definitely very convenient. Give it a try and see what you think!