In July 2022, Chase Bank introduced a credit card for Instacart. If you’re not familiar with Instacart, it’s a delivery service for groceries and other goods. You can choose to have things delivered or pick them up yourself, although in either case, note that many stores have higher prices when ordering through Instacart.
If this sounds overly limiting for a credit card, that’s because it is, in most circumstances. Let’s take a dive into the benefits and alternatives. This might work well for some people.
FEATURES AT A GLANCE
- No annual fee
- No foreign transaction fee
- 5% cash back at Instacart
- 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase’s site
- 2% cash back for dining, gas, and streaming
- 1% cash back on everything else
SIGN UP BONUS
As of March 2023, the public sign-up bonus is a $100 Instacart credit plus one free year of Instacart+ (normally $10 per month or $99 per year). Although this is a low bonus, you do get the credit immediately, and there are no spending requirements.
It’s probably worth waiting for a higher offer. In summer 2022, the card had an introductory $200 bonus, and briefly had a $300 bonus in February 2023.
OTHER BENEFITS OF THE INSTACART CARD
- Instacart+ lowers the service fee from around 5% to around 2%. On orders of $35+ you’ll either get free delivery or a 5% credit on pickup (like Doordash Dashpass)
- Mastercard World Elite benefits, including:
- Baggage Delay Insurance
- Lost Luggage Reimbursement
- Extended Warranty Protection
- Purchase Protection
- Travel Accident Insurance
- Travel and Emergency Assistance Services with 24/7 Concierge
RESTRICTIONS AND CREDIT SCORE
Recommended credit score: 670+
Chase has their 5/24 rule as always: if you’ve opened 5+ credit cards in the past 24 months, you’ll automatically be denied for new Chase cards. The bank also prefers applicants who aren’t new to credit cards, and have at least 12 months of credit history.
Additionally, you can’t open an Instacart card more than once every 2 years. If you open the card then later cancel, you have to wait until the 25th month after opening the card, to apply again.
MAXIMIZING REWARDS WITH THE INSTACART CARD
Cash back is awarded as statement credits, so there isn’t much you can do here. Try to use Instacart whenever there’s a discount or promo code, and/or choose pickup for another 5% cash back (on orders of $35+). Pickup doesn’t have delivery fees or service fees for Instacart+ members. Remember that some stores have higher prices online than in-store.
For extra cash back, you look for cash back portals to see if they have a bonus. Popular options include TopCashBack and Rakuten, as well as the Slide app.
Use your other Chase cards to get more time with Instacart+ PLUS get discounts:
- Chase Freedom cards (such as Freedom Unlimited and Freedom Flex) get 3 free months of Instacart+ along with a $10 quarterly statement credit ($40 annually)
- Sapphire and Sapphire Preferred cardholders get 6 free months of Instacart+ along with a $15 quarterly statement credit ($60 annually)
- Sapphire Reserve gets 12 free months of Instacart+ along with a $15 monthly statement credit ($180 annually)
You can cycle through these cards via the above link to gain more benefits as needed. If you have multiple Chase cards, it’s easy to get 1-2 free years of Instacart+ along with $100-200 in statement credits. Adding the Instacart Mastercard is only an extra perk for Instacart enthusiasts.
IS INSTACART+ MEMBERSHIP WORTH IT?
Instacart+ membership is priced as $100 but its true value depends on you.
If you use Instacart twice a month for pickup orders of $35-50, Instacart estimates your annual “savings” at around $98 (compared to not having Instacart+). In this case, Instacart+ is close to paying for itself. Going by just the 5% pickup credit benefit, you’d need to spend almost $2,000 a year ($167 per month) to cover the price of Instacart+. If you use Instacart for delivery, your annual expenses would have to be well above $3,000 to fully justify Instacart+. Even with free delivery, there’s a 2% service fee and you have to give tips. The “Family Accounts” are of unknown value.
Instacart boasts that “a membership can pay for itself in just a few orders.” Except they’re comparing Instacart+ to basic Instacart. If you avoid Instacart altogether, and do your own shopping instead, the value of Instacart is quite low (or negative). Most people won’t benefit much from the “time savings” of Instacart. It doesn’t take a lot of time to shop for groceries, in-person shopping is more efficient visually, and some information isn’t available online. How do you pick fresh fruits and vegetables from a screen? You can’t. You have to trust whomever is doing the shopping for you.
Overall, for most people, Instacart+ isn’t worth paying for.
ALTERNATIVES TO THE INSTACART MASTERCARD
If you use Instacart a lot, the extra cash back is helpful. Most cards don’t give 5% cash back on grocery-related purchases, especially without an annual fee. The best alternative is the Citi Custom Cash Card.
Decent grocery cards include the AMEX Blue Cash Preferred (for the first year), NIH FCU Cash Rewards Visa, and Capital One SavorOne Mastercard. The AMEX Gold card also works for some people.
The 5% cash back through Chase Travel Center is more or less standard on Chase cards. If you don’t have a travel-centric card already, this can be helpful for hotels and airfare.
The other categories on the card are useless. There are dozens of cards which earn at least 2% back on all purchases, without restrictions. Even the Chase Freedom Unlimited card is a decent alternative: 5x points at Chase Travel Center, 3x points for dining and drugstores, and 1.5x points everywhere else… and its points are worth more when combined with a Sapphire card.
CONCLUSION
Overall, there isn’t any reason to get this card unless you’re a big fan of Instacart. The sign-up bonus is low, only one year of Instacart+ is underwhelming, and earn rates outside of Instacart are pretty bad for most people. Most people will be better off with a standard grocery-related credit card.
It’s important to note that Instacart often has higher prices than in-store rates. Only a few stores have “everyday” prices and you’ll have to sift through the options to see where you’ll get the most value.
The upside is that if you do use Instacart a lot, this is a decent card, especially for pickup. The 5% cash back and 5% pickup credit stack together. Getting close to 10% cash back on groceries is unbeatable if your preferred store(s) don’t have higher-than-in-store prices. The Mastercard World Elite benefits are also strong.
We rate the Chase Instacart card 3 out of 5 stars. ⭐⭐⭐
Note: This review was last updated in May 2023. Details may have changed since then. Please do your own research where applicable, to ensure you’re getting the best deal. Or contact us directly to take advantage of our personalized consulting services!