Sometimes grocery delivery is worth the price, and sometimes it's clearly not. I'll explain the differences and offer some advice. For now, let's assume the delivery charge is $20.00. That's probably a little higher than the standard rate, but I'd rather shoot too high than too low. Check out get groceries delivered for more info.

 

It's the middle of winter in Wisconsin. I'm a mother of four boys, all in school, and all of them in sports. I just get home after driving them to and picking them up from their different practices. And I live way out in the country. I start cooking supper for everyone, only to realize that Step Eight in the recipe needs buttermilk. I don't have any! There's an online store in my area that can deliver it within half an hour for When It's Worth It: The Scenario a twenty bucks. I'll tell you this: I'm on that phone in a heartbeat! Yes, it's a ridiculous charge for a half gallon of anything, but can you imagine the chaos around the house at this point?

 

When It's NOT Worth It: The Other Scenario
I'm that same mother in the winter in Wisconsin. But this time, it's a Saturday afternoon, and I have a grocery list a mile long. I have no car until 11:00 P.M., and I need the groceries by tomorrow. Sounds like a good time for delivery, right? Wrong. My husband is allergic to certain brands of food and certain ingredients. Does brand #1 contain wheat?

How about nuts? My oldest son needs a certain type of deodorant that the store is occasionally out of. But he has a short list of other favorites, in a specific order. How am I possibly going to communicate that to the driver? Even if I can, is he or she going to care enough to get it perfect? I don't know. And for that reason alone, it's worth missing a couple hours of sleep in order to keep peace around the house!