DoorDash offers $17 billion for Instacart to expand grocery delivery

DoorDash offered $17 billion Thursday to buy Instacart, proposing a combination that would expand its grocery delivery business while keeping Instacart's brand and app, according to ABC7 Los Angeles. The offer is not a completed acquisition.

The proposal would bring Instacart's grocery-focused service together with DoorDash's broader delivery network. It comes as Instacart has lost share of U.S. delivery-platform spending while DoorDash has gained ground, according to Consumer Edge data cited by ABC7 Los Angeles.

DoorDash said the proposed arrangement would let grocers choose which company to work with and allow Instacart's shoppers to keep filling orders. Instacart customers would also gain access to an additional 50,000 stores served by DoorDash, ABC7 Los Angeles reported.

Instacart focuses on deliveries from grocery and convenience stores across the United States and Canada. Its 600,000 independent-contractor shoppers handled 338 million orders last year, according to company filings cited in the report.

DoorDash entered grocery delivery in 2020. Its marketplace now carries the complete inventory from Kroger's 2,700 U.S. stores, and it added Costco delivery last month, according to ABC7 Los Angeles.

Consumer Edge data cited in the report show Instacart's portion of U.S. delivery-platform spending declined from 26% to 18% over five years. DoorDash's share increased from 44% to 59% during that period, while Uber Eats remained at just under 20%.

DoorDash operates in 40 countries and has a network of 9 million independent delivery workers, according to the report. It completed more than 3 billion orders last year.

The effect on some retail partnerships remains unclear, ABC7 Los Angeles reported. Instacart delivers Walmart orders, but DoorDash ended its Walmart delivery service in 2022.