As I’ve documented before on this blog, many grocery stores these days offer free in-store pickup. But unfortunately very few go the extra mile and actually bring the items out to your car. I call it curbside pickup and it’s incredibly convenient for seniors, those with a handicap, and busy folks who don’t have time to wander the aisles aimlessly looking for brown paper lunch bags. Here are all the major stores that offer this service at NO extra charge, hope this list helps.

Aldi

Aldi recently partnered with Instacart to bring you curbside pickup for $3.99 at these locations.

Just shop the Aldi website, select your pickup location and timeframe, then get notified when it’s ready.

When you get to the store, park in a designated “Curbside pickup” spot and an employee will bring out your stuff and load it into your car.

Giant Eagle

If you have a Giant Eagle in your neck of the woods you’ll be excited to know they offer a Free Grocery Pickup service.

Just visit the above linked page and choose your store and click “Shop Now”.

Once you choose your store, you’ll schedule a time slot and then add items to your online cart and checkout.

Giant Eagle has “expertly trained personal shoppers” who only select the freshest and highest quality groceries for you.

Then just head to the store at your time, park in the designated spot, and they’ll load up your groceries for you.

If you’d prefer to have items delivered to your home, it can be done for a reasonable $5.95 for next-day delivery.

See Also: When Does Walmart Restock? Start Planning Your Trip and Save Money

H-E-B Grocers

If you happen to live near a H-E-B you should consider their Curbside Grocery Service.

You just shop their website, select a pick-up time and place your order.

Similar to Kroger below, you can add specific comments to your order. For example, you can say things like “can I please have my artisan bread sliced”, which is WAY cool.

They currently have a 4-hour turn around on curbside orders and the most you can order is $600 worth of groceries.

They even discourage tipping and want you to keep the money for your next curbside order.

Kroger

Simply shop the Kroger website and fill your virtual cart with what you need, then at checkout, select your store and pickup time.

An employee will then grab all your groceries and bring them to your car when you arrive.

Be sure to park in the designated spots and you’re good to go.

You can shop online up to three days in advance, which is super convenient.

It should also be noted that only the first 3 orders are free, after that you’re subject to a fee that varies by region.

Meijer

While Meijer charges a $4.95 curbside fee I still thought I should mention them.

The main reason I wanted to mention them was their ability to customize curbside orders.

For example, want green bananas? Or maybe extra ripe avocados? Just tell them in the comments section when checking out from their website and they’ll do their best to accommodate your request.

Once you select your pickup time, just head down to the store and go the to “Curbside Lane” and they’ll load you up.

Nordstrom

I gotta admit this one came as a surprise.

While not a grocery store, if you join the free Nordy Club you’re eligible to get free curbside delivery from your local Nordstrom department store.

When shopping from the Nordstrom website, be sure to select the “Buy Online & Pick Up in Store” option.

Then use the Nordstrom app to request curbside pickup.

Publix

Publix recently introduced a curbside delivery service that takes all the hassle out of grocery shopping.

You shop online when it’s convenient, then select a time that works for you to swing by and have your groceries loaded into your car.

Win win.

Safeway

The Safeway Driveup & Go program is relatively new and lets you shop online from home, reserve a pickup time, and have an employee do your shopping for you and load up your trunk when you arrive.

When demand is high some items may be out-of-stock and replacement items may be chosen for you.

See Also: We Make Sense of a Safeway Return Policy That’s a Bit Confusing

Sam’s Club

Give the Sam’s Club Pickup program a try as well.

You just do your shopping online via their website, check-in on their app, then come pickup your stuff in the Drive Thru area (where available) or head inside and grab your pre-loaded shopping cart.

The best part? No minimum order required.

Sears

If you’re lucky enough to still have a Sears in your town, you should try their free In-Vehicle Pickup program.

Just shop online or via their app and select “In-Vehicle Pickup” at checkout. (NOTE: Have to be a “Shop Your Ways” member to qualify, sign-up for free.)

Sears will drop you an email when your order is ready. Then you’ll just head to the store, park in a reserved spot, and use the app to tell them you’ve arrived.

They guarantee they’ll have your stuff brought out to your car within 5 minutes.

Target

Many Target locations in 2019 are rolling out the Drive Up service and even Returns and it’s pretty darn cool.

You just shop the Target app and wait for notification that your order is ready.

Then you let Target know via the app when you’re on your way and park in the designated “Drive Up” spot in the front of the store.

Once you’re safely parked, you let them know via the app that you’ve arrived and they’ll quickly bring out your stuff and load it.

If your local Target doesn’t offer “Drive Up” yet, you can still order online and choose in-store pickup at checkout. Then head to Guest Services once you get a notification that it’s ready.

Walmart

When Walmart Grocery Pickup was first introduced in 2017 it was met with some skepticism.

Would it be accurate? Would it be more hassle than it’s worth?

But after ironing out a few wrinkles, the grocery pickup delivery service has grown quite popular.

You simply visit walmart.com/grocery or shop via the Walmart app.

You can shop over 50,000 items and select your exact pickup date and time.

The cool part is if you place your order by 10 a.m. it will be ready for pickup on the same day.

When you get notified via email or text that your order is ready, you just park in one of the marked “Grocery Pickup” spots and an employee will bring out your items and load them in your car.

Some Walmart’s even have drive-up lanes like the one in the picture above.

Incredibly convenient service for seniors or busy parents and it’s completely FREE.

Whole Foods

While not every Whole Foods store offers curbside pickup, a HUGE chuck of them do.

Here is a complete list of Whole Foods locations that offer the service for free.

If your location is not listed, check back often because they are expanded the service like crazy right now to keep up with demand.

From the Whole Foods website, here is exactly how the service works:

1. Visit the Prime Now app or primenow.com/wholefoods to start shopping.

2. Be sure to select “Pickup” using the dropdown in the top-left corner of your screen.

3. After filling your Whole Foods Market cart, move to checkout and choose your preferred pickup time from the available options.

Ask the Reader: What grocery stores or big-box stores am I missing? Let me know in the comments and I’ll be sure to investigate.

By Kyle James

Photo credit to Walmart.