DoorDash Is Buying Instacart for $17 Billion (Two Apps, One Fee)

Your phone probably has a food delivery app and a grocery delivery app. Soon they could belong to the same company.

On October 29, 2026, DoorDash agreed to buy Instacart for about $17 billion. DoorDash will pay $65 for every Instacart share, 26% above where the stock closed on October 22, the last day before word of the talks leaked.

Quick refresher. DoorDash is the biggest name in restaurant takeout in the US. Instacart sends a stranger to the supermarket to do your weekly shop.

So one brings you dinner. The other brings you the vegetables you swore you'd cook this week.

According to DoorDash, at least 75% of the price will be paid in cash, and JPMorgan has promised a bridge loan of up to $13 billion to help pay for it. Instacart also had another suitor. Uber reportedly held talks, then walked away.

DoorDash CEO Tony Xu called grocery "one of the hardest things to get right online." He has a point. Getting a pizza to your door is easy. Getting a dozen eggs there without a single crack is a different sport.

So what does DoorDash promise you? Instacart keeps its name and its app. Instacart customers could order from more than 50,000 extra stores, on top of the nearly 100,000 already on the platform. And people paying for both DashPass and Instacart+ would pay one membership instead of two. DoorDash says that saves members around $100 million a year.

Finally, one less subscription to forget to cancel.

On paper, it sounds great for customers. I'm not fully convinced. Two apps fighting for your order means coupons and free delivery. One giant owning both apps means those coupons tend to get shy.

But careful: nothing changes yet. The deal still needs a yes from Instacart shareholders and from competition regulators in the US, Canada and Israel. The companies expect to close it at the end of 2027 or early 2028. Until then, they keep running as two separate businesses.

So if your groceries show up late tomorrow, at least you still know exactly which app to blame.

Photo: Instacart