We Ordered Whole Foods Groceries with 2-Hour Prime Delivery and Here’s What Happened…
I’m in ❤ with Prime Now!
Ever had one of those weekends where you’re home sick and just physically can’t make it to the grocery store to stock up on essentials? 🙋🏼♀️ Or you just don’t have the energy to bring your grumpy crew out in the rain during nap time to do some much needed grocery shopping?
If you’re raising your hand right now, I totally get it. Sometimes life…just…happens.
Which brings me to this point → sometimes paying a little extra to have someone shop for and deliver fresh groceries (or flowers! 🌹) TO YOUR DOOR is JUST PLAIN WORTH IT. Yep – stay in your PJ’s and take a nap while someone else does the running around for you.
I decided to try Amazon’s Prime Now Service to stock up on a few grocery items. We were completely out of eggs, milk, bread, cheese, ice cream (because that’s a staple around here 😉), salad fixings, and a few other items.
And, since I’m an Amazon Prime member who lives in the Austin area, I ordered the Whole Foods Market selections now available for 2-hour delivery (in select cities – including Austin, Cincinnati, Dallas, and Virginia Beach – with more cities coming in 2018). I thought to myself… is it really possible to have Whole Foods grocery items delivered to MY door in a few hours?
Why Yes, YES it is… and it makes me so HAPPY! 💃🏼
In just 3 hours, I placed an order consisting entirely of Whole Foods Market groceries AND had them delivered to my doorstep! SWEET! However, you may be wondering… is it truly worth it? Keep reading.
First, here’s the scoop about Prime Now:
- You must be an Amazon Prime member to use this service (go here to sign up for a FREE trial!).
- You’ll get FREE 2-hour delivery with a $35 purchase (or pay $7.99 to receive items in an hour).
- You must spend at least $35 per store – no mix and match.*
- Delivery is available daily from 8AM – 10PM.
- If you order perishables, you must be present to receive your order.
- Tips are suggested at $5 and can be charged within 48 hours after delivery.
- No cash is accepted at the door.
*Note: I can order from 3 different stores in my area with free 2-hour delivery whenever I spend $35 (for Amazon, Whole Foods or Sprouts). However, I can not mix and match items from these stores and have to spend $35 for each store in order to qualify for free 2-hour delivery.
Here’s what I LOVED ❤ about Prime Now.
- CONVENIENCE, CONVENIENCE, CONVENIENCE 🏆 – I love having organic, natural groceries from Whole Foods Market delivered to my door while I’m in my pajamas!
- All grocery items arrived properly fresh/frozen and in great condition.
- Produce and meat items looked fresh and all expiration dates on foods were valid.
- Refrigerated and frozen items arrived in insulated, reusable freezer bags.
- I received adequate communication via text from my Prime Now shopper.
- My floral items were so stinkin’ pretty – and they only cost $5!
What are the CONS of Prime Now?
- Delivery took around 3 hours, instead of the advertised 2-hour delivery. For me, this isn’t a huge deal-breaker, since I wasn’t planning to go anywhere (it’s just something to keep in mind).
- Prices are going to be slightly higher compared to shopping the sales with coupons. That said, keep in mind that you can shop the “Weekly Specials” and save on select Whole Foods products (click the Weekly Specials banner on left-hand side of Whole Foods Market page).
- Things did get a little hairy when I pulled out the insulated bag that was holding my precious ice cream and found several long hairs stuck to it. 🤢
How does Amazon Prime Now delivery work?
- 1:40PM CST: I shopped and placed my order online.
- They stated a 2-hour delivery, but at checkout the earliest delivery window I could choose was between 4-6PM. That’s more like a 2.5-4.5 hour delivery.
- 1:43PM CST: Got a text message from my Prime Now shopper – they’re working on my order.
- 4:34PM CST: Got a text message saying my Prime Now order will arrive soon!
- 4:40PM CST: Received my order and started unpacking!
Here’s my Whole Foods order from Prime Now.
365 Everyday Value Milk – Whole Gallon $3.29
365 Everyday Value Ice Cream Mint Chocolate Chip 56oz $5.99
365 Everyday Value Colby Jack Bar Cheese 8oz $2.99
365 Everyday Value Chicken Breast Boneless Skinless Organic Pre-Packed $8.18
365 Everyday Value White Corn Restaurant Style Tortilla Chips 16oz $2.99
365 Everyday Value Eggs Brown Cage Free Non GMO Fed Large 12ct $2.99
365 Everyday Value Classic White Organic Bread 22oz $3.99
Organic Hass Avocado Hass 1ct $1.79
Organic Plum Roma Tomato 1ct $0.69
Herb Cilantro Bunch 1ct $0.99
Banana with Whole Trade Guarantee $0.20
Beef Ground 85/15 Patties, 1lb $5.99
Organic Romaine Lettuce Romaine 1ct $2.29
Rose Spray 5-stem Flowers $5
Total = $47.37
Delivery Fee = FREE
Tip = $5
Tax = $0.41
Final cost $52.78 delivered to my door in 3 hours! Easy peasy!
My overall verdict?
Although I won’t be using Amazon Prime Now for my everyday grocery shopping, I’m in love with the fact that I can call on them for backup when needed. The convenience is amazing and the quality of foods I received was superb. I saved a ton of time with Prime Now, and to me – that’s money.
Have you ordered from Prime Now? Share your thoughts below!
Written by Mary for Hip2Save. Mary is a proud mom to 3 kids in Austin, TX, who thrives off Jesus, running long distance, bargain shopping, warm Texas weather, a yummy latte…and a little Candy Crush from time to time. She also loves quality time with family & friends and sharing great deals with others.
PrimeNow also delivers to Disney World Resorts. We’ve used it twice now with great success for items like cases of water, milk, yogurt sticks, cereal, granola bars, and trail mix!
Great tip for those spending time at the resorts and wanting to save some money!!
Wow! That’s a great tip! Never would of thought of that, thank you for sharing!
Great to know! We are going for spring break. Is there an extra free for PrimeNow?
We use it in Virginia Beach when the store are crazy getting ready for a snow storm or a hurricane
Woohoo!
757 in the house! 🌊🐬
I am glad this is available in Va Beach. I haven’t gotten around to going the delivery route yet. I will be testing it out soon.
I am a die hard fan of Walmart’s Grocery pickup service (free). Have used it in Georgia and California for over a year now. Order groceries from my computer in pajamas after the kids go to bed, drive the next morning to pick them up – from parking to leaving – less than 5 minutes every time. Our area offers this Prime Service and also our grocery stores offer “InstaCart” Service, which is all door delivery – BUT – NO ONE beats Walmart prices. And it really annoys me to pay marked up prices on every single item and than pay the delivery charge, and than a tip on top. With Walmart, I can even choose non-grocery things, like hangers, bathroom needs, medicines, etc. Walmart Grocery is the BOMB – try it!!
Wow! Thanks for this info! Can you use coupons at pick up?
It’s just another option. Not everyone has a Walmart nearby, nor does everyone wish to patronize Walmart.
Yes! Walmart pickup has been a lifesaver for me since I had my third child! I just load up my little ones and head to the pickup area. We’re back home in less than 20 minutes. AND you still get to take advantage of the price matching with the Savings Catcher!
I did a price comparison of commonly purchased in-store Walmart grocery items vs. the online price and the online price was higher (same store). Not sure we’re not “paying” for it, just a heads-up you may need to check.
I am not totally clear why this is such a big deal. I have been ordering Whole Foods for delivery on occasion for years, using Instacart. Chicago has lots of stores that work this way and it takes way less than 3 hours. I do pay for delivery- $5.99, but I don’t think that’s so bad. Same situation in Wisconsin, where I order groceries for my dad.
That’s cause you said the magic word……Chicago.
Most other cities which are no where near as big do not have services like this. Having moved from the Twin Cities to a much much smaller one I can truly say I miss services like this.
This is a paid post
Hi Mickey, I am just curious how do you know this is a paid post? Do you know this for sure or just guessing?
Thanks
I think if it wasn’t a paid post, Mary would respond back stating so.
Hi Sher! This is not a paid post. We thought it was a pretty cool service so we decided to try it out and share our feedback with all of you.
Ha! Hilarious!
Hi Mickey! I don’t know if this is a paid post or not (and i don’t care). What i know is Collin and the Hip2save team do a great work and all their reviews are honest and always looking to help their followers.
If it is a paid post they are required by law to disclose this fully. I doubt they would neglect this step.
Not everyone follows the rules. lol
Not everyone follows the “rules”, but Colin and her team have been at this long enough, and the site is big enough, that I don’t think they’d endanger it by not following FTC regulations. They have no problem labeling all the other sponsored posts.
Hi Mickey! This actually is not a paid post. We just thought it was a service that our readers may be interested in, so we wanted to give it a try and share our experience with all of you.
Even if it was paid, I actually found the post helpful and was curious about this service enough to read all the comments
I frankly enjoyed reading about the experience because I’ve never had groceries from Whole Foods delivered and even though this service isn’t available for us yet, it’s useful to know, because I’m an Amazon prime member. Everybody just relax.
Nice to hear all the details, and thanks for detailing it all so clearly. Yes relax. 🙂
Because telling someone to relax works every single time 🙄
I was excited to read this post. Grocery pickup is new in my area and I have really appreciated being able to get groceries with minimal effort!! I hope we have this Whole Foods service where I live. Even easier!
It’s not available in my area, but I HAVE used Instacart (for Publix) and Shipt (for Target and Publix). I didn’t have the greatest experience with Instacart but Shipt has been wonderful. What a Godsend it was a couple weeks ago when I had the flu! And I also have chronic health issues that can make having the energy for grocery shopping very hard. I LOVE that I can jump online and get same day delivery!
That’s awesome. I wish I lived in an area that offered these services. Unfortunately, rural Tennessee will probably never get such services.
🙋♀️ Rural Tennessee here too. 😕
Oh the hair… that wouldve done it for me… I think. I’d be too groseed out to trust them handling my groceries sadly…
Sadly, they lost me on the hair too. I like to pick up my groceries and look at them and make sure boxes aren’t smashed and try to get it from the back, also check dates.
Me also. Im pretty laid back, but the hair thing was repulsive to me. After that I’d be inspecting everything Lol
Do you have pay extra for this service? I thought i read $14.99 for prime now in addition to the prime membership
You’re thinking of Amazon Fresh.
Now that Target has rolled out Shipt, I’d love to see a similar test of their service!
Thanks for posting this report. I’ve been curious about this service and found your post very informative.
You’re welcome!
I have late stage Lyme. Before I started any treatment, I was sleeping (sometimes) up to 20 hours a day. Taking a shower would send me to bed for a day to recover. Prime now is responsible for keeping groceries in the house. I’ve also traveled quite a bit (before the Lyme got too bad) and used it for the hotels, so I could have staples in my room. It’s literally made the difference between having food on hand and struggling through the grocery store.
I am a cashier at a rural area Walmart and right now we are all waiting to see when the scan and go smart carts will arrive and put us all out of work. Nationwide thousands of cashiers will be unemployed, most of them women who are heads of household and sole support of their families.
I suppose it is worth it for the sake of convenience to those who don’t even see the working classes as even being human. Do you honestly think convenience is worth harming thousands of women? Granted there are some male cashiers but overall it is a field dominated by women. Just think about the disastrous implications before you advocate for pickup services and solutions smart grocery carts etc.
Yes, sad. But this is a sign of the times and the future.
I personally love the fact of going to any retailer and not having to interact with a single employee, unless I absolutely needed assistance. But that’s just me. However, I do feel that many others feel the same. Just look at all of the self service available now.
Paula, the process described above still requires an employee to pick out the items, scan the items into the sales system, package them items, and drive the items to the customer. Sounds like even more work than a cashier standing at a register. I get a bit touchy when I hear complaints about changing markets. I went back to school at age 40 because the job I had before kids, traditional publishing, was gone as it was replaced by electronic publishing. I didn’t lament about progress. I decided, instead, to chose a different career path. As automated systems replaced cashiers/order takers, new jobs open for repair/instillation of those systems. One thing for sure, no one is promised the same job indefinitely.
I know that technology can cost people their jobs, but that’s nothing new. My mom operated the NCR machine for Bank of America in the 50’s. My sister was a PBX operator for the local hospital in the 70’s. My grandmother worked in a Del Monte cannery packing asparagus, tomatoes and peaches into cans her entire life. Things change, and people need to learn new skills, and that will never change. Adaptation, flexibility and resilience are so important.
Paula, I notice you have great communication and writing skills, and I think there may be even a better job out there for you. I am sorry for your coworkers, I know change is hard.
So doing what works best for your family means that you’re dehumanizing other people? That’s silly. No one person is obligated to make sure that there are jobs for another person. Sorry to tell you this, but things have been this way for a while…many people would rather use technology to save time and money than drive to a store and do their groceries in person for no reason. We’re allowed to do what’s convenient for us without being shamed for it.
The walmart nearest me would benefit so much from the smart cart concept. Ours only ever has self checkout, the tobacco checkout lane, and maybe one other lane open DURING PEAK HOURS. It’s ridiculous.
Not in my area yet:( hopefully soon!
Great post! Thanks!
I work for a wholesale club, no names will be mentioned. I disagree with you Paula. It doesn’t matter if I do my shopping or pay someone to shop for me someone is shopping. The only stores going out of business are one that are mismanaged already or in some way not a benefit to the area they are in. This could mean the store is dirty, staff is rude ect. So next time u have a customer kill them with kindness. Customer service is #1 in keeping business alive.
She’s talking specifically about smart carts where customers scan their own groceries as they shop and pay, all with a device or app which will significantly decrease the need for cashiers. The stores will remain, but cashiers will lose their jobs if there’s no other position for them in the store.
I have used Shipt for past several months to buy groceries from Meijer in Indiana. It’s a yearly 99$ subscription, unlimited deliveries for orders over 35, and are usually available that day within hours.
Eleven links in one article? Get paid for each link, do you? What a shill. Useless drivel.
That’s the purpose of the site. Please move on if you don’t like it.
I love reading the comment post. I never thought to have food delivered to Disney World passholders but we do go out there often. And yes a case of water delivered and some snacks for the little ones is a great idea thank you.
Convenient? For sure sounds like it.
Cheap? Sure sounds like it. When I buy food to nourish myself or my family – I don’t want “cheap”, I want quality for as good a price as I can find it. There are apps like “fooducate” to help me seperate “cheap” from “quality for less” – some of those whole foods (or trader joes, or fill in the name of your big box store here) products are really “cheap” – not getting into my house.
I enjoy that I can shop in my town and the surrounding area. That landscape has changed dramatically over the past few years as many small businesses have gone away.
I feel better about paying a little more (they do need to find ways to be in the ballpark) knowing I’m supporting local business. I don’t expect to find a replacement for the years of experience of my local store owners when I need answers to questions. My local natural food store also has free same day delivery with a $25 purchase ( $5 of less than that) and has been doing so for years.
Great points Howard! My local natural food store is also EXTREMELY informative (has offered to take us to the farms!) and has always offered free delivery with a $50 purchase.
Thanks for all your hard work you guys rock!
You’re so welcome, Mels!
Although i am an Amazon prime member I have never used Prime now. However my mother who lives in Virginia recently sent us groceries in New York using instacart. It was my first instacart experience. Well it was wonderful while we were all home with a stomach bug being surprised with bags of groceries delivered straight to the door, I do have to say there is something to be said for doing something yourself if you want it done right. Two of the things my mother sent were bacon and strawberries. The bacon was nothing but fat. I never would have picked that bacon up off the shelf if I was shopping for myself. I actually have to return the strawberries because they are rotten. Also instacart switch several items which my mother had selected and paid for. She paid for 2 lb of strawberries for 4.99, instacart switched it to one pound of strawberries for 5.69. Something to keep in mind with these “personal shopper” programs!
I absolutely LOVE amazon prime now. I live in the Houston market and balance work/life because I manage a large department store. Amazon prime has been a lifesaver! Anytime I need supplies for the store/snacks for employees, amazon prime
Now to the rescue! Even if I’m not at work, I can supply my team with whatever they need. Same for home, no time to pick up groceries. I just have them delivered. Great service!
I’m so glad you tested this service! My mom lives in another state and is recovering from surgery. Grocery delivery to the door sounds like a great option for her. I do appreciate the comments both positive and negative and the Disney tip. Who knew? I am inspired by the mom who ordered groceries for her out of state daughter. I may do the same for my mom. Thank you!
The hairs would be a deal breaker for me.
I tried prime delivery yesterday from My Whole Foods in Cincinnati, and received several wrong items. I will not be trying the service again for a while until some of the bugs are ironed out. I ordered skim milk and received whole milk. I also ordered a 10 oz spring mix and received a 5-oz spring mix but was charged the 10 oz price. The expiration date for the spring mix was also 1 day later.
Please check your app in the order is a place to report incorrect items. Amazon will make it right if you notify them. You don’t even talk to a person, it’s convenient
I do love this for when the entire family is down and out with the influenza, a new baby has arrived or your on vacation!
3$for Milk and 6$ for ice cream. Good lord that’s High. 😯
I use this for my weekly shopping. I order during the week and have my groceries delivered every Saturday before 7 am. So when I wake up I walk outside and grab my groceries. I also use my Amazon CC which I earn 5% on purchases. So with a $100 I get $5.00 which I use for my tip on my next order. As soon as I place my order I pay off my Amazon cc with my debit card so I’m not getting charged any fees. I love this!! Plus my husband and son love their organic meat. Especially the sirloin steak. My husband compared their steaks to one of our high end restaurants up here in Maryland.
I use Amazon Fresh not Amazon Prime Now. Either way I love it!! The Food is amazing!!
One sad little tomato 🙁
I love this post. I’ve had this service for almost two years now in Indianapolis. But a lot of people don’t know about it so this post will surely help me explain! We have fresh thyme instead of sprouts as our third option. Also, you mentioned Austin…. Don’t you have Amazon food too where you can order food from restaurants in the area to be delivered? I’m excited to get that here. Thank you for detailing everything. If you run into something that is wrong with your order use the app the report the issue and they will make it right, usually in a refund, with no hassles.
Do you get an itemized receipt with your order? Just wondering if I’d be able to purchase items and submit to ibotta.
Just placed an order with Sprouts via Prime Now – I was charged for one pound of caesar salad for $6.99, but received a package with a little over half a pound and price tag of $3.53. I’m new to this… is this how it’s supposed to work?
Oh my, I keep getting expired food from Whole Foods 2 hour delivery. Today, I got expired ground beef and expired eggs. I live in the Las Vegas area. With the 105 plus temperatures, getting expired products is not pleasant. The last two orders contained one or more expired or rotten food. Once, they sent me a beat up watermelon that was half open. I have been to the store and watched the Prime Now grocery pickers and they are in such a hurry they just grab what is closest without a thought whether it is fresh or not. I always get refunds, but why does this keep happening? I have reported it many time. Oh well, I am not biting on delivery any longer………no pun intended.
Ah, right. Tip. That makes sense, but I hadn’t considered it before. Amazon suggested its own amount to tip, and I saw no reason to change it. With the $5 delivery fee charged because I did not meet the $35 minimum, and the tip, my order’s price nearly doubled. Clearly Prime Now is not designed for one quick, cheap order.
Just tried this for the first time and I must say it is pretty darn convenient. I did my order last night and it was delivered before 8:00 AM!
My only issue is all these “reusable” freezer bags. Does anybody know if I can return them to the store? For someone who always uses their own bags there is a lot of waste/recycling created. Next time I might try to ask for the bags to be filled up more.
Thanks for the information!
I spent an hour composing my order for Whole Foods/Amazon Prime (Marlton, NJ). When I went to checkout, they had NO delivery dates available. I know times are tense right now but seriously, let customers know of haphazard delivery availability BEFORE we waste our time online. NOT A FAN!
I just did my second order. The first was just non-perishables but they put the vegetables in a cooler bag. After seeing your blog and a few others I decided to try perishables. They notified me at 9:00 that the order was finished and then delivered at 11:10, more than two hours later. No cooler bag, all perishables, including frozen blueberries were in brown bags. I won’t be ordering perishables again.
Oh no! So sorry to hear that Mary! We appreciate your honest feedback though!
Can anyone tell me how long the silver bags are good for with the groceries still in them? These are the silver insulated bags where the top flips over and seals, the really large ones. I am asking because Amazon delivered for Whole Foods for me and there was hamburger and turkey and cheese and yogurt in the two silver bags, and they delivered earlier than expected at like 1:55 PM. I was thinking 4:00. I could not bring them into the house until 4:30 pm. We live in Columbus, Ohio. Are these bags (when packed with food) good for three hours, does anyone know? The meat still felt fairly cold, but the yogurt, now as much. Thank you so much for your help!!!! Karen