Wonder What it’s Really Like Working for Shipt? We’ve Got the Lowdown From a Shipt Shopper!
Ever considered working for Shipt?
Shipt is an on-demand grocery delivery service that pays reliable shoppers to shop for members and deliver their groceries.
We received an email from one of our Hip2Save readers, Fran, who is a current Shipt shopper. She shared some great advice that’s definitely helpful if you’re considering working for Shipt! This could be a nice way to get paid for spending time at Target since many of you are already there anyway. 😉
Here’s what Shipt shopper Fran had to say about working for Shipt:
Was the Shipt application process easy?
“I went to the Shipt site and started my application immediately. They ask questions about how you would handle certain situations, such as what would you do if you can’t find what the client has requested on the shelf or how would you pick the best apple. After they review your answers and you are approved, they check for car insurance and run a background check on you.
Once you have passed everything, you then download the Shipt app, complete your training, and they send you a Shipt t-shirt and debit card that you will use for paying for your shops.
To the best of my recollection, I believe I was up and shopping within about two weeks.”
Does Shipt offer training?
“Yes, they do. Training was pretty good. They explain how to use the app, what the rules are for shopping, and run you through some scenarios. There is a test in the end which requires a 100% correct score, but if you miss a question, they give you a second chance to retake the test.
Even though I found the training to be good, I would advise giving yourself some extra time on your first shop. Since it’s something new, you don’t want to feel rushed for the first few shops while you are getting accustomed to the app and shopping procedures.”
What about the pay?
“Compensation can vary— it can be great, and sometimes not so great. You receive a base pay of about $6 for each shop and then a percentage of how much the client spent. So if you do a huge shop and the person buys lots of expensive items, the pay can be great, but sometimes the client requests just a few inexpensive items, and you end up with just over the base pay.
Clients are asked through the app if they would like to tip you. I found probably half of the people gave me a tip. My lowest tip was $2, and my highest tip was $25. I went back and looked at my stats on the app, and I averaged $17 per shop including tips.”
How long does each shopping trip take?
“On average, a shop takes about an hour, but I can complete them as quickly as 30 minutes. Once, I had one drag on for almost two hours because the store was out of a lot of stuff and I had to keep contacting the client about substitutions (and sometimes the client is very slow to respond to requests, so that can eat up a lot of time, too).
If it’s a very busy time of day and Shipt has lots of clients requesting a shop and not enough shoppers, they will offer promo pay which is a little extra incentive to entice you to go do the shop. The promo pay starts out at just $1 more, but as time gets closer to the time that the shop is supposed to be delivered, the rate starts going up. I have seen shops where the promo pay goes to as high as $20, but that is rare.
There were days where I was busy all day long and was tipped well and thought this is the best thing ever, but there were other days where I got a string of $7 shops with either low or no tip, and I thought it really wasn’t worth it.
Also, there were days where I would put myself on the schedule to do shops and wouldn’t get a single shop during the time I was scheduled. Friday through Monday are the busy days with Sunday afternoon/evening being the busiest time. Tuesday through Thursday there were very few shops available in my area.”
Does Shipt pay for the gas you use?
“When you are figuring your compensation, you do need to take into account that you do not get reimbursement of any kind for your travel from Shipt, so gas and wear & tear on your car comes out of your own pocket.
Also, Shipt does not do any withholding for taxes, so you are responsible for setting aside money throughout the year to pay your taxes.”
Can you choose where you want to shop?
“The app is broken down into areas of town and you sign up for what areas you want to shop in. I live in a fairly large city, so there are probably 20+ areas for shopping. I started out shopping at just my local H-E-B grocery store and Target, but I expanded my shopping to include three other areas that are fairly close to my home.
When you put yourself on the schedule, you pick your times, and your area of town that you want to shop in. As a shop comes up, you get a notification on the app that a shop is available, and you have to accept it or it is sent to another shopper. You do have to be quick about accepting the shop, so you have to keep your phone available at all times while on the schedule.
When the shop is offered, you can see the address for the delivery and the approximate pay without tip, but you cannot see what you will be shopping for until you accept the shop.”
Would you recommend Shipt to others?
“Overall, I have enjoyed shopping with Shipt. Like any job, there are great days and not so great days. You get the satisfaction of helping people who truly need help with their shopping and, for others, you are taking the burden of shopping off of those who just don’t like to do it. Most people are very appreciative.
One of the greatest things about shopping with Shipt is the flexibility it gives you to take a couple months, weeks, or days off for whatever you want (be it for health reasons, family matters, or travel) and be able to return.
I have taken time off for all of these reasons, and Shipt was waiting for me when I was ready to return. I just turned my app on, put myself on the schedule, and I was ready to roll.”
WOW! What a comprehensive in-depth look at working for Shipt!
Thanks so much for sharing your honest experience working for Shipt, Fran!
So what about you? Interested in becoming a Shipt shopper? Head here to apply!
Note that Shipt Shoppers must be at least 18 years of age, have a reliable vehicle manufactured in 1997 or later, have valid car insurance, and possess a valid U.S. driver’s license. Applicants must also have an insulated cooler bag, a working knowledge of groceries, the ability to lift 25+ pounds, and an iPhone (iOS 10 or newer) or Android (5.1 or newer).
All applicants must be authorized to work in the U.S. and are subject to a thorough background check before they begin shopping
It sounds like this might be a great job to earn some extra cash to put away for vacation, holidays, or to save up for emergencies!
does anyone know how old you have to be ?At least 16 because it requires the person to drive……..but wondering if this would be a good summer job for a responsible teenager
18 years old
you have to be 18
Great information I’m Willing to sign up for this. Extra cash never hurts
Just to give you shoppers big props, I’m a able bodied adult but I have severe anxiety, and OCD. You guys make my life easier. I’m so thankful I can get some of my favorite things even though I might be having a bad week. Thankyou so much.
Hi! I am a shipt shopper too!
The current pay structure is $5 + 5% of the order total (for most metros). So if someone orders $50 of groceries you’ll be paid $7.50 plus whatever the customer decides to tip you and more if you can snag a promo on the order! I find I can shop doubles and usually can make in the neighborhood of $15-$20 an hour.
The trickiest part of shipt is how much they rely on providing a 5 star service – your ratings can be the difference between being able to work and not. I believe 4.7 is the “you’re in trouble” threshold, and they either can drop you as a shopper or make you take a remedial training.
If you’re thinking of signing up, consider using my shopper ID #226972 as a referral. I am not sure if it’s still going on, but when I signed up (about a year ago) referrals got $100 after their first 20 shops. If you have questions, feel free to shoot me an email at embem1992@hotmail.com.
I’ve just started 4 days ago, what do I do when they app shuts down and then I have to redo everything all over which made me late for that order but he was kind enough to still give me a $100 tip, made an order today $169. But it has me dropping off an order for $15, I’ve been using the shopper support but no one ever responds, I’m really frustrated, I work hard do you have an answer for that…
The thing is this as I am a shopper as well. The live and call agent lines are tools to resolve issues. That said we as shoppers are not employee, so anything that is an issue, we are on are own. As when something occurs it will not matter as they axe first then ghost you. If you make it a point some random person may or may not care. Roulette. The statements made like we take this seriously or we care. It depends, I sent in seeking help as my app cont. Time out or error. The respond was your deactivated. That’s it then a clear mistake as not my account I am stalled again appeal process is if it’s in my favor a reply will be sent. The response I got was a different reason to which has nothing to do with myself and its been a week. Things are good when it’s going, a snag and ????.
I highly recommend shopping for Instacart! I have been shopping as an in-store shopper for about 2-1/2 yrs. You shop in 1 store for your entire shift – you shop the order stage it and then move on to the next order! A separate delivery person comes to deliver your order to the customer you shopped for. You are an employee of Instacart, not an independent contractor like Shipt so you don’t have to worry about filing as an independent contractor for tax purposes (which is a huge headache).
The best part of this job is the flexibility of hours you can choose! You can work up to a max of 29 hours per week and you have to set a minimum of 20 hours of availability in the app each week.
The pay for an in-store shopper is an hourly rate which varies by region. In Chicago the pay is $13 – $15 per hour depending on how many hours you have worked for Instacart. If you want to be an in-store shopper say you do not have a car and it will automatically assign you go apply for the in-store shopper position.
Another job at Instacart is a full service shopper where you shop for the groceries and deliver them. You are an independent contractor and you get the paid by Instacart for the order and you keep 100% of the tips.
If anyone wants to sign up, my referral code is AEVEREST6813F
If you guys have any questions about working for Instacart just reply below. Thank you in advance!
I used your referral to sign up. I may have questions but not sure yet as i literally just started. Gmazzucca@aol.com I hope im able to score you $100.00 !!!!! 😁
Thank you so much for using my referral code! Reply here if you have any questions!
Can the person who orders pay by credit card?
In regard to the in store shopper, Is the app and staging process easy to use?
How long did it take you to hear back after the interview
Im going to sign up with your code now!
If I use your referral code does it benefit me or you?
Instacart recently stopped showing me orders since my rating dropped to 4.95 out of 5 and have nothing but great comments from the people I’ve shopped for.. Now from one day to the next I literally stopped receiving notifications about orders. The come in rare and some don’t make sense.. $9 for 40 items and the delivery spot is 10.5 miles away..? I use to love shopping for instacart till this started happening to me. Now its impossible to make money. It sucks that when your rating drops a few points of a point it’s like they want you to quit.. The rating system is unfair.
I signed u0 and got a card in the mail but it says your account has been deactivated. I was told that I had 2 accounts and that I needed to contact the safety board. I did and haven’t heard back. It’s been a few weeks. Can you help me?
She forgot about the part where you have to video record your answers during the interview and how even though I’ve worked for instacart and every other delivery service on the planet it’s damn near impossible to get picked by them.
Yeah, I went through the application process and did those videos and got turned down.
Turned down? Can you expand upon that?
My son was unexpectedly hospitalized this weekend and it was so wonderful to receive food and comfort items from family in the next state over. Such a huge blessing and so easy!
Sending well wishes for your son’s recovery, Janelle!
I am a stay at home Mom with 3 kids and I work for Shipt. It is by far the most convenient job I’ve been able to find. My husband runs a small business, so I really need the flexibility. I live in Denver and I have a ton of regular clients. The pay varies, but I have always averaged at least $17/ shop. My favorite feature of working for Shipt is that I am always at the store. I usually need something so this way I can grab it while I’m there without taking extra time for another trip for only one or two items.
I’ve been a Shipt shopper since they opened in my area two years ago…it’s become a joke. A few people do great but for most of us (I have a 5 star rating), we don’t get offered anything and when we do, people literally don’t tip much of the time which is very discouraging considering we are taking OUR time and car/gas to shop and get the best products. I only do it now if I’m literally bored!
Hi, I started doing shipt about 21/2months and I just received an email that my account was deactivated. It really came as a shock to me I was really starting to enjoy working for shipt, and always strived to do the best I could. the worse thing is not knowing why? I don’t remember when I signed up if it stated reasons for deactivation? My question to you is if you know some of the reasons of why this would happen?
Instacart did the same thing to me with no explanation. All the customer has to do is make a complaint for any reason and they’ll believe e them over you who is easily replaceable. They told me.i didn’t deliver something that I clearly did and they deactivated me after about a week.
At random, a reason is given so check the email again. I received the same thing and so I sent in an appeal only to receive that my account will remain deactivated due to a different reason that’s just untrue or even has anything to do with myself. So the thing is this basically it states shoppers aren’t employees, even in my case it’s an error as I went to see what the standard of service violation was basically deactivation isn’t fired let go or anything some bored person can just turn you off for fun. Lucky for me sf has an office to which parting ways from a job isn’t an issue here but turned off and given a reason that’s not anything to do with me. The then cut off takes my investment to this job the demand for dignity as the process to which I accepted the job. Even though it says don’t, do no accountable just isn’t gonna fly
This would be a dream job! I would use as many coupons for the clients to help them save as much as you can. I would already be at the store and it sounds like fun!
Sounds like fun!
I like to tip my Shipt shoppers well to let them know I appreciate their service. Does my Shipt shopper see how much I’ve tipped them?
Yes, I’m a shipt shopper and we do see the tip amount. It’s always appreciated.
don’t quite understand why a company wouldn’t hire if experienced? after some reviews I also see some people turn on phones only to be fired, released, laid off!! nice business practice!!! no explanation???? if I were interested in this as part time job, what minimum size screen would i need for shopping/app to use if I needed to get smartphone? am a senior looking to be active, make a few bucks….thanks, joe p
I was in the Meijer Store on Gratiot Road and saw a Shipt person shopping for some one without a mask.
The store has a sign asking people to wear masks. What is your guideline? Is the employee obligated to tell the person they are shopping for they do not wear a mask while shopping?
Shopper beware. I had to find out myself why one day my account was deactivated. No email or message for the reasons why. 1 min there happy with you the next they cut you off & you don’t get to say your peace. Chicken droppings cons working there giving you no reasoning why you were let go.
Using coupons would help Shipt not the customer. The customer pays the markup price from Shipt not the price from the grocery store. In fact you don’t give them the receipt for this very reason.
yeah. you pay for convience.
Have anyone had a problem with Shipt withholding your tip from a customer? I did…
I HATE SHIPT! If I could give them negative stars, I would! There was a $1,000 bonus going on if you shopped for 30 orders! I completed 27 of them, and on Friday night (the night before the promotion ended) all of me orders disappeared! I was told by the live chat that I would have all day on Saturday to work on my orders toward the promotion! I reached out to the support team, and they told me if I would’ve done the 3 more orders on Saturday, I would’ve been eligible for the $1,000 bonus! That’s TOTALLY DECEPTIVE!! Why did all my orders disappear then?! I HATE SHIPT! I took so many orders that were required to be on time, sacrificing what I had to in order to make sure they got done on time, and not taking promo orders (which usually pay 2 or 3 times more than on time orders)! If I would’ve ignored the $1,000 bonus, I would’ve made around $1,000 in promo orders. The takeaway? Do not work for shipt! They are deceptive, and cunning. They didn’t want me to get the $1,000! I will never take another order for them! I sacrificed 4 weeks of time with daughter for this stupid company! It’s relatively hard labor for a lower pay than is deserved! Go work for Door Dash! You get paid fairly, and don’t have to do nearly the amount of work! Thanks for scamming me out of $1,000 Shipt!
I am new to shipt, but I absolutely love it. I knew I would not make the promotion for Super Bowl, so I didn’t even worry about it. I love the extra money, and it is fun. I absolutely hate to shop, but if you are going to pay me, I am ok with it. I hate it with all the exceptions.
I am a former Shipt shopper. I loved this job and averaged $27 a shop, making more in tips than the pay they offered! So I must’ve been doing something right. Then one night, at 12:30 am, I received a bot letter saying I was being terminated for low stats, even though my rating was 4.8 and 5.0 for the previous 2 weeks, with 100% on time deliveries. I’ve sent several emails asking why they would pull the plug with zero response. After doing some research I learned this is a fairly common practice for them. Real nice to do this to people, during the holidays especially. Still waiting on an explanation and I won’t give up.
So you and I have the similar experience I’m deactivated a reason given I appealed got a response stating nope different reason so then by default the deactivated reason isn’t valid thus my account be back on??? I am told no further contact be needed. So the thing is just the same my rating is 4.9 my time wise was what they stated but each of the late had correlation as buyer instructed thus my appeal it’s stated a different reason. I am going to need my account reactivated or a valid reason that involves me needs to be given. Random roulette with peoples pocket book is like being shot and waking up as a different person. Good luck, if by chance it turn ill try to find and inform you. Shipts praise lease the support group not mentioned
The ad on tv alludes to a husband that forgot to buy the Butter on his shopping trip. How much is a pound of butter if I need it?
Just wanted to comment about the info above. You can see what the items are to be shopped before accepting the order which is contrary to what the article said
Does working for Shipt make my car insurance go up?
No, it does not. They check to see if your policy is active and that you have sufficient coverage. I’m a new Shipt Shopper.
Not true. If you’re driving for a gig company like Shipt you’re required to tell your insurance company and they will charge you for the extra coverage. If you don’t tell them and there’s an accident while you’re doing Shipt business, the insurance company can and will deny your claim.
Too many things have changed with the Shipt platform in 2021! They keep over-hiring newer shoppers, taking away otherwise FT pay from the longtime shoppers who are left stuck with the DO’s and RX which pay nothing. Alongside the many customers no longer tip or tip very poorly.
can children join
The details list that you must be 18 years of age.
Nicely Explained! To support grocery delivery industry demands I would also like to share, According to Global Data Analysis and Forecast, The global food & grocery sector will reach US$11,204.5 billion by the end of 2022. Constantly, Top Grocery delivery app development companies in the USA are growing rapidly with the increasing demands of android & iOS mobile app development to provide on-demand grocery delivery app solutions.