How to Build an App Like Instacart? Process and Key Features

The pandemic that has plagued the world since 2020 has revolutionized the process of purchasing food & groceries, in the process, the percentage of consumers who tend to shop online has risen to one out of ten. Also, the grocery industry has revealed continual and robust growth in the total number of downloads of the applications and upswing in the profit margin from March 2020. For instance, in specific historical phases of COVID-19 occurrences, Instacart has seen an average daily download growth of 218%. Additionally, the number of targets is to make $39 billion in March 2021. This paved the way for a number of new-generation venture capitalists to contemplate the prospect of developing grocery delivery apps like Instacart in Canada. Moreover, the customer’s need for new and advanced facilities and better interpretation has created more or less endless opportunities in the grocery delivery business.

If you’re thinking of creating grocery shopping apps like Instacart, this blog will guide you through the process.

Firstly, let’s discover the astonishing statistics of the growth of grocery apps like Instacart.

Key Statistics Highlighting the Explosive Growth of Online Grocery Shopping

The specifics of the grocery apps are– instant grocery delivery shopping apps like Instacart, Walmart, and AmazonFresh, as well as other sources, increased the app download rate as well and froze the entire world’s attention to purchasing and, therefore, consumers’ interest. Let’s check a few statistics:

• A study shows that in 2020, grocery e-commerce sales in the U.S. equated to $106 billion and are expected to reach 22% of total grocery sales in 2025.
• Statista report also revealed that consumer spending on online grocery Stores is expected to be $187.7 billion by 2024.
• According to the findings, mobile commerce sales in the U.S. increased by 41.4% in 2020 and are projected to reach $359.32 billion by 2025.

After knowing all these statistics, we can say that online grocery shopping has the potential to increase steadily and expand even further in the future.

After discovering the statistics, let’s delve deeper into what you mean by the Instacart-on-demand grocery app platform.

What is the Instacart Grocery App Platform?

Instacart is one of the most popular food delivery services, the main point of the service is that it delivers groceries and other household goods from stores using a smartphone or a web browser. Founded in 2012, Instacart connects with many points of sale, such as traditional supermarkets, large grocery stores local stores, and specialty stores, besides providing access to a wide range of products. Customers are able to go through the various products, make their orders, and get their groceries delivered right to their doorstep as early as one hour wait time. This service involves using personal shoppers who retrieve, select, and dispatch orders in a way that can make shopping a hassle-less mission. Thus, thanks to its unique business model, Instacart has become a service for millions of users in North America, including during the COVID-19 pandemic when the online purchase of groceries became necessary for staying at home.

Moving forward, let’s explore how to build apps like Instacart.

How to create an app like Instacart?

If you also wish to build apps like Instacart for grocery deliveries, let us help you with the key steps for grocery shopping app development below.

• Discover & Planning Phase: In this phase, it is crucial that one segments the target market appropriately so that one can analyze the market needs, customers, and competition. Some of the expected specific project management deliverables. Also, organize project activities by preparing a detailed project management plan consisting of project timelines and calendar, project budget and cost control measures, resource allocation, and employee responsibilities.
• Design UI/UX: Develop an engaging and interesting user interface or frontend design and a user experience that users will appreciate. This is where the application design is sketched out in detail through wireframes, mockups, and prototypes to show how it would look, the navigation, and even some of the specific features it will contain. This is why usability, accessibility features, and Brand Identity must be given adequate consideration in the design of the website.
• Development: When the design of the app is complete, go ahead and develop the app. The selection of an appropriate technology factor and the development frameworks should be based on the project requirements. Develop the amenities and functionalities per the plan, such as registration, products, product shelves, purchase carts, gateway integration, tracking orders, and communication mediums. Apply the correct standard procedures recommended in coding, security measures and scalability to create the most effective, appreciable app.
• Technology Stack for App Development

Here is a list of technologies that can be used to build grocery apps like Instacart for different platforms.

For Frontend Development:‍

• Java, Kotlin (Android Platform)
• Swift, Objective C (iOS Platform)
• JavaScript, CSS, HTML, WebAssembly (Web App)

For Backend Development: 

• PHP, Java, Python‍

Frameworks:

• React Native, TypeScript, Xamarin (Android, Cross-platform)
• Flutter (iOS, Cross-platform)
• React, Angular, Ruby on Rails, Django (Web) 

Database: MongoDB, Cassandra, MailChimp Integration, Redis, HBase, PostgreSQL‍

Cloud Environment: Google Cloud Platform, AWS, Azure, Amazon S3, Amazon EC2,‍

Payment Method: Braintree, eWallets, PayPal, & Stripe‍

Real-time Analysis: IBM, Cisco, BigData, Spark, Apache Flink, Hadoop‍

API Integration: Twilio, Push.io, Nexmo, Freshchat, ‍

GPS Navigation & Tracking: Core Location Framework, MapKit (For iOS ), Google’s Places API, Google Maps API (For Android)

• Testing & Deployment:

Finally, comprehensive cross-platform and cross-device user experience testing must be performed to ensure the product is free from bugs and other discrepancies. Moreover, the effectiveness of the website can be determined by usability testing and should be analyzed to identify enhancements. Once you have developed your application and are sure that you have fixed any bugs with the app, upload it to the app stores, whether Android or iOS, for public use. After the launch has been done, you can track the performance and feedback made by the users, which in turn can help improve the app.

Essential Features of an App Like Instacart:

• User Registration & Profile: In apps like Instacart, users can register and set up their own profile, including personal data and delivery preferences.
• Store Selection: Grocery apps like Instacart provide customers with a list of stores or retailers they can choose from when they try to purchase from your app.
• Product Catalog: Show them all available products with detailed information; divide the lists by categories and types.
• Search Functionality: This allows users to filter a specific range of products or brands and view only the respective items.
• Shopping Cart: Accommodate orders by enabling users to decide quantities, add items to the cart, and view choices.
• Multiple Payment Options: Provides options like credit/debit cards, digital wallets, and cash-on-delivery payment options.
• Scheduled Delivery: Offer first-mile options such as delivering at customers’ preferred time.
• Order Tracking: Apps like Instacart offer order tracking to customers. They mainly update customers on the status of their orders and when they can expect delivery.
• Notifications: To post relevant information concerning orders, deliveries, and special deals, use notifications.
• Rating & Reviews: Empower the users and provide options to rate products, delivery experience, and overall services.
• Customer Support: Frequently, real-time customer support is provided through chat calls or even e-mail, which clients can use for help with orders or any other questions while building apps like Instacart.
• Accessibility Features: It is usable for people with disabilities, enabling them to use the screen reader for disabled users and other user inputs.
• Security Measures: Ensure the clients’ data and transactions are safeguarded to avoid data theft by incorporating proper security measures.

After learning how to create apps like Instacart, let’s discover how much it costs to build one.

How Much A Grocery Shopping App Development Costs?

Some of the critical aspects to consider are the various phases of development and the overall costs that depend on the app’s envisioned features. In general, the complexity of the desired features increases the implementation time and the final product’s cost. For these reasons, accurately pricing the app development becomes a bit challenging. A flutter app development company with good results can help you find the correct cost for developing apps like Instacart. That is why only qualified specialists with extensive experience can give you specific recommendations on improving the costing aspect, considering your particular needs and intentions.

So, suppose you are searching for a reliable solution to your on-demand grocery shopping app idea. In that case, a Flutter app development company in Canada can help you transform your idea into an app. 

Why should you choose us to create your own grocery delivery app?

Thus, thinking about creating grocery delivery apps like Instacart is quite promising, as it can change the whole grocery buying experience significantly. Techugo, a mobile app development company in Canada, complies with this notion by identifying the central emphasis and critical importance of presenting easily usable solutions for your company. From integrating with our company’s seasoned developers and possessing profound knowledge in creating mobile applications, Techugo is fully equipped to take your vision and create all-inclusive and enthralling apps like Instacart for users while exponentially enhancing business potential. When it comes to your app’s actual design and build, everything should execute flawlessly, whether the backend or anything in between. 

Moreover, it is extremely important to ensure the expertise and experience of the company that you select to get your work done. It is also advisable to think regarding issues such as its flexibility, constant protection, and continuity of application development services to maximize its usability in the future and strengthen market positions. When you decide to work with a reliable on-demand app development company like Techugo, you can easily focus on the success of the application after its launch.

In Conclusion!

Therefore, if this is feasible within the conditional evaluation of the role of the COVID-19 pandemic within the critical factors of the main tendencies in the e-commerce evolution, further advancement has been delineated in the grocery delivery sphere. This feature clearly shows that due to the constant increase in demand for efficient grocery delivery service apps like Instacart, their use enhances shelf-life and convenience. Hence, the global shift towards online grocery shopping makes app development in this area a lucrative business opportunity for any entrepreneur, given the proper strategy and effort. Nevertheless, preparing costs and deciding the features to be included in the app is a complicated task and should be done under the supervision of Techugo, an app development company in Canada, because they capture the up-and-coming online grocery shopping market.

Contact us Today to embark on a journey towards digital change and excellence together.