How Much To Tip Shipt Grocery Shoppers (Find Out Now!)

Shopping for groceries has never been as convenient as today with the vast number of grocery delivery providers as the market becomes increasingly popular. With services from Shipt, Instacart, Amazon Fresh, or countless others, you can quickly and easily have your groceries delivered right to your door without having to step foot outside of your home.

Shipt, the American delivery service owned by Target Corporation, provides consumers with groceries and other household essentials from trusted retailers such as Costco, CVS, Target, and many more.

While tipping is not required, it is always recommended to tip your Shipt shopper. Your Shipt shopper is providing you with a service while saving you the trouble. Calculate your tip accordingly based on your Shipt shopper’s level of customer service, distance driven, and the size of your order. At a minimum, you should always tip at least 15% of your order and increase it to 20% in exceptional circumstances.

Whether you’re new to grocery delivery or interested in learning more details about the tipping system with Shipt, you’ll find all you need to know plus more in this article. Keep reading to find out more.

Although grocery delivery services may be common, the tipping etiquette involved in utilizing these services is not very widely known. Much like in most service industries, there lies a gray area, with some not even sure that tipping is necessary.

Since grocery delivery service is still a relatively new process, it’s not surprising that the details of tipping etiquette are still uncertain. Even if you check on the Shipt website, it lacks clarity as it states that, “Tips are not required but are greatly appreciated.”

Understanding the tipping etiquette behind Shipt will help you appreciate better the services your shoppers provide for you with every delivery.

Much like most service industry employees, Shipt shoppers rely on tips from their orders to make decent wages. As you can imagine, those with family members to support this can become difficult when relying solely on hourly wages.

Although the company states that the average shoppers make anywhere from $16-$22 per hour, the more realistic figure lies closer to around $11 per hour. Shipt shoppers must still take from their earnings other job expenses, which include gas prices and general automobile maintenance.

In some regions, Shipt provides consumers with the option of picking up their order versus home delivery. While you might cut some costs with this option, it does not necessarily mean you should forgo your tip.

Sure, with other food delivery services, such as GrubHub, a tip might not be necessary with the pick-up option because there is no involvement of a delivery person. But, when it comes to your groceries, such as with Shipt orders, you still require services provided by a personal shopper.

Once you place your pick-up order through Shipt, a shopper is then dispatched to the store to handle the shopping portion on your behalf. As you arrive for pickup, they will also help to get everything loaded into your car.

Additionally, keep in mind that Shipt shoppers will have to shop at multiple stores to ensure your order is adequately fulfilled in some instances. When you consider all of these services provided, it is clear that a tip is still well earned and deserved with Shipt pick-up orders.

A 10% tip to Shipt shoppers for pick-up orders is okay as a base if your order is simple and only requires one stop. Otherwise, if they help you load a big order or have to make multiple stops, you should consider upping your tip to at least 15%.

Unlike other food delivery services, Shipt only allows consumers to provide a tip to shoppers once the transaction has been completed and your delivery has been received. Thankfully, the tipping process through the Shipt app is made easy enough for anyone to use.

Once your order has been delivered or picked up, you will open your Shipt app and be prompted to a screen allowing you to rate and tip your shopper.

If for whatever reason, the prompt screen does not come up on your app, you can also select the “Orders” tab from the main menu. Here, you will be able to choose the order and enter the rate and tip screen.

The credit card used for your order payment will be the same payment method for the added tip.

Shipt will charge a $7 delivery fee to members for any orders below $35. While the company wants to encourage small orders, it always wants to ensure shipping and delivery costs can be covered.

If you place a smaller order and are charged a $7 delivery fee, please do not mistake this tip. The $7 will go to Shipt and not your Shipt shopper. You should still follow the same tipping etiquette in small orders as with larger orders without delivery fees.

Since grocery delivery is still a relatively new concept, there is no formal tipping etiquette that is used consistently by consumers utilizing this service. Thankfully, with the help of this guide, you now hold the knowledge to change that and begin setting the standard for Shipt tipping.

For standard orders, always remember that a 15% base tip should be common practice. Feel free to up this amount to 20% with exemplary service. Alternatively, you can drop it to 10% if you feel like your Shipt shopper performed subpar.

Don’t forget about pick-up orders, as well. While the services might be minimized with this Shipt option available in some areas, it does not eliminate Shipt shopper services.

As such, Shipt shoppers should still be tipped a minimum of 10% for simple pick-up orders. If you have a large order or one that requires multiple stops, you should consider upping your tip amount to at least 15% of your total order.

In the end, what’s most important is remembering that when you utilize a service like Shipt for grocery delivery, there is a person on the other end of that transaction. That person, your Shipt shopper, is providing you with a service to maximize your convenience. Individuals performing services should always be tipped according to their level of service.