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You always wanted to Pick up groceries from Walmart? Does ordering online at Walmart save you time and money, or does it just add to the frustration of meal planning? Did you Problems with Walmart Grocery Pickup? We save almost 50% on our grocery bills when we use the grocery collection service. Everything you need to know is here – including the question everyone is dying to know – Tip for Walmart Grocery Pickup?!
Pick up groceries at Walmart
Have you ever been to the supermarket for “just a few things” and ended up spending at least $ 20 more than you needed?
Or skipped going to the store – and without milk for an extra day – just because you had to load and unload your kids in the car and drag them down the aisles?
I hope I’m not the only one who’s done this before. I generally enjoy grocery shopping, but recently discovered how amazing it is to use this Walmart Free Grocery Pickup Service.
It changed life. Not really. It has! I no longer buy impulses or waste precious time going to the store and leaving to get my groceries every week.
You simply order your groceries online, reserve a time slot for the pickup, and a Walmart representative will shop, pack and bring your groceries to your car for you! You even load them into your car and the best part is that this service is absolutely free. There is also no need to tip or pay an additional service fee.
It’s that simple, but I’ll tell you everything you need to know when placing your own order.
Using Walmart Grocery Pickup
Find your location and create an account
Most importantly, make sure your Walmart store offers grocery collection. You need an account to place an order in order to do so at Walmart.com.
It’s that quick and easy and all you need is an email address. Once you’re signed in, click the Grocery Pickup tab to see if the pickup is near you. If so, enter your zip code to see the Walmart stores closest to you. Select the store you’d like to shop at and you’re good to go!
Order from Walmart Online
Next up is the fun part!
Choosing Your Food. I prefer to write down a list beforehand so that I am not distracted and only stick to what I need. You can enter a product or general idea at the top of the screen and all of your options will appear.
For example, if you type in “orange juice” you will see different brands and sizes and you will click “Add to Cart” once you have chosen what you want. When it comes to products or meat, you can choose how many pounds of each item you need so that it can be easily customized to suit your needs.
Bonus Tip: Every time you log in to place an order, some of your most frequently used products are saved on the main screen so you can add them quickly. I’ve always turned up paper towels, cheese, yogurt, and milk!
Once you have completed your list, you will be asked to select a time to pick up. You can choose in one hour increments so you can leave at any time during that hour window.
Walmart food replacements
One question is whether you allow substitutions. Sometimes items are out of stock. If you click the Allow Substitutions arrow, the grocer can easily find a substitute for it.
Usually they upgrade you to a larger size or give you a different brand at no additional cost! Whenever we’ve bought a private label item and had to replace it, it’s always a more expensive brand (and they’ll charge you the cheaper price!).
Grocery collection at Walmart
Walmart will send you an email before your time slot opens to let you know that your groceries are ready. I never had to wait and my groceries were always ready on time. You can download the Grocery Pick Up app on your phone which you can use to check in so they know you are on your way.
When you get to your store, follow the grocery pickup signs to the pickup area and head to one of the reserved parking spaces.
A friendly grocer will then come out to greet you and return with your groceries!
They wrap everything up and bring it out in large containers. I like this because it prevents the bags from being squashed or falling on top of each other.
Walmart grocery store payment
You will need to enter a credit or debit card number into your Walmart account. They do not accept cash on collection. Once you’ve arrived and looked through your order, your card will be charged and you will be given a hard copy of the groceries you bought.
Sounds easy, doesn’t it? I loved using the grocery pickup and I love sitting the night before needing groceries to go through my list and plan out my weekly menus.
This week was cold and snowy in Utah so I could plan ahead and order ingredients for chili and cornbread for dinner. My weekly groceries also include items for my daughter’s school lunch and fresh produce. They always do a fantastic job and only pick the freshest produce!
If you have the option to collect groceries from your on-site Walmart, I highly recommend it! If you’ve used it before we’d love to hear what you thought of it in the comments!
Walmart Food Tips and Tricks
Here are a few things to consider to enhance your grocery collection experience a little:
- You can’t use coupons or discount apps like Ibotta. This can be a disadvantage for many people! The reason you can’t use it for a discount app is because you don’t get a traditional receipt – it’s a printed piece of paper. This is a big reason I often choose Kroger Grocery Pickup because you can use coupons and discount apps!
- You can change your order after you have placed it. I’ve had many experiences where I’ve decided that I don’t need anything – or that I need something
- Download the app! This makes checking in easier and you can easily place an order through the app.
- If you have a complaint or question, please call customer service. I’ve found them to be way more responsive and friendly than when I was complaining in the store myself, and they do things right.
- Take your list with you when you add your items – it saves you binge shopping. The main reason I save around 50% on our bill is to be able to check my pantry and not toss random things into my shopping cart while shopping like I do at the grocery store.
How to Pay for Walmart Grocery Pickup
You need to use your credit or debit card. If you use grocery stamps, your EBT card can be used. However, they do not accept cash, checks, or WIC
Should you tip Walmart Grocery Collection?
It’s natural to want to tip someone who brings something straight into your car. Here is Walmart’s official policy:
“No. Tips cannot be accepted, but a thank you and a smile are always welcome. Please complete the post-order survey to share your experience and help us improve your next order!”
Problems with Walmart Grocery Pickup
If you read the comments section below, you will find people with different complaints about Walmart Grocery Pickup – and which were valid. Here are some common ones and what I would do:
- Food not fresh / almost expired – I have found that many Walmart stores generally have almost run out of food and that is driving me INSANE! I bought a couple of hot dog buns just last week and when I got them home I found they were over a week past the best best before date. Even if it is a little time consuming, just double-check everything before you leave the store. If there is anything
- Prices more expensive online – The prices you get for grocery collection should be the same as they would in the store. I’ve never seen this before, but there are several people who have done it
- Website Glitchy – I’ve experienced this myself trying once or twice to use a coupon code – it would just keep scrolling and then I’d have to repeat my entire order. It happened a couple of days and drove me crazy! I know that once the whole system went down and all payments were pending. There have been many complaints about it.
- Forgot items – Some people have experienced not bringing out all of the items they have. They * should * go over the receipt with you to make sure everything is there, but that doesn’t always happen. If so, customer service should reimburse you, but it is painful not to have everything you ordered! Just make sure you have everything you ordered when they bring it out.
Walmart Food Reviews
Obviously, we’ve had pretty good experiences with Walmart Grocery. I think there could be improvements (such as an extra receipt) but for the most part I think this is a great option. I have young children and it is not always easy to come to the store with them. So I think the ideal is to just pull up and get my groceries.
You can find tons of reviews in the comments below. So be sure to read them and leave yours behind too!
Other food services:
I know a lot of people have had complaints about this service. Although I like it a lot, I’ve been using Shipt lately and I LOVE it. It is a grocery delivery service and is available in many grocery stores across the country. We use it with Target and King Soopers (Kroger partners). We also used Instacart which was great and Target Drive Up1
Here are some reviews we made of these services:
