Order Groceries Online In Canada: Save Money, Eat Better, Stay Safe

Many Canadians now order groceries online, either using "click and pick" curbside pickup services or opting for home delivery. Grocery retailers from Loblaws to Save on Foods offer these services, and a range of third-party delivery services are available.

Using a top grocery credit card when ordering your groceries online will make a big difference – but how to you go about ordering in the first place?

This article explains the differences in pickup and delivery services, how to use them, which credit cards to use, and much more.

In this article

• Online grocery shopping in Canada at a glance
• Chain grocery stores
• Grocery superstores
• Third party grocery delivery services
• Meal kit delivery services
• Best credit cards for ordering groceries
• FAQ

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Online grocery shopping in Canada at a glance

There are a number of options for ordering groceries online in Canada, and each has its pros and cons. Here’s a quick overview, including the range of fees we found in our research, and some of the basics of what you can expect.

The most widely-available options are major chain grocery stores, of course, with Loblaws-owned stores being the most common. With their PC Express pickup and delivery service, and a strong partnership with Instacart, Loblaws seems to have a clear advantage in the world of online grocery shopping.

The grocery superstores are also widely available, but it’s a little less straightforward than simply shopping online through the Loblaws, Atlantic Superstore, and other PC Express-supported stores.

Online shopping for groceries at chain grocery stores

Here’s what we found when researching the major chain grocery stores.

For the most part, pickup and delivery fees are very reasonable, given how much time and effort they can save. It’s hard to argue with spending a few bucks on a grocery pickup for delivery service when it can save you time or both time and gas.

Another major advantage of shopping at one of these grocery chains is that they all have some form of rewards program, including the always popular PC Optimum Rewards.

IGA grocery stores are only available in Quebec now, including Montreal, where this chain once operated across Canada. Similarly, Save On Foods is only in British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Yukon, including Vancouver and Calgary.

For the most part, you can expect a $3.00 to $5.00 fee for most grocery pickup services, including at many No Frills grocery stores.

If you’re within range of one of a Metro grocery store – available in Toronto, and other parts of Ontario and Quebec – the Metro online grocery pickup service is free of charge.

Grocery deliveries from major chain stores are a bit more expensive, with the majority being around the $10 mark, when delivery and service fees are both taken into account.

Again, this isn’t exceptionally high, given that it can save you both time and gas, but you will want to figure these fees into your overall grocery budget if it’s something you’re going to take advantage of regularly.

Metro online grocery delivery is the most expensive option, with the Loblaws online grocery stores coming in close behind at just under $10.

Want to save more money at No Frills? Find our No Frills savings secrets here.

Online shopping for groceries at grocery superstores

Of course, many Canadians love the savings opportunities at the grocery superstores, such as Walmart and Costco. And these grocery giants also offer online grocery shopping as well.

We looked at the 4 major grocery superstores in Canada, and while all offer grocery delivery, Costco online grocery doesn’t seem to offer any sort of pickup service. This is a bit of a shame, given how popular Costco is with Canadians, but so it goes. There’s no shortage of other stores that offer pickup services, if that’s what you prefer.

Walmart online grocery does offer both pickup and delivery services.

While Costco doesn’t seem to offer curbside pickup service, the other 3 grocery superstores do. Walmart offers this service for free, while the Real Canadian Superstore and Wholesale Club fees are both a reasonable $3.00.

Here’s how these stores compare when it comes to delivery.

Online grocery delivery fees for the grocery superstores are similarly reasonable, ranging from just under $4.00 to slightly less than $8.00 for Walmart online grocery delivery.

Are you a Walmart fan? Find the best credit card for shopping at Walmart.

Online shopping for groceries with 3rd party grocery delivery services

If your local grocery store doesn’t offer pickup or delivery services themselves, you may be able to find this option through a 3rd party delivery service. There are several online grocery delivery services available to shoppers in various regions of Canada, including Cornershop, Grocery Gateway, Inabuggy, and Instacart.

Of these, however, only Instacart offers online grocery delivery to most parts of Canada, while the other 3 are more limited in their delivery service area.

Here’s how these 3rd party grocery delivery services measure up in terms of their fees.

As you can see, Instacart offers cheap delivery in many areas, but this doesn’t include their added service fees which can be as high as 10% of the total value of your order. To see how much you’ll pay for Instacart or Cornershop, you’ll have to put together an order for shops in your area, and check the final costs when you go to check out.

Inabuggy has a seemingly high online grocery delivery fee, but they don’t seem to charge any extra service fees on top of this, based on what we found in our research.

As with all of these services, your mileage may vary as fees and service charges will depend on the service, your location, and the stores you’re ordering from.

Earn American Express Membership Rewards with Instacart. Learn how here.

Online shopping for groceries with meal kit delivery services

Meal kits are a type of online grocery delivery service that are increasingly popular in Canada. With these, you don’t put together a grocery list on your own. Instead, you specify how many people you’re ordering for, how many meals you want per week, and then you select which dishes you would like to cook.

These services then deliver pre-portioned and prepared ingredients, including everything you need for each dish, and you cook the meals for yourself in the comfort of your own home.

Recipes and detailed cooking instructions are included, and you are free to make the meals at your own convenience.

All of these services deliver meal kits to you on a weekly basis, and most have free shipping.

There are 2 major problems with meal kit delivery services.

First, you still have to cook the meals yourself, which is less convenient than just ordering delivery or pickup from a local restaurant.

Second, the price-per-serving costs are extraordinarily high. If you’re looking to save money on groceries, a meal kit delivery service is clearly not a good strategy.

Here’s how each of these services measure up in terms of per serving costs, based on estimates from each website.

As you can see, you’d likely spend less money by ordering takeout or delivery from local restaurants. These are extraordinarily high costs for food you’re going to prepare for yourself.

This weekly cost is based on each service’s estimated cost per serving, multiplied by 4 meals of 2 servings each week.

As you can see, you’ll pay an enormous amount of money for groceries if you rely on meal kit delivery services for the majority of your meals each week.

While $100 per week doesn’t seem that bad at first glance, you have to remember that this is only for 4 meals, not 7, and doesn’t take breakfasts, lunches, snacks, and other grocery staples into account.

You’ll save money on groceries by putting together your own menu plans and doing your own online grocery shopping with one of the major Canadian grocery chains, such as Sobeys or Loblaws.

Which food subscription service is best in Canada? Find out here.

Best credit cards for ordering groceries

Groceries are one of the major items on any Canadian’s budget. Since we’re all going to be spending money on groceries, one of the best ways you can save on online grocery shopping is to use a credit card and earn rewards on those purchases.

Here are some of the best credit cards for buying groceries in Canada, whether you’re an avid collector of Air Miles, prefer earning cash back rewards, or would like to earn flexible rewards that you can redeem for a variety of different options.

We base our “average rate of return” calculations on a typical $2,000 monthly spend, spread across a number of different everyday spending categories.

If you would like a more detailed understanding of how each of these credit cards would work based on your personal spending patterns, you can customize these numbers over on our credit cards comparison page.

Let’s take a closer look at what each of these credit cards has to offer.

Overall best for groceries

The American Express Cobalt^® Cardisn’t just our top rated credit card for ordering groceries online, it’s also our top rated credit card in Canada.

With this credit card you’ll start with a welcome bonus of up to 15,000 American Express Membership Rewards points. A great way to kick-start your rewards earnings.

After that you’ll earn:

• 5 points per $1 spent on eligible groceries and restaurants (up to $2,500 spent per month)
• 3 points per $1 spent on eligible streaming services
• 2 points per $1 spent on eligible gas, transit, and ride share purchases
• 1 point per $1 spent on foreign currency purchases
• 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases

Of course, as a premium Amex card, you’ll enjoy a host of other benefits, which you can read more about in our full review of the American Express Cobalt Card.

Groceries at Costco

If you’re an avid Air Miles collector, or just a fan of shopping at Costco, the BMO AIR MILES^®† World Elite^®* Mastercard^®*might be a good credit card to have in your wallet.

You’ll start with a welcome bonus of up to 3,000 Miles after spending $3,000 in the first 3 months, after which you’ll earn 1 mile for every $10 spent on the card.

And not only is this a solid return on your online grocery shopping, as a premium travel credit card, you’ll also have access to a wide range of travel perks and other benefits, including 14 types of complimentary travel insurance and purchase protection.

You can read our full review of the BMO Air Miles World Elite Mastercard here.

Cash back

Prefer the simplicity of good old fashioned cash back rewards? You might want to take a look at the Scotia Momentum^® Visa Infinite^* Card.

After that, your earn rate is one of the highest cash back rates on groceries, including:

• 4% cash back on recurring bills and grocery purchases,
• 2% cash back on gas and daily transit, and
• 1% cash back on all other eligible purchases.

While the 4% and 2% spending categories do have caps, they’re set to a generous $25,000 spent annually.

And, of course, as a Visa Infinite card, this credit card comes with an array of other travel perks and benefits, which you can read all about in our full review.

Flexible rewards

If you’re looking for a flexible rewards credit card with a top-notch return on your grocery spending, the BMO eclipse Visa Infinite^* Cardmight be worth considering.

This Visa Infinite credit card not only comes with an array of unique perks, it also has a welcome bonus of up to 70,000 BMO Rewards points.

As for its regular rewards earn rate, you’ll receive:

• 5x BMO Rewards points on eligible dining, groceries, gas, and daily transit purchases, and
• 1 point for every other $1 spent.

With top earnings for groceries and daily transit, this is a top choice for city living.

And those unique perks? They include:

• 10% bonus rewards when you add an authorized user to your account,
• an annual $50 lifestyle credit that you can spend on anything you want,
• a full array of Visa Infinite perks, and
• 6types of complimentary insurance, including mobile device coverage.

If you’d like to learn more about this unique BMO Visa, you can read our full review here.

No fee Air Miles

Love collecting Air Miles, but hate paying an annual fee for your credit card? The BMO AIR MILES^®† Mastercard^®*is one of our top no fee Air Miles cards.

This has a very generous welcome bonus for a no fee credit card. You can earn up to 1,500 Air Miles after spending $1,000 in the first 3 months.

After that you’ll earn 1 Air Mile for every $25 you spend on the card. While this isn’t a great earn rate, it’s a solid return for a no fee credit card.

And, of course, you’ll earn triple rewards when you use this card at participating Air Miles partners and also use your regular Air Miles collector card.

Read our full review of the BMO Air Miles Mastercard here.

Bottom line

Ordering groceries online is becoming second nature for Canadians. Here we’ve covered the fees you can expect to pay when ordering groceries for pickup or delivery at Canada’s major grocery chains and grocery superstores, as well as through 3rd party delivery or meal kit services.

And there’s always ways to save money on groceries, whether it’s simply by shopping the flyer, using coupons, doing careful price comparisons, or by maximizing your credit card rewards when doing your online grocery shopping.

Are you a fan of ordering groceries online?

What do you find are the pros and cons involved with these services?

Let us know in the comments.

FAQ

Where can I buy groceries online in Canada?

You can order groceries online through a variety of major Canadian grocery chains and grocery superstores, as well as through 3rd party services. If you’re really pressed for time, a number of meal kit delivery services are also available in much of Canada, although availability varies. But be warned: meal kit services can be a very expensive way to get groceries, so you’ll want to keep an eye on those extra fees.

How do I order groceries online from Superstore?

You can order groceries for pickup or delivery from many Loblaws-owned grocery stores, including Superstores in Canada. You’ll want to check your local grocery stores to see what services are available. Be sure to plan ahead, however, as pickup and delivery slots tend to fill up fairly quickly, so it can be difficult to get same-day service in many areas.

What grocery stores have curbside pickup?

We outline which grocery stores have pickup services available, which includes many major Canadian grocery chains and some grocery superstores.

Which is the best supermarket for online shopping?

Since service availability varies widely depending on your location and available stores, it’s hard to say which grocery stores are best for online shopping in your area. You should check out the major Canadian grocery stores in your area to see what’s best for you.

Does Walmart do curbside pickup?

Some Walmarts do offer pickup services in some areas of Canada. To find out what’s available in your area, you should check the Walmart website directly. If it’s not available where you live, you might have better luck with one of Canada’s major grocery chains, many of which offer both pickup and delivery services.

Does Loblaws do home delivery?

Many Loblaws grocery stores offer home delivery, either through their PC Express grocery services, or in partnership with Instacart. Be sure to factor the cost of delivery fees into your budget, however, as these can add up quickly if you order from them regularly.