Online shopping is a serious industry. People are spending less time inside “real stores” but traditionally people still prefer to purchase paper goods, groceries and cleaning products in person. But that is changing. And FAST. Google and Amazon are in a fierce battle for your online grocery / pantry business. Each online giant has their own system to encourage lazy grocery shoppers. And I love them for it.
I received about six Google Express invitations or coupons before finally trying it a few months ago. Google Express is a direct competitor to Amazon’s Subscribe & Save Program and Prime Pantry. I love Amazon’s S&S program but there are certain products we use that aren’t available. And I found myself still needing Costco in addition to my monthly Amazon shipment. Eventually I’ll do an in depth comparison between Amazon S&S, Amazon Prime Pantry and Google Express. Amazon Fresh isn’t available in my area yet (small tear) so I can’t review.
But for now….here is the basic information on Google Express :
Google has contracted rates with various stores to ship their items to customers. You can sign up for a membership (3-month free trial for new customers). After the trial ends it costs $10 per month for monthly members and $95 per year for annual members. The membership gives you free shipping and you can share membership with people in your household.
If you shop at multiple “Express” stores…the membership makes sense because you’ll save on shipping. Since we only use the Costco items , we only pay $4.99 shipping when we need rather than $10 monthly.
Google Express could be especially helpful if you shop at Costco for dry goods or paper products.
I’ve found Express saves us significantly on time and money. My time is valuable and I don’t want to shop with my children. Not ever. I don’t care how good the samples are inside a physical store. Additionally – it’s much harder to overspend using Express. I tend to use the helpful “quick re-order” feature guaranteeing only the things we actually USE end up in the online cart. Everyone knows that physically being inside a Costco store is very expensive. (Why did I buy a box of 260 ballpoint pens?)
PROS:
- Fast Shipment
- Lots of options
- Easy to Use
- Prices similar to Amazon’s Subscribe & Save
- Google Express App is flawless
CONS
- Doesn’t have everything available (refrigerated, speciality items etc.)
- Without membership, delivery of eligible orders starts at $4.99 from each store you shop.
- They will have some kinks in their shipping process.
Summary: You should try Google Express. It’s worth signing up for the free trial and see if it saves you time and money.
What do you use? Google Express? Amazon Prime? Amazon Subscribe & Save? Do you prefer traditional grocery stores?
I love google express for Costco…but, many of their items are 2-3$ more expensive than if you bought them in the actual store. So not only are you paying for the delivery you are paying more for each item
Interesting! I checked the prices in our local store and they were similar if not cheaper! I have heard the prices fluctuate depending on the region.
Maybe just the items I bought? Paper towels and protein shakes. If I ever make it back inside an actual Costco store I’ll snap pics of price differences.
Meanwhile, I agree that a few extra dollars is worth the savings on skipping impulse buys and wrangling kids.
This is a great website, very smart.
I would be SUPER interested in what you find. For me – there’s so much value in my time and happiness. 😉 I might spend $4 more on a few products but I’ve saved energy, gas, time and spend overall LESS on the entire order. Keep me updated on what you find!
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