A reader asked how I like the Walmart app. I think I wrote about it when I first started doing it but I’ll make another post. I LOVE the app. I suppose the caveat here is that I detest shopping. The app/curbside pickup accomplishes a shopping job for me so I could be a bit biased but I see no negatives with it. Also, probably not all Walmarts are created equally. I know that from Chad’s experiences when he worked in five different stores in five years so I’m fairly sure there are people who have had bad experiences, maybe consistently, but I’ve never had a bad experience.
Ease of Shopping:
Often the same day I’ve picked up groceries, I’ll start a new order on the app. It’s as simple as finding a recipe that needs something I don’t have or thinking . . I wish I had this. I grab my phone (well, I have to find it first), hit the WM app button, search for that item and add it to my list. When it’s time to pickup the order, which usually happens when I run out of milk or eggs because I mostly keep everything else I need here, I go through the list and make sure I still want everything on my list. Often there are things I decided I no longer need. Example: For Christmas dinner I’m smoking a pork crown roast. The recipe I thought I was going to use required brining with two gallons of apple cider, which I didn’t have so I added that to my list a week or so ago. Now I’ve found a different recipe I want to use and no longer need the apple cider so I removed that from my list. I choose my pickup time and hit pay.
Substitutions:
About 1-1/2 to 2 hours before my pickup time, I’ll get a text with substitutions for me to approve. I think the app has options when you set it up for either no substitutions, for me to approve substitutions or for me to accept substitutions without approval. I have it set up for me to approve subs. Yesterday I had Lender’s Bagels on my list and they needed to sub Thomas Bagels, which was fine with me. If they’re subbing something more expensive, they don’t add the extra cost. Example: I will almost always order 3 gallons of spring water and 3 gallons of distilled water. Once they were out of Great Value spring water and subbed Nestle water. It took 4 bottles of Nestle to equal the amount in the 3 jugs of GV water so I got 4 bottles of Nestle water for the same price as 3 gallons of GV water. Once I ordered a container of GV cool whip. They were out and subbed the name brand cool whip for the same price as the GV brand.
I’m not much on name brands and almost always order the WM brand so if they have to sub, I’m getting a more expensive product for less.
Shortages and Errors:
Once in probably 20 or more orders, I’ve had a mistake. Recently I ordered a S’mores kit. It had everything needed to make S’mores but I got some kind of giant marshmallows with a chocolate powder on the outside. There’s a place in the app to report shortages and errors so I reported it and instantly had a refund for the S’mores kit. Otherwise, I’ve never been short anything or had any mixup.
Quality:
Vince says he doesn’t like to use the app (though he’s never used it and his love of walking the aisles looking for deals is the reason he doesn’t like it) because he says he wants to pick his own stuff. If you’ve ever shopped with anyone who scrutinizes every head of lettuce in the bin, puts one in the cart, takes it out, scrutinizes every head again (and that can happen several times) before he decides on the perfect head of lettuce, you may understand my love of shopping via the app. But, I have never had anything that I thought . . if I had picked this, I wouldn’t have chosen this one. The expiration date on the milk I got yesterday was January 3. Couldn’t have asked for better than that. I’ve never had a broken egg.
I don’t buy steak or roast but I do buy ground beef, packaged chicken, etc. and I’ve never had a problem. Since I’m almost always putting stuff in the freezer, I ask for frozen if available and I’ve always gotten frozen.
The Pickup:
It’s flawless. On the app, I can check in when I leave home and they know I’m 11 minutes from the store. When I get there, I check in via the app. Click the “silver” dot because my car is silver, click on the number that corresponds to my spot, and they’re out there immediately with my order. One time I had to wait about 5 minutes but I usually go between 7 and 8 a.m. and most of the time, I’m the only one there. Once I was out of there within 1 minute of checking in.
Not Just Groceries:
At first, I thought I could only get groceries but it seems I can use curbside pickup for most everything in the store. Once I needed a 9 x 13 glass baking dish. Yesterday I needed dental floss and puppy pads.
Potential Negatives:
I hesitate to even mention negatives because these are not things that could be improved upon, nor do I feel they negatively affect my curbside pickup experiences.
- Sometimes I won’t have something on my list but when in the store, I’ll see it and buy it. Example: if I’m in the veggie area and see gorgeous artichokes, I’m going to get them. If I don’t have bell peppers on my list and they have great peppers for stuffing and the price is reasonable, I’ll get them. I’m not sure how I would order “great peppers for stuffing” because the perfect size for my stuffed peppers may not be the size you prefer and the college kid filling my order may never have seen a stuffed bell pepper.
- They don’t have many flavors of Blue Bell ice cream offered for pickup but . . ice cream really needs to stay off my list til I lose a few pounds.
- Especially when there were a lot of shortages, they may have something in stock when I add it to my list but by the time my pickup time is getting close, that item is out of stock. Example: There have been times when I ordered flour and it appeared to be in stock when I added it to my list, paid for the order but several days later when it was time to pick up the order, there was none. My friend in Louisiana told me yesterday she had ordered a 5 pound bag of flour. They were out and subbed a 10 pound bag at no extra charge.
Love or hate WM, and I will agree that there’s much to love and much to not love, but their curbside pickup, at least at our store, is about as good as it can be. I always am amused by people who say they won’t go to Walmart because they sell too much Chinese made stuff but yet they have no problem shopping other places that have the same thing. Show me a store that’s carrying a wide variety of only American made stuff for a reasonable price!
Many local grocery stores now offer curbside pickup. I believe Harp’s here in town does but, for me, unless it’s on sale, their prices are way high for me.
Vince still loves Aldi and I do too but our stores don’t offer curbside pickup and they are always crowded so for me, at least for now, I’m staying out of them.
As long as Walmart offers curbside pickup, I doubt I ever go back to buying all my groceries in the store.
Sara Fridley says
I think online ordering and curbside pickup will continue to be the choice for a lot of people from now on. I know my daughter was saying the other day she sure wished it was available when her twins were babies and she had a toddler too. It was an adventure for her to go grocery shopping with those kiddos.
I don’t go to Walmart often – but it’s only because I have a wonderful grocery store 2 blocks from my house and a big pharmacy 4 blocks away. Those stores are so much more convenient. Our Walmart has excellent customer service and carries a few things I can’t get elsewhere in town and can’t yet get curbside. So that is when I go to Walmart – and that is when my bill is always bigger because then I see all kinds of things for impulse buying.
Sibyl Scott says
I can see how this works for people who make lists and know what they are having for dinner on a menu–but I fly by the seat of my pants. I have to see what I am purchasing as far as food is concerned. What if they have that perfect whatchamacallit that I just have to have–but didn’t know about it because I was using an app–which I hardly ever use on my phone–Can you do it via their website–I don’t like messing with my phone that much–reading or checking like on FB is one thing–but not actually writing or searching is not my thing on the phone. I like Vince look for the sales and clearances–I have saved way too much money on groceries buying markdowns. I probably save an extra 25-30 % on my grocery bill doing that–with all of that said—with HAVING to wear a mask–I have a big problem shopping. I can not breathe with them on–but have to feed the family. I would be ordering daily if I was not walking down the isles figuring out what to purchase–sometimes I have an idea of what to get–but other times I let the items speak to me as to what to purchase. I guess we are both different in that aspects–like the other day another person I follow via a blog and Instagram she was talking spreadsheets-she said she never used them–I know you are a great proponent of them–but have yet to figure out what I would ever do with one. I know off topic–but love reading your posts and trying to see what I can gain info and just insight. Keep warm.
Judy Laquidara says
One thing for sure – we all work in different ways and what works great for one doesn’t work so great for the other but, there was a time when I stopped at the grocery store most every day on my way home from work to decide what we were having for dinner and buy the ingredients. I can’t tell you how much time and money I save by making menus for at least a week, by planning what I’ll do with leftovers (i.e., cook a roast on Monday and on Wednesday, make roast beef hash with some of the leftovers simply by adding chopped potatoes and onions); on Friday make open face roast beef/cheese sandwiches. That means I cooked one day and we had three meals. Then, grill chicken on Tuesday and use leftover grilled chicken to make chicken alfredo for dinner on Wednesday and grilled chicken pizza on Saturday. Two real meals cooked and everything else took minutes to prepare with one pot to clean up the rest of the week.
The good thing about the app is that you can start it on one day and keep adding to it as long as you’d like and then check out and pick up when you’re ready.
Honestly, about seeing things you didn’t know you needed while in the store . . I’m done with that. I have enough stuff to supply half a dozen kitchens so if I need it and don’t have it, something else will work or I’ll do without. There are only so many ways to re-invent the pan or baking dish and I don’t need anything else so I can’t help you with that.
vivoaks says
My daughter that lives locally also loves using the Walmart app. She ordered a 5-lb. bag of frozen chicken breasts one time and they were out, so they substituted a 10-lb. bag!! Can’t beat that!! They forgot one item once, but it was candy and she knew she shouldn’t have ordered it anytway….. 🙂 She’s now signed up for a Walmart account at the cost of $99, and all her groceries are now delivered to the house! The only real problem around here is that so many people are using the service that you sometimes have to wait 4-5 days before you can get a slot to pick them up. I’ve never used the service, but one of these days I may consider the option…especially if the Covid numbers keep up. The county where Pittsburgh is located was getting over 1000 new cases a day this past week….we’re in the next county over.
Judy Laquidara says
Even with the subscription to home delivery, they only go so far and they don’t come to where we live but I don’t mind running to the store every couple of weeks. I can usually get a pickup time either the same day or next day so I do my pickups based on the weather. I try to avoid going out when I’ll bring in mud, snow and gunk from the car to the garage floor since I’m the only one here to clean it up.
Shari says
I love the Walmart app and buying on line. I don’t like shopping and it stops me from making impulse purchases. I’ve found that I have saved money buying Walmart brand, too.
Becky Rhodes says
I love to use this app! I order groceries for my husband and me and then also for my Mom.
Patti Tappel says
Our new Aldi’s offer curb side. When I was out of my Covid quarantine, I used it. At first there was a $3.95 fee, but after I added more, it went down to $1.99. It worked great. I was in the parking lot less then 3 minutes. And I exposed no one to my stupid germs.
JackiesStitches says
I’ll preface my comment by saying I do not like Walmart. I won’t go into one. That said, I LOVE shopping via their app. There prices are so much cheaper. For example, the Arizona green tea my husband likes is $4 at Publix (his preferred store). It’s $2.48 at Walmart. I can get 3 at Walmart for less than the price of 2 at Publix. That’s significant.
Like you, I start shopping as soon as we submit an order. My husband and I both have the app on our phones and add stuff. I submit our order generally on Thursdays and pick up on Saturday or Sunday depending on our weekend schedule.
I will say that in my town, I can’t get buttermilk for salad dressings with a decent expiration date. I would consider that to be an item here that is not in high demand so I can see how that happens.
We save more money and buy less junk by picking up at curbside. Speaking of curbside, everyone there is so nice!
Judy Laquidara says
I never worry about the expiration date on buttermilk. It’s cultured (live cultures) so it would take a LONG time for it to go bad. Kinda like saying sourdough starter or sauerkraut has an expiration date. Also, you can take about half a glass of milk, pour a little buttermilk into it and culture your own buttermilk and keep it going. It won’t have nearly the sodium that storebought buttermilk has so you’ll have to add way more salt than you think is necessary to get it to taste like storebought but it works great for salad dressings.
JackiesStitches says
Thank you Judy for that info!
Nelle Coursey says
I think that is very smart of you doing the app. I have not been in Walmart since March! There are too many people there who do not wear their masks and have all their dozens of kids with them. And of course they let them run wild and they don’t distance. But that may just be our Walmart and not the others. You have been there and you know what it is like. I feel sorry for the staff.
Judy Laquidara says
It isn’t like that here. I’ve actually been in Walmart way more than I would have liked but with moving, there were so many things I needed quickly or did want to choose myself. Our Walmarts (there are 7 in our area counting the Neighborhood Markets) seem pretty calm, especially early in the morning. I do see people without masks but I try to stay away from everyone, get what I need and get out without shopping and browsing.
Donna M says
Judy, a friend of mine was recently ordering groceries online. Don’t know which store. But, the app asked if they were out of parchment paper could they substitute a cucumber. LOL. Luckily, they had the parchment paper.
Judy Laquidara says
I’m not sure I’d even want an explanation for that one! 🙂
Susan says
Thanks Judy, for taking the time to talk about your Walmart on-line shopping experience. I live in SE Iowa and when the COVID numbers went crazy high I was looking for an alternative to going into grocery stores where many didn’t wear masks. I turned to Walmart as the solution. I agree with all that you said about the shopping, quality part. Everything about my orders has been perfect. However the pick up process is far from that. I don’t have the app so when I get there I call the number on the post in each slot and sign in. The first time it went well but since then I’ve had l-o-n-g waits. I don’t like it but feel it’s safer than being exposed to COVID.
As always I love your blog!
Judy Laquidara says
What time of day are you picking up? I’ve heard the wait time increases as the day goes on. I usually choose the 7 – 8 a.m. spot and there’s rarely anyone else there but since it’s staying dark so late, I’ve been choosing the 8 – 9 a.m. spot. There was maybe a 2 minute wait this week. There are 7 Walmarts in our area, including Neighborhood Markets. To me, that seems like a lot but they’re serving a pretty big area. I doubt many people will drive in that far for a 7 a.m. grocery pickup so that’s probably why I never have to wait.
JustGail says
Thanks for the information, both good and bad that you’ve encountered. If I ever move again (not for a long time I hope!) you can bet home delivery options will be on my list of things to check for. OTOH, going out for groceries (and sewing supplies & fabric) is probably the only thing that keeps me from being a total recluse, even before all this virus stuff hit.
Judy Laquidara says
For us, living close enough to where we could get delivery was too close to town. There’s a trade off for everything. Next move (if there is one), we’ll be a lot older and we probably will be closer to town or in assisted living and none of it will matter. I can get by with going out about once every two weeks for groceries but now I have to go somewhere more often just to keep the darned cars running.