Peapod is a service that lets you pick
out groceries online and then have them delivered to your door. They
also have an option where they do the shopping for you and you just
have to pick up your order to save time. Peapod has been around for
some time now and is available in many states. I don't mind going to
the store but one of my family members recommended them and gave me a
promo code to use so I thought I would try it out. Here is a recap
of my experience using Peapod:
Website:
You start by going to the website and
entering in your location to make sure the service is available in
your area. From their you can start shopping right away. You don't
even need to log in to try it out. You can search by item, brand, or
category which makes finding things very easy. They have most of the
name brands and even a Peapod store brand. You can click on an item
to see it up close and get more information about it such as the
nutrition facts. You can even sort by unit price which is very
helpful when comparing prices. When you find an item you want, you
can add it to the cart on the right where it keeps track of your
order. Overall I found the website very easy to navigate.
Prices:
As you might expect, you will pay a bit
more per item vs if you were to buy the same item in the store. The
convenience of having someone else take the time to gather all the
items and deliver them does come at a price. There are some items on
sale each week which tend to bring them down to about store price.
Also they do have many store brand items which are a good deal. I
like to save money so I went with a lot of the store brand items.
You have to have a minimum order of $60 to place the order. Also
there is a charge for delivery and a smaller charge if you opt for
pick up. They do run promotions so you may be able to get these fees
waived if you have a promo code.
Checkout:
In checkout, you can select delivery or
pickup. I went with the pickup because it was less and there was a
pickup place close by. I was able to schedule pickup for the next
morning which was nice so you do not have to give them a lot of
advanced warning. One thing I noticed is they do not let you enter
in a promo code until the last screen, even after you have entered in
all your billing information. It would have been nice to be able to
apply the code early on to see those savings at the beginning.
Pick Up:
For pick up, you just have to drive up
to one of the Peapod locations and tell them your name. Then they
load up your car with the order and give you the receipt. Overall
the service was quick and friendly.
Groceries:
The groceries came in many bags. They
probably could have been consolidated better. Also I found the
frozen items could have been colder. They keep them in coolers with
ice and actually use dry ice cubes to keep them cold. When I was
unloading the groceries, there was one of the dry ice blocks in one
of the bags. I'm not sure if this was supposed to come with but it
was kind of strange because it had lots of warning on the bag like
"Do Not Touch Without Gloves". Other than that I was
pleased with the groceries themselves.
Recommendation:
I would recommend Peapod for someone
who is busy or does not like to go grocery shopping. It is good for
someone who does not mind paying a bit more for the convenience of
having groceries delivered. It is also great for older people who
may have a hard time getting around or carrying heavy groceries.
Personally I do not mind going to the store and I would prefer to get
the cheapest prices for the same items, so I probably would not use
the service on a regular basis unless there were some good promo
codes that evened out the prices.
Update 5-14-15: While most items I ordered were great, I got around to using some store brand Automatic Dishwasher detergent and found it was not cleaning the dishes well at all. In fact, dishes looked cleaner going in compared to after they had been washed using the new detergent. It was a pretty big bottle and I was not going to use it any more because it did not clean the dishes so I decided to give Peapod a call to see if there was anything that could be done. Thankfully they were able to give me a refund for the detergent. Although the detergent was a disappointment, they get points for good customer service!
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