Instacart
NASDAQ: CARTYC S12YC Top CompanySan Francisco, US Β· Founded 2012 Β· 3000 employees Β· Public Β· Hiring Β· 35 known investors
Instacart operates a marketplace connecting grocery retailers with customers who order food and household items for same-day delivery or in-store pickup, serving millions of households across North America through partnerships with over 350 retailers.
Also known as Maplebear Inc.
Founders & leadershipΒ· Y Combinator alumni (S12)
Instacart was founded in 2012 by Apoorva Mehta, Brandon Leonardo, and Max Mullen.
Investors Β· 35
Valuation Β· disclosed
Disclosed eventsSource: SEC prospectus filings, and round valuations the company or its investors disclosed β follow each entry's link for the claim.
Company profile
researched Aug 2026Instacart is a North American online grocery marketplace that connects customers with local and national retailers for same-day delivery and curbside pickup. Customers select items from participating stores on Instacart.com or the mobile app, and a personal shopper in their area shops the order and delivers it, with in-app chat, real-time order tracking, replacement preferences (find best match, pick specific replacement, or don't replace), contactless "Leave at My Door" delivery as the default, and a stated 100% quality guarantee.
The company's own site describes the marketplace as the largest online grocery marketplace in North America, citing roughly 1 billion products in the catalog, 80,000 stores, 14,000 cities served across the U.S. and Canada, and a selection of more than 500 retailers and local grocers; its corporate site cites 15k+ cities, 2,200+ retail banners and 100k+ stores. Ordering does not require a membership, including at warehouse clubs such as Costco, Sam's Club and BJ's Wholesale Club. An optional Instacart+ membership provides $0 delivery fees on eligible orders above stated basket minimums (grocery and retail $10+, Costco $35+, restaurants $25+), with service fees still applying.
Beyond consumer delivery, Instacart operates an enterprise business for retailers and an advertising business for brands. Recent initiatives include AI-powered Caper Carts and Smart Trolleys deployed in stores (including at a Morrisons location in the UK), a shoppable vertical video ad format, an Instacart Health program, and expansion of on-demand delivery into non-grocery retail categories such as sporting goods, hardware and farm supplies.
Founding story
Instacart was started in 2012 by Apoorva Mehta together with co-founders Max Mullen and Brandon Leonardo, and went through Y Combinator's Summer 2012 batch. Mehta, an engineering graduate of the University of Waterloo, previously worked at BlackBerry, Qualcomm and Amazon. Leonardo built early versions of the Instacart app and had prior senior engineering roles at AngelList, Webs and StartupBus. Mullen, a University of Southern California graduate, had previously worked at startups including the interactive agency Schematic.
Business model
Instacart runs a three-sided marketplace: retail partners list their assortments, customers place orders online or in the app, and independent personal shoppers pick and deliver the items, typically same-day and in as fast as an hour. Retail partners set item prices on the marketplace, and some prices may differ from in-store prices. Alongside the consumer marketplace, the company sells enterprise technology to retailers (including in-store hardware such as Caper Carts and Smart Trolleys) and advertising products to brands.
Revenue sources indicated by the sources include delivery fees (starting at $3.99 for same-day orders over $35, varying for one-hour, club-store and sub-$35 orders), pickup fees, variable service fees (with a separate service fee on alcohol orders), the Instacart+ subscription, retailer-facing enterprise services, and advertising sold to brands.
Traction
Company-stated scale figures include roughly 1 billion products in the catalog, 80,000 stores, 14,000 cities and millions of orders delivered or picked up yearly, with the corporate site citing 15k+ cities, 2,200+ retail banners and 100k+ stores. In 2020 the company added more than 200 retailers and more than 15,000 store locations; by April 2021 it partnered with nearly 600 retailers across more than 45,000 stores, reaching over 85% of U.S. and 70% of Canadian households. Y Combinator lists a team size of 3,000.
Latest developments
Company news through mid-2026 includes the acquisition of Arpalus for real-time shelf intelligence (July 2026), deployment of Smart Trolleys at Morrisons Preston in the UK (July 2026), AI-powered Caper Carts with Weis Markets (June 2026), a shoppable vertical video ad feed for advertisers (June 2026), an Instacart Health partnership with Vida Health (June 2026), and a series of non-grocery delivery partnerships with Ace Hardware (May 2026), Tractor Supply (July 2026), Academy Sports + Outdoors (August 2026) and Foot Locker/Kids Foot Locker/Champs Sports (August 2026).
βΈFull profile β market position, technology, go-to-market, geography, history
Market position
Described on its own site as the largest online grocery marketplace in North America and by Y Combinator as the North American leader in online grocery and one of the fastest-growing e-commerce companies. Sources do not provide comparative market-share data against named competitors.
Instacart positions itself on breadth of retail supply β described on its own properties as the largest online grocery marketplace in North America with roughly 1 billion catalog products, 80,000+ stores and 2,200+ retail banners β combined with speed (delivery in as fast as an hour), no requirement to hold a warehouse-club membership to order from Costco, Sam's Club or BJ's, human personal shoppers with in-app chat and replacement handling, and adjacent retailer-facing technology such as Caper Carts/Smart Trolleys and shelf intelligence from the acquired Arpalus.
Technology
Consumer web and mobile apps supporting store selection, real-time order tracking, shopper chat, item and delivery instructions, and contactless delivery defaults. The company has also launched an in-app AI search tool powered by ChatGPT (2023), AI-powered Caper Carts and Smart Trolleys for in-store shopping, and acquired Arpalus (2026) for real-time shelf intelligence.
Go-to-market
Instacart acquires consumers directly through its website and mobile apps, using promotional offers such as $0 delivery fees on first orders and the Instacart+ subscription. On the supply side it signs retail partners (national, regional and local banners) and expands into new verticals through announced partnerships, for example with Tractor Supply, Ace Hardware, Academy Sports + Outdoors and Foot Locker. It also sells enterprise technology to retailers and advertising placements to brands.
Consumers and households in the U.S. and Canada ordering groceries and everyday essentials; retailers (national, regional and local grocery and non-grocery banners) buying enterprise and delivery technology; consumer brands buying advertising on the marketplace.
Geography
Primarily North America β the U.S. and Canada β with company materials citing 14,000β15,000+ cities served. As of April 2021 the service reached over 85% of U.S. households and 70% of Canadian households. The company also has an in-store technology presence outside North America, with Smart Trolleys deployed at a Morrisons store in Preston, UK, as of July 2026.
History
Instacart was founded in 2012 by Apoorva Mehta, Max Mullen and Brandon Leonardo and participated in Y Combinator's Summer 2012 batch. It raised a rapid series of unlettered venture rounds during the COVID-19 pandemic β $225 million in June 2020, $100 million in July 2020, and $200 million in October 2020 at a $17.7 billion valuation β followed by $265 million in early 2021 at a $39 billion valuation. The company filed for an IPO in August 2023 and priced its offering at $30 per share on September 18, 2023, raising $660 million; press coverage at the time described the IPO as valuing the company at $9.9 billion. Recent activity includes the July 2026 acquisition of shelf-intelligence company Arpalus and a series of non-grocery retail delivery partnerships.
Compiled by commissioned research from 8 cited public sources β announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed β not independently audited.
Founder mafia
The Instacart mafia β23 people who came through Instacart went on to found or lead other companies.
+ 11 more
Competitors Β· 3
by search overlap
Companies competing with Instacart for the same Google search keywords, organic and paid, via search-intersection analysis.
Acquisitions Β· 2
Early investors' stakes continue via these dealsCaper builds AI-powered smart shopping carts equipped with GPS and computer vision for grocery stores. The carts enable self-checkout and in-store analytics for retailers.
Omni-channel commerce platform using machine learning for retailers; acquired by Instacart in 2018.
Timeline Β· 16
launches, deals, and filings$660M source β
Instacart announced a $265 million financing round from existing investors, raising its valuation to $39 billion. The round, like the prior few, carried no Series designation.
$265M source β
Referenced as Instacart's prior financing before the March 2021 round.
$200M source β
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
In the news
Google Introduces Native Third-Party App Integration In Search AI Mode - SuperbCrewsuperbcrew.com Β· Jul 2026
Syntetica raises $30M to scale nylon recycling solutions - SiliconANGLEsiliconangle.com Β· Jul 2026
County in talks with Instacart for Endowment-funded grocery pilot | Port City Dailyportcitydaily.com Β· Jul 2026βΈResearch sources Β· 8
primary sources listed
- Instacartinstacart.com Β· web
8 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does Instacart do?
- North American online grocery marketplace offering same-day delivery and pickup from 80,000+ stores via personal shoppers.
- Who founded Instacart?
- Instacart was founded by Apoorva Mehta, Brandon Leonardo, Max Mullen in 2012.
- Who are Instacart's investors?
- Instacart's investors include A*, Andreessen Horowitz, BACKGROUND CAPITAL, Bling Capital, Bright Pixel Capital, Canaan Partners, Coatue Management, Comcast Ventures and 27 more.
- Is Instacart publicly traded?
- Yes β Instacart trades on NASDAQ under the ticker CART.
- Where is Instacart headquartered?
- Instacart is headquartered in San Francisco, US.