With 1.6 billion lifetime orders and a fulfillment network rooted in physical stores, Instacart is building what its CEO Chris Rogers called the gold standard of agentic grocery AI. In the first quarter, the company crossed $10 billion in quarterly gross transaction value and $1 billion in total revenue for the first time, according to a Wednesday (May 6) earnings press release.
Instacart runs on three engines, including a consumer marketplace, an enterprise platform for retailers and an advertising ecosystem for brands. Each is growing—and more importantly, growing each other.
The AI and Enterprise Flywheel
At the center of Instacart’s enterprise strategy is Storefront Pro, its flagship eCommerce technology platform now powering more than 380 grocery sites, Rogers said in prepared remarks. Partners include Costco, Publix and Sprouts. Grocers who upgrade to Storefront Pro see an average lift of more than 10% in online sales and more than 5% in 90-day new user retention. In Q1, Aldi launched a redesigned U.S. website and mobile app powered by Storefront Pro.
The enterprise platform deepens retailer integrations, lowers Instacart’s cost to serve through shared infrastructure, and increases order volume and density. Every new enterprise client also becomes a Carrot Ads partner, expanding the advertising network. Instacart now has more than 310 Carrot Ad partners, Rogers said.
Price parity is the other enterprise lever. Retailers offering price parity, meaning no markup on item prices, grow faster on the platform, Rogers said. Hy-Vee, Raley’s and several independent grocers moved to price parity in Q1. Instacart is now making the case to every retailer on the platform.
Advertisement: Scroll to Continue
On the consumer side, Cart Assistant, Instacart’s AI-powered conversational shopping experience, is now available to about 25% of U.S. customers, Rogers said. Early users are building meal plans, discovering recipes, researching products and assembling baskets faster. The company integrated with ChatGPT and Claude.
“With over 1.6 billion lifetime orders, we have a unique and deep understanding of the grocery journey, and we’re using that to build the gold standard of agentic grocery AI,” Rogers said.
The AI investment runs through the advertising business, too. A new generative recommendation system uses real-time cart context to predict what a shopper actually needs. Adding flour and eggs to a cart now triggers recommendations for vanilla extract and cinnamon rather than cookies or cereal. Early data shows higher engagement and better advertiser results, Rogers said. New brands can now launch performance campaigns in minutes through fully automated tools in Ads Manager.
Where the Business Is Shifting
Advertising and other revenue grew 16% year over year in Q1, the fastest growth rate since Q3 2023, Instacart Chief Financial Officer Emily Reuter said in the prepared remarks. Strength was broad-based across more than 9,000 brands. Large brands performed well. Middle-market and emerging brands leaned in particularly strongly.
Off-platform partnerships, where brands use Instacart’s first-party data to target audiences on Meta, TikTok, Google, Pinterest and The Trade Desk, continued to scale, Reuter said.
Order growth of 10% stepped down from prior quarters, largely as expected, she said. The company lapped the Q1 2025 rollout of a $10 minimum basket feature for Instacart+ members, which drove a surge of smaller incremental orders. GTV grew faster than orders, a dynamic the company expects to continue. Average order value of $113 was up 3% year over year, driven by deeper customer engagement, strong club retailer performance and new high-value business customers at launches like Restaurant Depot.
International is the next surface. In Q1, Instacart launched Storefront Pro with Costco in Spain and France, tracking ahead of initial expectations, Rogers said. The company also acquired Instaleap, a fulfillment technology platform with retailer relationships across Europe and Latin America. The strategy is enterprise-led and deliberately paced.
What Else Stood Out
- Instacart’s Consumer Insights Portal added Kraft Heinz as a new subscriber in Q1 and deepened engagement with existing partner Advantage Solutions. The portal gives brands access to real-time consumer behavior data.
- Store View, a real-time computer vision tool that improves shelf availability and accuracy, is being piloted with Sprouts and additional partners.
- Instacart+ paid members continued to grow in Q1 and represent the majority of GTV and orders on the platform. Members retain better and engage more deeply than non-members. The program includes zero-dollar delivery minimums and access to New York Times Cooking and Peacock.
- Caper Cart, Instacart’s AI-powered smart cart, is now live in more than 100 cities across more than 12 retail banners. Recent launches include Sprouts, Wegmans and Coles in Australia. A pilot with Morrisons in the United Kingdom is upcoming.
Topline Results and Outlook
Q1 2026 GTV was $10.29 billion, up 13% year over year. Orders were 91.2 million, up 10%. Average order value was $113, up 3%. Total revenue was $1.02 billion, up 14%. Transaction revenue was $733 million, up 13%, representing 7.1% of GTV. Advertising and other revenue was $286 million, up 16%. For Q2, Instacart guided GTV of $10.1 billion to $10.25 billion, representing 11% to 13% year-over-year growth. Advertising and other revenue is expected to grow 11% to 14%.
For all PYMNTS AI coverage, subscribe to the daily AI Newsletter.
