Grubhub’s latest partnership may look strange from the outside, partnering with rival Instacart on a section of the market it never quite got right. The result is a strategic partnership that benefits Grubhub and parent company Wonder’s super app dreams, while also bolstering Instacart’s network.
Grubhub has always been the third-party delivery app laggard: Instacart dominates grocery, DoorDash leads in foodservice, Uber Eats is muscling into both niches with abandon.
Before Wonder acquired Grubhub, its market share sat at roughly 8% of the third-party delivery market, according to data from McKinsey and Second Measure Bloomberg. This compares to DoorDash’s 68% claim and Uber Eats’ 24% portion.
Instead, what Grubhub has done is look for alternative channels to grow its market share. Previous partnerships include investing in college and university students, autonomous delivery technologies, and hospitality services. Earlier this year, Grubhub even brought back Seamless in a bid to grow its New York City audience.
With Grubhub’s latest partnership, it’s waiving the white flag on grocery services, allowing Instacart to fulfill that niche so that it can focus on its key growth areas. According to the partnership terms, users can purchase groceries fulfilled by Instacart directly through the Grubhub app.
“By expanding access to groceries and everyday essentials, this partnership makes it even easier for customers to rely on Grubhub for more of what they need, when they need it,” said Grubhub CEO Howard Migdal.
Previously, grocery delivery for the third-party service was experimental, with some COVID-era initiatives to allow certain restaurants and convenience chains to offer staples. Since then, it pushed deeper into the market with convenience-store assortments; however, the online grocery competitive landscape has only worsened since first-party delivery apps have upped their usability.
How Instacart Wins
Grubhub lacked grocery; enter Instacart. The third-party grocery service has steadily weathered decelerating growth despite a strategy that seems to be working. CEO Fidji Simo noted in a Q2 shareholder letter that the company’s growth strategy hinges on partnering with retailers, leveraging its data advantage, and driving efficiency.
On the other hand, overall revenue decelerated in Q2 2025 to 11% year-over-year after an impressive Q2 2024 growth of 15%.
Instacart’s top-line growth is largely supported by working with new retailers: in the first half of 2025, it added 40 new retailers to its platform, after partnering with 30 in 2024. Nevertheless, its growth is still threatened by category leaders, such as Walmart, Amazon, and Kroger. In Q1, for example, Walmart constituted as much as 31.6% of the online grocery market, according to Brick Meets Click.
Grubhub’s additional reach adds a new consumer base to its ecosystem, helping to ensure double-digit growth in the near term. The decision also offers the company insurance, as savvy shoppers exercise fiscally conservative tendencies to stretch their food dollars.
Where Wonder Comes In
In January, entrepreneur Marc Lore’s food foray, Wonder, acquired Grubhub in an acquisition that cemented its desire to compete on all things food.
But it doesn’t want to stop there. Wonder is a service with “super app” dreams.
“Our ultimate goal is to autonomously feed families breakfast, lunch, and dinner according to their budget, health goals, and the foods they love,” Lore said during the Jefferies 2025 Private Growth Conference.
This move is evidenced by its M&A strategy, which, in addition to Grubhub, includes meal-kit service Blue Apron and food media company Tastemade. Additionally, the brand has bolstered its brick-and-mortar presence with food hall-style locations that serve customers in person, while also acting as a hub for food delivery.
But there’s a blind spot in Wonder’s current ecosystem: although it can serve the dine-in and order-out consumer with ease, the “cook-at-home” user only has a meal-kit option, which represents a small portion of the market. Instacart, however, offers the solution, allowing consumers the full spectrum of mealtime solutions.
Plus, there are opportunities to tap retail media applications for CPGs and retailers, whereas before they were dependent on restaurant budgets.
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