Instacart has been holding early talks with Uber and DoorDash about a possible sale, according to a Friday report from The Information that cited people familiar with the matter.
The grocery delivery company, currently worth about $13 billion, has brought in an investment bank to help it weigh its options, the report said. If a buyer were to pay a typical premium of 30% to 40% for a deal like this, based on recent tech acquisitions, Instacart could fetch roughly $16 billion to $17 billion.
An Instacart spokesperson declined to comment when reached by The Post.
The discussions come as both Uber and DoorDash push deeper into grocery delivery and go on acquisition sprees across the broader food delivery business. Any deal involving Instacart’s grocery operations would likely draw antitrust scrutiny, since both potential buyers already compete in that space.
This isn’t the first time a sale has been floated. DoorDash held talks to buy Instacart back in 2021 at a valuation of $40 billion to $50 billion, but those talks fell apart, partly over worries about getting the deal past regulators during the Biden administration, The Information has previously reported.
Existing Ties Between the Companies
Instacart and Uber already work together in several ways. In 2024, the two struck a deal letting Instacart’s grocery app offer restaurant delivery through Uber Eats. Last year, Uber began using Instacart’s Carrot Ads technology to run sponsored grocery placements inside Uber Eats. Separate talks between Uber and Instacart reportedly stalled in the past as Uber chased other acquisition targets.
A Company That’s Lost Ground
Instacart’s valuation has fallen sharply from its pandemic-era peak. The company was valued at $39 billion in a private funding round in 2021, when grocery delivery demand was booming. By its 2023 public offering, that figure had dropped to roughly $10 billion. Shares have since climbed about 70% since the IPO.
But growth has slowed. Instacart’s revenue growth fell from 19% in 2023 to 11% in each of the two years that followed. In the second quarter of this year, revenue rose 14% year-over-year to just over $1 billion, and the company generated $480 million in free cash flow. Instacart has said most of that free cash flow will go toward buying back its own shares this year.
Its push into advertising has not been enough to close the growth gap with its larger rivals. DoorDash posted 28% revenue growth in 2025, compared with 18% at Uber, which also runs a ride-hailing business.
Rivals Keep Growing Through Acquisitions
DoorDash, now valued at roughly $80 billion, bought Deliveroo and restaurant software company SevenRooms in 2025, three years after its roughly $8 billion purchase of European delivery platform Wolt. Uber, valued at about $135 billion, has agreed this year to pay around $15 billion for Delivery Hero and more than $2 billion for workplace catering service ezCater. Amazon, which owns Whole Foods, has also been expanding its own grocery delivery business.
The Information noted that Uber’s recent string of acquisitions could complicate any bid it might make for Instacart. For now, no agreement has emerged from the talks, and whether a sale actually happens remains uncertain.
