Instacart Reportedly Weighs Sale, Talks With Uber, DoorDash

Instacart, the grocery delivery company, has held preliminary discussions with Uber and DoorDash about a potential sale, The Information reported Friday. The report, which cited people familiar with the matter, said an investment bank is helping the company assess its options. Instacart declined to comment when reached by The New York Post. No agreement has been reached, and a sale remains uncertain, according to the report.

The Information put Instacart’s current value at about $13 billion. The report estimated that a takeover could fetch roughly $16 billion to $17 billion if a buyer paid a 30% to 40% premium, a range based on recent public tech deals. That figure is an estimate, not a reported offer.

The timing reflects a crowded and increasingly acquisitive delivery sector. Uber and DoorDash are both expanding their grocery businesses while pursuing multibillion-dollar deals elsewhere in food delivery. According to the report, DoorDash, valued at roughly $80 billion, acquired Deliveroo and restaurant software firm SevenRooms in 2025, three years after buying European delivery platform Wolt for about $8 billion. Uber, with a market value of about $135 billion, has agreed this year to pay roughly $15 billion for Delivery Hero and more than $2 billion for workplace catering service ezCater. The Information reported that Uber’s recent dealmaking could complicate a potential bid for Instacart. Amazon, which owns Whole Foods, has also pushed deeper into grocery delivery.

Regulatory risk looms over any deal. Because both Uber and DoorDash run competing grocery delivery operations, a takeover by either could draw antitrust scrutiny. The Information previously reported that such concerns helped derail DoorDash’s 2021 talks to acquire Instacart at a valuation of $40 billion to $50 billion. Those discussions broke down partly over worries about securing approval during the Biden administration, according to the outlet.

The companies are already intertwined. Instacart struck a deal with Uber in 2024 to offer restaurant delivery powered by Uber Eats through its grocery app. Last year, Uber began using Instacart’s Carrot Ads technology to offer sponsored grocery placements on Uber Eats. Earlier discussions between the two failed to advance as Uber pursued other acquisitions, The Information reported.

Instacart’s financial picture is mixed. Its second-quarter revenue rose 14% from a year earlier to just over $1 billion, and the company generated $480 million in free cash flow. It has said it plans to devote most of this year’s free cash flow to share repurchases. Shares have gained roughly 70% since its 2023 IPO. Still, the stock’s path has been far from linear: Instacart was valued at $39 billion in a 2021 private round during the pandemic grocery boom, but its valuation had fallen to roughly $10 billion by the time it went public.

Growth is the central question. Revenue growth slowed from 19% in 2023 to 11% in each of the following two years, and its push into advertising has yet to close the gap with its larger rivals, according to the report. By comparison, DoorDash recorded a 28% revenue increase in 2025, versus 18% at Uber, whose business also includes ride-hailing.

For New York shoppers and the city’s grocery and delivery workforce, any consolidation would be closely watched. For now, the report describes only early conversations, and whether they lead to a formal offer remains to be seen.