Instacart Gift Cards: What They Cover and How They Work

Yes, Instacart sells gift cards, but the details depend on which kind you are buying. Instacart's current help pages separate regular cash gift cards, older cards issued before November 18, 2020, and Instacart+ membership gift cards, so the safest way to shop is to match the card type to the use case before you send it.

Table Of Contents

What kinds of Instacart gift cards are available

Card type	What it covers	Main limits
Regular Instacart gift card	Instacart says current cash gift cards can cover order costs such as items, alcohol, prescriptions, tips, taxes, service fees, and delivery fees when used on Instacart.	They must be purchased, sent, and redeemed within the same country, and they do not apply automatically at checkout.
Older gift card received or purchased before November 18, 2020	Instacart says these older cards can still be redeemed, but they do not cover service fees, delivery fees, tips, taxes, prescriptions, or alcohol items.	The card should be redeemed on an account that matches the email address where it was received.
Instacart+ membership gift card	Instacart says this version is only for redeeming an Instacart+ membership term.	It cannot be used at checkout for groceries, taxes, tips, or general order charges.

How to buy an Instacart gift card

Instacart says you can buy gift cards directly through its Purchase a gift card flow or through third-party sellers. In Instacart's own flow, you first confirm the recipient's service area, choose an amount, add the recipient name and email, pick a design, set the send date, and check out.

Instacart also says you can buy up to 10 gift cards in one order through its standard consumer flow.

Country, account, and balance rules to know first

Instacart says gift cards can only be purchased, sent, and redeemed within the same country that the user lives in, and you must have an Instacart account to redeem one under the gift card terms. The same terms say the card balance does not expire, no inactivity fees apply, and unused gift card balances cannot be transferred to another Instacart account.

Instacart also says the card is only redeemable where Instacart services are available.

How to redeem an Instacart gift card

On the app, Instacart says to sign in, open the Account icon, tap Credits, promos & gift cards, tap Add, and then enter the code from the card, as explained in Redeem a gift card.

On the website, Instacart says to open the menu, select Credits, promos & gift cards, choose Add, and then enter the code. That same help page says you can check your gift card balance in the same Credits, promos & gift cards area after the card is redeemed.

How gift cards work at checkout

Instacart says gift cards do not apply automatically at checkout. You must actively select the gift card as the payment method in the Pay with section, according to Pay with a gift card.

Instacart also says you must keep a credit or debit card on file even if the gift card appears to cover the full order total. It places a temporary authorization hold slightly above the estimated total to account for changes such as replacements, added items, or weight-based adjustments.

Instacart+ membership gift cards are separate

Instacart says Instacart+ membership gift cards are sold in three terms: 3 months for $29, 6 months for $59, and 1 year for $99, as listed in Purchase a gift card. These are not cash-equivalent grocery balances.

Instacart says a recipient without an existing Instacart+ plan will not auto-renew when the gifted term ends. If the recipient already has Instacart+ and has auto-renew turned on, the gifted term is added to the existing membership length and auto-renew continues afterward.

Bulk orders are handled through a separate portal

If you need more than 10 cards, Instacart says bulk orders for both cash gift cards and Instacart+ membership gift cards go through its corporate gift cards portal. Instacart's help page says bulk orders have a $2,000 minimum, whether you are buying in U.S. or Canadian dollars.

Common problems and limits

Instacart says retailer-specific gift cards are not accepted on Instacart in its Problem with a gift card guide.
If the recipient did not get the email, Instacart says to check spam or junk folders, confirm the email address with the sender, and check other email accounts.
If the code looks invalid, Instacart says to remove extra spaces, copy and paste the code, and check whether it was already redeemed into another Instacart account.
Instacart says lost or stolen gift cards cannot be replaced, while the official terms say a nonfunctional card's remedy is replacement.

Bottom line

Instacart gift cards are straightforward once you separate the three cases: current cash gift cards for regular orders, older pre-November 18, 2020 cards with narrower coverage, and Instacart+ membership gift cards that only pay for membership time. Buy and redeem them in the same country, add them to the correct account, and remember that you still have to choose the gift card at checkout.