Let's just say it: grocery shopping is hard.

We're talking hundreds of thousands of SKUs across tens of thousands of stores, and each one is laid out differently. Then there's produce, which varies by season, shipment, and ripeness – and that's before you even get to the customer's preference. And finally, a stop at the meat, seafood, and deli counter is a full exercise in weighing cuts, freshness, and the true definition of "thinly sliced." It's a complex job, and we've spent years making sure quality and care are built into every part of the shopping experience (and we're not done yet).

The vast majority of the time, Instacart shoppers absolutely nail it. But occasionally there are, shall we say… mishaps?

Yes, we've seen the memes about male shoppers. And yes, some of those substitutions were, well, bananas. Turkey dog food for turkey jerky? Cotton swabs for tampons? Thankfully, those moments are the rare exception, not the rule, and shoppers – including male shoppers! – do an incredible job for their customers. But a few bad apples can spoil the bunch… and create a lot of buzz! 

So when the memes took on a life of their own, we knew we couldn't sit this one out. We wanted to defend male shoppers… with a dash of humor. 

That’s why we joined the conversation – with a little help from Antoni Porowski, TV personality and bestselling cookbook author, and Hannah Berner, beloved comedian and podcaster.

Enter The Male Shopper Project – a two-episode branded series written by top comedy writers and directed by award-winning actor, comedian, filmmaker, and podcaster Paul Scheer.

The teaser video opens with Hannah Berner’s fear about getting matched with a male shopper before cutting to the man uniquely qualified to help the ‘bad apple’ male shoppers: Antoni Porowski, arriving in full drill sergeant regalia, with Hannah as the toughest Instacart customer yet. The teaser ends on a to be continued cliffhanger.

The full video gets straight to business. Antoni wastes no time putting several male shopper actors in their place: "Instacart shoppers received over 100 million five-star ratings last year alone. You are not part of that group." The problematic male shopper actors then learn how to tell celery apart from leeks, master the back-of-the-package date check, and navigate the banana ripeness spectrum. At the end of the bootcamp, a few top shopper actors are awarded for their commitment to selecting quality items and being super responsive while shopping. Hannah walks in on the ceremony, skeptical as ever, and walks out a believer. The video ends on, "Five-star male Instacart shoppers. They're out there.”

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With humor at the forefront, the series is our way of saying we hear you, Instacart shoppers take quality seriously, and they are a lot better than the memes suggest. 

And we're not just saying it – we're backing it up. Customers can use code 5STAR for $10 off orders of $20+ from any retailer*. 

*Limited to 5,000 redemptions, available while supplies last or until EOD 7/31/26. Cannot stack. Terms and exclusions apply. 

Shopper excellence, by the numbers. 

The numbers back us up, too. While we don’t collect gender data on shoppers, we do know this: 

• Instacart shoppers received more than 100 million five-star ratings in 2025 alone. 

• Over 90% of rated orders earn a perfect customer score. 

• More than half of shoppers hold the highest possible Shopping Quality Score on our platform.

• Perfect order fill rate – meaning every item a customer requested was found or successfully replaced – increased 5 percentage points year-over-year. (As of Q4’2025)

• Experienced shoppers (with a median of 1k+ orders fulfilled) handle nearly two-thirds of all orders, which meaningfully contributes to overall better order quality.

Behind every five-star rating is an Instacart shopper who found the right avocado, followed a customer’s instructions, bagged the order with care and precision, and delivered everything on time.

Quality is a skill. We recognize and reward it.

Behind the scenes, Instacart has built real systems to support shoppers and hold the bar high. Shoppers on our platform have a Shopping Quality Score – a metric that tracks things like correctly found items and verified order issues, so shoppers can see how they’re doing and what they may be able to improve. That score also influences a shopper's Cart Star status, our tiered rewards program that unlocks priority batch access, perks, and savings, and more for top shoppers.

Shoppers can earn Gold Cart, Platinum Cart, or Diamond Cart status by consistently delivering quality orders, quarter after quarter.

We also invest in shopper education and community through:

• Carrot Academy – our optional online lesson platform that includes clear learning paths for a range of subjects. Shoppers can track their progress and see how their lessons connect to their shopping quality score and customer satisfaction.

• Shop Talk – the virtual shopper community where shoppers can discuss their experience, share tips and tricks, and engage directly with the Instacart team.

• Shopper Help Center – providing detailed information about the Instacart platform and how to shop with quality.

And we've given you – the customer – more control, too.

We know that getting your groceries right starts with your preferences and having a way to communicate that to your shopper. That's why we've built dedicated product features and a full suite of Grocery Quality Controls to help you shop with confidence:

• Preference Picker – gives you an easy way to select exactly what you want – produce ripeness, deli meat thickness, and more – across avocados, bananas, peaches, mangos, and beyond.

• In-stock insights – get real-time visibility into what’s in stock, running low, or unavailable. 

• Shopper notes – add helpful context, such as size, color, or specific preferences, which help your shopper find and pick the best products for you. 

• Replacement preferences – choose backup items in advance in case your preferred product is out of stock.  

• Preference center – customizes your shopping experience by letting you set personal preferences like high-protein, vegan, or low-sodium. Our AI-powered personalization engine recognizes patterns in your shopping habits – like previous purchases, frequent searches, or dietary preferences – making shopping on Instacart feel even more intuitive and easier to find what you need. 

The bottom line.

Grocery shopping is personal. It's about the right produce ripeness, the right brand, the right cut at the deli counter. We don't take that lightly – and neither does the shopper community. The memes are funny, but the reality is that the vast majority of Instacart orders are delivered with care, precision, and a five-star rating to match.