DoorDash to Buy Instacart in $17B Deal, Setting Up Antitrust Test

DoorDash said Thursday it will acquire Instacart in a $17 billion deal, combining the two largest grocery delivery platforms in the US and handing the restaurant-delivery leader a shortcut into the grocery business it has long sought to build.

The transaction — at least 75% cash and mostly financed by borrowing — values Instacart at $65 a share, a 26% premium over the closing price on Oct. 22, the last trading session before news outlets reported on the talks, the companies said. Instacart's board unanimously approved the acquisition. Both companies are headquartered in San Francisco.

The deal is expected to close at the end of 2027 or the first half of 2028.

**Market reaction and financials**

Shares of Instacart slumped 1.3% by about 10:25 a.m. ET, while DoorDash jumped 5.8%, according to the New York Post.

The takeover comes as Instacart's annual revenue growth has been slowing amid stiff competition from Amazon and Walmart, both of which have expanded their same-day and next-day grocery delivery options. Instacart's annual revenue grew just 11% in 2025; in the third quarter, sales jumped 17%, the company said Thursday. It handled 90.3 million orders worth about $10.4 billion, generating about $1 billion in revenue.

DoorDash reported 993 million orders in the third quarter, up 28% from the same period last year, with customers spending nearly $34 billion. It generated revenue of $4.6 billion.

The merger will give Instacart customers access to more than 50,000 additional storefronts served by DoorDash and combine DashPass and Instacart+ subscriptions into a single membership, saving members an estimated $100 million annually, according to the companies. The Instacart brand and app will be preserved.

DoorDash Chief Executive Tony Xu said the acquisition combines Instacart's grocery specialization with DoorDash's delivery infrastructure and logistics. Grocery delivery is a challenging business, Xu said, noting that Dashers and Instacart Shoppers must pick ripe avocados, choose appropriate substitutes for sold-out items and get ice cream to a customer's house before it melts.

"Instacart has spent years learning to do that well for grocers, while DoorDash has built a delivery network and technology that local stores rely on every day," Xu said in a statement. "Together, we could give stores of every size more of those tools and unlock the potential of grocery delivery."

**Antitrust outlook**

Regulatory hurdles are the biggest wildcard for the deal, said Zak Stambor, retail and ecommerce analyst at Emarketer.

"There is meaningful overlap between the companies, especially in grocery delivery, so a deal would almost certainly draw antitrust scrutiny," he said.

The FTC, which traditionally handles review of retail and grocery-related mergers, has been homing in on pocketbook issues as the cost of living remains a persistent source of pain for US consumers. The agency has an ongoing case against Uber over subscription practices and is considering a rule to prohibit food delivery services from charging surprise fees. Last year, the FTC said it was looking into Instacart's practice of running price experiments that a study found resulted in some shoppers paying more than others for the same items ordered from the same store at the same time; Instacart ended the practice following criticism after the study by Consumer Reports and Groundwork Collaborative.

On Wednesday, the FTC launched a study of whether and how companies including DoorDash and Instacart use individual shoppers' data to set prices and wages for drivers.

Groundwork Collaborative President Lindsay Owens criticized the proposed acquisition, saying it "would be obviously illegal and consolidate an alarming amount of surveillance and pricing technology in one company."

DoorDash could argue it also competes with Walmart, Amazon.com and Target, and smaller operator Gopuff, all of which offer same-day delivery on groceries from their own stores and warehouses. Walmart accounted for nearly 32% of all online grocery sales in 2025, while Amazon generated about 23%, according to research firm eMarketer.

DoorDash is arguing the deal would be better for local businesses, saying DoorDash and Instacart partner with brick-and-mortar grocery stores instead of owning their own grocery fulfillment centers like e-commerce competitors — an apparent reference to Amazon and Walmart.

**Market position and history**

Among standalone delivery apps, Instacart competes with DoorDash and Uber Eats, which have both expanded into grocery. Last year, DoorDash had 65.1% of all orders, including retail, grocery and restaurant delivery, according to statistics YipitData provided to Reuters. Uber Eats had 25.8% and Instacart 9.1% of orders, according to YipitData's analysis of more than 3 million consumers' email receipts.

The deal could give DoorDash an estimated 88% share of third-party online grocery marketplaces, accounting for roughly 23% of all online grocery sales in the US, according to estimates from research firm Bernstein.

DoorDash has been considering an acquisition of Instacart for years and did not want to miss a window to close a deal under the Trump administration, which it views as friendlier to mega-mergers, sources told the Information. DoorDash had eyed a deal in 2021 that would have valued Instacart at more than $40 billion, but that merger was sidelined over concerns it would face regulatory challenges from the Biden administration, according to the Information.

Executives at Instacart discussed a possible sale to Uber in late August, the idea being that the deal could secure regulatory approvals by arguing that both Amazon and Walmart are still larger than a combined company, the outlet reported. But Uber wasn't eager for another acquisition, fearful of regulatory challenges after purchasing German service Delivery Hero for $15 billion this summer, the report said. After talks with Uber fell apart in September, Instacart turned to DoorDash.

Analysts at Wedbush Securities said they expect US regulators will approve the tie-up. But some grocery chains who work with both Instacart and DoorDash might oppose a merger, potentially inciting pushback from state attorneys general even if national regulators pass through the deal. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani signaled he is preparing to fight the merger, writing in a post on X Thursday: "Corporate consolidation means higher prices, harsher exploitation, and greater economic inequality for New Yorkers. We've stood up to these giants before. That doesn't stop now."

DoorDash has a track record in Washington. It supported President Donald Trump's plan to exempt taxes on tips and delivered food to the White House earlier this year to highlight how the policy had saved its drivers money. The Trump administration has already greenlit several massive mergers, including Paramount Skydance's $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery and Nippon Steel's near-$15 billion deal with US Steel.

The acquisition isn't DoorDash's only recent expansion — earlier this year, the company began testing a drone delivery program, according to Engadget.