Instacart Shopper Requirements (Canada)

MyCarTracks_support · May 13, 2026, 5:55pm

Before you accept batches, use this Instacart Shopper requirements Canada checklist to get the basics ready: age 18 or older, eligibility to work in Canada, screening, app-requested identity and tax details, and a reliable phone. If you plan to deliver by car, prepare a valid licence, insurance, and kilometre records before accepting batches. Instacart Canada Shopper 101 walks through shopping in the Shopper app, and the Canada shopper jobs page lets you check local availability by postal code.

Instacart markets do not all work the same way. Full-service, shop-only, and deliver-only batches can have different practical requirements, and British Columbia has province-specific app-based delivery worker rules. Check the app before spending money on a car, cooler bags, or other gear.

Quick answer: Instacart Shopper requirements Canada

Before applying, prepare for:

age 18 or older
eligibility to work in Canada
the identity and tax details requested in the signup flow
Social Insurance Number if the app requests it for tax setup
background check consent and identity verification
a smartphone that can run the Instacart Shopper app with reliable data and GPS
a valid driver’s licence if you accept delivery work by car
vehicle insurance and delivery-use insurance review if you drive
access to a payment card or digital payment method when the app requires it
ability to shop, lift, carry, communicate with customers, and complete delivery instructions
bank account details for direct deposit and payout setup
kilometre logs and receipts before the first delivery batch

The app is the final check. If your city only offers certain batch types, if a waitlist applies, or if the app asks for extra documents, follow the current signup flow.

Instacart shopper eligibility

Prepare for age, work-eligibility, tax, banking, background-check, and lifting requirements. Public Instacart pages are not explicit for every Canada-specific document field, so use the app request as the final checklist for your identity, work-eligibility, tax, banking, and background-check information.

Prospective shoppers must be at least 18 and pass initial background checks. Instacart also describes profile-photo verification, secure login checks, ongoing background-check refreshes, and duplicate-account controls. Some platform-integrity wording is not Canada-specific, so use it for screening and account-security expectations, not as a Canada tax-document checklist.

For the phone, use a device that can run the current Shopper app, hold a data connection in stores and parking lots, take photos, scan or confirm items, message customers, use navigation, and stay charged during a batch.

Vehicle, insurance, and delivery setup

If you accept delivery batches by car, keep the basic vehicle file ready:

valid driver’s licence
active auto insurance
vehicle registration where applicable
delivery-use insurance review with your insurer
phone mount, charging cable, and backup battery
insulated bags or coolers when the app, retailer, weather, or order type makes them necessary
kilometre log, odometer readings, and receipt storage

Instacart is not passenger rideshare. The current public shopper pages do not publish a Canada-wide model-year, door-count, or inspection rule like some ride-hail platforms do. Still, your vehicle has to be reliable enough for grocery delivery, and your insurance file should match the work you plan to do.

If you shop by bike, scooter, transit, or on foot in a market that supports it, keep records for the mode the app approved. Do not assume every Canadian city supports every mode.

How the Instacart Shopper app works

Instacart Shopper 101 describes flexible shopping by when, where, and for how long you want. In practice, the workflow depends on local batch availability.

A normal app flow looks like this:

Go online in the Shopper app.
Review available stores and batches; busy stores may be highlighted with colours such as yellow, orange, or red.
Check the batch details before accepting.
Travel to the store if needed.
Tap into the shopping workflow and follow the item list.
Message the customer about replacements or out-of-stock items.
Pay with the Instacart payment card or digital card when required.
Deliver the order and complete the batch.
Save earnings, mileage, and expense records while they are fresh.

Shoppers see important batch details upfront, including price, store, delivery distance, number of items and units, batch earnings, and tip. Use those details to decide whether the batch fits your time, vehicle, and physical limits.

For payouts, expect ordinary weekly direct deposits and check the current app for any faster cash-out option. If the app lets you cash out within a short window after a batch, compare the fee and timing before using it.

City, store, and delivery-mode availability

Instacart is available in many Canadian markets, but the safer way to check today is to enter your postal code on Instacart’s Canada shopper jobs page or start the app flow.

Availability can vary by:

province
city or suburb
store and retailer
batch demand
full-service, shop-only, or deliver-only batch type
payment card status
cooler-bag verification
alcohol, prescription, bulky-item, or heavy-item eligibility

Batches can include shop and deliver, shop-only, and deliver-only orders. Up to four customer orders may be included in one batch, and shoppers are never penalized for not accepting a batch.

Peak earning times are not Canada-wide. Instacart says the peak earning times feature is not available in Ontario, Canada or British Columbia, Canada. Check the app before planning around that feature.

Full-service, shop-only, and deliver-only work

Current Instacart public wording describes shop and deliver, shop-only, and deliver-only batches as batch types that can be available.

Batch type	What changes for you
Shop and deliver	You shop the customer’s order, pay through the required Instacart method, deliver the order, and track both store time and delivery kilometres.
Shop-only	You shop the order but do not complete the customer delivery. Vehicle, insurance, and kilometre records may matter less, but store accuracy and app records still matter.
Deliver-only	You pick up an already prepared order and deliver it. Vehicle, route, delivery instructions, and kilometre records matter more than in-store shopping skill.

Do not assume your market has every type. A deliver-only order may also have different tipping, rating, merchant, or customer-communication rules than a shop-and-deliver order, so follow the app instructions for that batch. The app can also limit batch eligibility based on physical payment card activation, cooler bags, alcohol or prescription training, bulky-item opt-ins, and other requirements.

British Columbia worker rules

B.C. app-based worker rules are local to British Columbia. They do not create a national Instacart requirement.

The current B.C. employment standards guide gives app-based delivery services workers and ride-hail services workers a minimum wage for engaged time. The current rate is $21.43 as of June 1, 2025. Tips and distance expense amounts are separate from the minimum wage calculation.

B.C. also has a distance expense allowance. The B.C. distance guide says delivery services workers using transportation other than walking are entitled to at least $0.35 per kilometre travelled during engaged time.

This is a worker-pay and expense-protection section, not a substitute for Instacart approval. You still need to meet the app’s signup, background-check, payment-card, batch, and account requirements.

Things to consider before you apply

Instacart can fit people who like shopping, problem-solving, and customer communication. It can be a poor fit if you only want quick pickup-and-drop-off work.

Multiple-order batches

Instacart says a batch can include up to four customer orders. That can raise the chance of substitutions, bag separation, delivery sequencing, and heavier loads. Review the item count, delivery distance, and customer count before accepting.

Heavy and bulky items

Heavy grocery orders can be physically demanding, and there is no single safe weight limit that fits every shopper, staircase, parking situation, or weather condition. Current Instacart earnings guidance says heavy pay can be included as part of batch pay when qualifying items meet the heavy-pay criteria, and batch eligibility can depend on opting into bulky or heavy items.

Treat heavy orders as a fit question as well as a pay question. Cases of water, pet food, stairs, snow, and apartment parking can change the real work quickly.

Tips and pay variability

Instacart says total earnings can include batch pay, promotions, and tips, and shoppers receive 100% of customer tips. Batch pay reflects expected effort such as travel, item quantity and weight, and expected shopping time.

Tips can change. Instacart says if a customer zeroes out a tip without reporting an issue, Instacart will cover the removed tip up to $10. That protection does not make every batch worth taking, and it does not remove the need to compare gross pay with kilometres, time, parking, and vehicle costs.

Customers may also be able to increase a tip after delivery. If you use a faster cash-out option, check whether later tip adjustments will arrive separately before assuming the batch total is final.

Ratings and batch access

Shoppers can get greater access to batches by qualifying for Cart Star priority access, with factors such as rating, shopping quality, distance to store, and shopping efficiency. New shoppers may receive priority access on their first 10 batches.

Use the current app for exact requirements. Rewards, priority, and batch-access features can change by market.

Instacart vs. Uber Eats and DoorDash

Instacart is usually more store-heavy than restaurant delivery. You may spend more time selecting produce, finding replacements, checking out, separating orders, and messaging customers.

Uber Eats and DoorDash often involve more pickup-and-drop-off driving, though Shop & Deliver or grocery orders can blur that difference. The better fit depends on your local stores, vehicle costs, shopping speed, customer-service tolerance, and whether you prefer store work or driving time.

For a broader comparison, use Delivery App Comparison (Canada).

How to sign up as an Instacart Shopper

Use the current signup flow rather than an old checklist:

Start from the Instacart Canada shopper signup page or download the app from the App Store or Google Play.
Enter your legal name, contact details, and city or postal-code information.
Submit the identity, work-eligibility, tax, banking, licence, or insurance details requested by the app.
Consent to screening and complete any profile-photo or identity checks.
Wait for approval, missing-document messages, or waitlist status.
Activate any required payment card or digital card.
Review batch eligibility and app training before accepting the first order.

If your documents are ready, the application itself may be quick, but do not treat any 15-minute signup or one-to-four-day approval estimate as a promise. Current timing depends on market capacity, background screening, document quality, and whether there is a waitlist.

How to start well after approval

Strong Instacart work is usually less about accepting everything and more about choosing batches you can complete accurately.

Focus on:

item count, unit count, delivery distance, batch earnings, and tip before accepting
store layout and parking
produce quality, expiry dates, substitutions, and replacements
clear customer messages
physical limits on heavy or bulky items
enough phone battery and data
separate bags and delivery notes for multi-customer batches
records for earnings, tips, promotions, kilometres, parking, tolls, gear, and phone costs

Use MyCarTracks automatic mileage tracking before your first delivery batch. Tag Instacart separately from DoorDash, Uber Eats, SkipTheDishes, rideshare, errands, and personal driving so your kilometre log stays usable for tax records and platform comparison.

FAQ

How old do you have to be for Instacart in Canada?

Instacart uses 18 or older as a shopper eligibility requirement. Use the current Canada signup flow for any additional document checks in your province or city.

Do Instacart shoppers in Canada need a car?

For shop-and-deliver and deliver-only work by car, plan on a valid driver’s licence, vehicle insurance, and a reliable vehicle. Some markets or batch types may work differently, but the app is the final availability check.

Does Instacart require a background check?

Yes. Prospective shoppers must complete and pass initial background checks, and ongoing checks can occur.

Does Instacart have delivery-only batches in Canada?

Deliver-only can be a batch type, but availability depends on the market and app. Do not apply assuming your city will always show delivery-only work.

Are B.C. Instacart worker rules national?

No. B.C. app-based delivery worker rules are province-specific. They should not be described as Instacart requirements for the rest of Canada.