Natural Food Online Groceries – I should probably title this post How To Never Leave Your House To Go Grocery Shopping for Healthy Food & Supplies lol, because really, that’s kind of what this is. 🙂
Yes, I know my house is TINY, and with young kids, most people would probably be going stir crazy sitting around at home all day with them. But really, ugh, I’m not a fan of shopping already, even less so with kids.
Because…see, I think too much. About everything. And when I shop, I’m like, “hmm….is this really the best product? Or the best deal? Should I be shopping at another store? I wonder if other people who’ve tried this would recommend it? Do I really want to buy this? I don’t know…”
Unless I’m picking up something I’ve purchased a million times before, shopping takes me forever. And thinking while trying to keep young kids from jumping out of the cart or running away? Not exactly easy to do. So now I shop online for almost everything I can.
I also like shopping in bulk. So I have less to think about on a daily basis. That way food is just there in my house. Easy Peasy.
Also, like many people, I’m kind of trying to be healthier and to be aware of the environmental impact my family leaves. I haven’t yet tried all these online, healthy, and environmental-friendly services listed below, but I’ve been researching them for awhile and hope to try them all out soon. Here’s what I’ve found so far:
Amazon Subscribe & Save
How It Works: You choose items to automatically be delivered monthly. S&S products are offered at a 5% discount, but this jumps to 15% once you add 5 or more items. You can search the available S&S products here and add them to your S&S account. Once added, the item will ship to you each month on the delivery date you select. You aren’t charged until the items ship, so you usually have some time to update/edit your order before it ships each month.
Availability: Everywhere Amazon ships, probably.
Upfront/Joining Costs: None. Though it’s probably best if you order at least 5 items at a time so you can get the 15% off instead of 5%.
Shipping/Delivery Info: Free shipping. Amazon Prime membership not required.
Best For: toiletries, cleaning supplies, baby diapers/wipes, non-perishable snack food items, some natural food pantry items. Bulk purchases.
Pros: Wide assortment of items (both natural and conventional products), trusted website w/ great customer service, the convenience and familiarity of shopping on Amazon, usually great prices.
Cons: Must review/update subscriptions each month in order to not be sent -and charged for- items you don’t want. Limited selection. Prices can/do change from month-to-month.
My Personal Experience: I’ve been using Amazon Subscribe and Save for years now. It’s a great service, however, I do feel somewhat limited in selection. I like the convenience of monthly deliveries, and the price is usually great. I do have to be on top of going in each month and updating my selections so I’m not getting shipments for -and being charged for- items I don’t need in a particular month, but I’ve gotten into the habit of constantly adding/updating my S&S orders, so this isn’t a problem for me. I definitely recommend doing S&S in conjunction with another online grocery service for fresh produce and more products. Be sure to price compare; sometimes Amazon isn’t the cheapest.
Amazon Fresh/Prime Pantry
How It Work: I’m adding both of these here because I know people will ask about them, but I don’t really think about them on the same level as the Subscribe & Save program. But they might be good fits for some people.
Amazon Fresh is a same-day or next-day grocery delivery service that delivers produce and other food options from local grocery stores as well as local specialty food markets.
Availability: only in certain locations. Enter your zip code here to see if it’s available in your area. Must be an Amazon Prime member (Try Amazon Prime 30-Day Free Trial
Upfront/Joining Costs: $14.99/mo on top of Prime membership.
Shipping/Delivery Info: Free for orders over $40, $9.99 for orders under $40.
Best For: Saving you a trip to local grocery stores, fresh produce and local specialty food items.
Pros: If you already know your exact weekly grocery list, and have limited time to shop, this service could be really helpful. Offers frozen and refrigerated items which can be hard to find through other services.
Cons: Pricey. Not good for bulk purchases. Best for weekly food purchases.
Prime Pantry is kind of like regular Amazon shopping. Except that Amazon offers the ability to package together a bunch of lower priced/smaller food and supply items in order to save on shipping costs. You can fill up a whole box for a flat shipping cost.
Availability: Contiguous U.S only, but must be an Amazon Prime member (Try Amazon Prime 30-Day Free Trial
Upfront/Joining Costs: None if you have a Prime membership, not available otherwise.
Shipping/Delivery Info: Free with inclusion of 5 qualifying items, otherwise flat fee of $5.99/box. Ground shipping only; not 2-day shipping.
Best For: non-perishable food items, cleaning supplies, toiletries. Non-bulk items.
Pros: Larger selection than Subscribe & Save, smaller product sizes. Some good prices.
Cons: Product selection constantly changing. Have to fill up a whole box to get the best deal. Most items offered through Prime Pantry can be ordered through other services too, making Pantry seem unnecessary.
Farm Fresh To You
How It Works: Like a traditional CSA (community supported agriculture) box, Farm Fresh To You is a weekly/biweekly/monthly subscription service where an assortment of local farm-fresh food is delivered to your doorstep. Unlike a traditional CSA box, Farm Fresh To You gives you quite a few customizable options. You can chose if you want all fruits or veggies, or a mix, traditional produce or only snackable, no-cook options. You can also note specific items you never want to receive (i.e. if you have an allergy) or items you always want to get if in season.
They also offer school fundraising programs, workplace programs and donate-a-box programs.
Availability: only available in Northern and Southern California (see here for info about CSA-style subscriptions for other states)
Upfront/Joining Costs: None.
Shipping/Delivery Info: delivery to your door is included in the price.
Best For: assorted, in-season, local fresh produce.
Pros: supports local farms, offers fundraising programs.
Cons: The yelp reviews for the Los Angeles area seems to be mixed.
My Personal Experience: coming soon.
Promotion/Discount Code: If you click through this link, you’ll get $15 off your first order.
Thrive Market
How It Works: After a 30-day free membership trial, you pay an upfront membership fee. As a member, you can order natural foods, supplies, baby, pet, home, and health goods at 25-50% off retail prices. Basically it’s kind of like an online Costco, Sam’s Club, or other warehouse store membership, but for natural living products.
Availability: Contiguous U.S.
Upfront/Joining Costs: $59.99/yr, however you get a 30-day free trial to begin with.
Shipping/Delivery Info: orders over $49 ship free. Direct shipping.
Best For: Non-perishable snacks, mom/baby/child items, toiletries. Mostly non-bulk items.
Pros: Low prices equivalent to local warehouse prices. Great selection, especially on mom/baby items and healthier snack options. I like that they also provide free memberships to low income families, teachers, and veterans.
Cons: Pricey upfront cost, shipping fees if you don’t order at least $49 worth of items each time.
My Personal Experience: I have only ordered from Thrive once so far, but had a great experience and will likely try them out again. I was excited to find items, like jelly and green pea crisps, that I hadn’t found for a reasonable cost at either Amazon S&S or Azure. In my first box, I received a coupon for free shipping on my next three orders. Since I have a few weeks til my trial is up, I’m planning to order from them at least once more. From there I’ll decide if I want to officially sign up and pay the membership fee. Considering it’s around the same cost as a Costco membership – and considering I hate dragging the kids to Costco and would rather just have stuff delivered, lol…I may end up going with Thrive over Costso…maybe.
Promotion/Discount Code: If you click through this link, you’ll get $15 off your first order.
Grove Collaborative
How It Works: Grove Collaborative is a monthly delivery service, similar to Amazon Subscribe & Save – except that it ONLY carries natural home and personal products. You set the items you want delivered monthly or less frequently, and then Grove does the rest. You can also join the VIP Program, which gives you free shipping and also sends free full-sized gifts every other month or so.
Availability: Contiguous U.S.
Upfront/Joining Costs: None, unless you want to join the VIP membership which is $39.99/yr. (I think they also offer a 30-day trial membership?)
Shipping/Delivery Info: Shipping is $2.99, if you’re a VIP member, it’s free.
Best For: Natural cleaning supplies and personal care items. Non-bulk.
Pros: easy to use website, good prices, wide selection of natural cleaning products and brands, commitment to providing sustainable products.
Cons: Similar to Amazon S&S, you have to stay on top of your monthly deliveries if you don’t want o be sent and charged for items you didn’t mean to buy
My Personal Experience: I’ve written another post reviewing/comparing Grove to Amazon S&S. If you’re new to the world of natural cleaning supplies, but know you want to make the switch, I really like Grove. Because it focuses on ONLY cleaning, home and personal products, it feels FAR less overwhelming than trying to navigate Amazon or one of the other larger online stores. With the VIP program, I also really like the gift products they send and that it introduces me to products I may have never tried but end up loving.
Promotion/Discount Code: If you click through this link, you’ll get $10 off your first order.
Zaycon Fresh
How It Works: Zaycon Fresh delivers fresh meat straight from the farm to drop locations, or as they call them, ‘events’. Only a couple items are offered each month and location, based on the season or local product availability. All items are purchased in bulk, but at really great prices. Like Azure, customers must order ahead and then be at the drop/event location at a specified time to pick up their order.
Availability: You can search the Zaycon site to see availability in your area.
Upfront/Joining Costs: None.
Best For: Buying meat and seafood in bulk at excellent prices.
Pros: Low prices. One of the few places you can buy fresh meat/fish in bulk sizing. They will load the truck for you at pickup so you don’t have to get out of your car.
Cons: While their products are ‘farm fresh’, they are not certified organic. This may be a problem for some people, but not for others. Bulk purchases only, and very limited selection each month. You have to go to a location at a certain date/time to pick up.
My Personal Experience: None yet, but I’ve been wanting to try them out for forever and hopefully will do soon!
Azure Standard
How It Works: If you live by a drop location, you order and pay online anytime during the window given. Then, a huge truck comes to the drop location on a specific date and time and drops off everything people in that area ordered. For example, the drop by me has a monthly drop, so if I order anytime in the month before the cutoff, it’ll be delivered to the drop location). If you don’t live near a drop location, you can pay extra for direct shipping to your house.
Availability: See map here. If there’s not a drop location near you, you can have orders shipped directly to you, but you have to pay for shipping.
Upfront/Joining Costs: None.
Shipping/Delivery Info: Depending on the drop location you choose, some routes are weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly. Once you choose a drop location, it will tell the order cutoff date for that location. You will need to go to the drop location at the date/time given to pick up your order, however, shipping to a drop location is free. (though in some farther locations, I believe that there is a minimal fuel surcharge; the website will tell you based on your location.)
Best For: Bulk staples, as well as other natural foods/snacks or toiletries, including frozen and refrigerated items.
Pros: Great prices, easy to buy bulk purchases. Offers frozen and refrigerated items. Huge assortment.
Cons: You have to actually go to a location on a certain date and time to pick up your order. It doesn’t come to you…unless you’re willing to pay the up charge for direct delivery.
My Personal Experience: I’m about to order my first shipment from Azure, so stay tuned!
Organic Merchants
How It Works: Organic Merchants is an online store that specializes in bulk dry goods. There’s no special ordering method. You buy what you want online and pay to have it delivered. There’s no subscription or monthly fees. They only sell Organic Merchants branded items in bulk – it reminds me of shopping from an old fashioned general goods store, and scooping out whatever grains and mixes you need from bulk bins, lol. They also carry a wide assortment of gluten-free items.
Availability: they say they only ship within the U.S. I don’t know if this means contiguous only or not.
Upfront/Joining Costs: none.
Shipping/Delivery Info: $6.99 flat shipping. Orders over $50 ship free.
Best For: Bulk baking supplies, herbs, and pantry staples. Many gluten-free items as well.
Pros: Basic bulk staples. Everything looks to be Kosher and Non-GMO. Most is Organic. Much is Gluten-Free and Vegan, including many kinds of GF baking mixes.
Cons: A bit pricey. If you’re a brand-name type person, Organic Merchants might not be your best fit since everything is OM branded only.
My Personal Experience: Coming Soon.
Butcher Box
How It Works: Like a monthly subscription box for high quality cuts of meat, Butcher Box can be customized to deliver beef, chicken, pork or a combo of meats. You get 7-10lbs of frozen meat, for ~20 individual meal servings. Also includes recipe cards for suggested ways to use the cuts in your box.
Availability: Contiguous U.S.
Upfront/Joining Costs: none. Monthly subscription.
Shipping/Delivery Info: free delivery
Best For: 100% grassfed beef, chicken, and pork.
Pros: High quality meat delivered to your doorstep monthly.
Cons: Pricey. make your sure not on vacation when the box gets delivered!
Green Polka Dot Box
How It Works: Brand new and not yet taking orders, but should be opening very soon. I’ll keep this page updated when I know more! In the meantime, they are having a Win A Year Of Clean Groceries Giveaway ($100,000 value) though – to enter, go here: Enter Here.
True Foods Market
How It Works: It’s a bulk foods supplier. You’ll find many of the same foods and brands as above services (they even carry Azure branded items!), and most everything is sold in bulk/multiples packaging.
Availability: Not sure. They mention shipping to FPO, APO and PO Boxes through USPS, so they might have wider range than some of the other options listed here?
Upfront/Joining Costs: n/a
Shipping/Delivery Info: shipping costs not given.
iHerb
How It Works: No longer just herbal remedies (and no, even being based in CA, they don’t sell THAT ‘herb’, lol), iHerb has expanded to sell online natural food groceries, including toiletries, cleaning and other home supplies.
Availability: they ship to 150 countries, though I’m not sure if this includes all items, or only certain items.
Upfront/Joining Costs: none.
Shipping/Delivery Info: they offer free or discounted shipping if you add an unspecified number of items to your cart. This was kind of vague and I couldn’t find clarifying information about their shipping policies.
Direct Eats
How It Works: Seems to carry all the non-perishable food brands and selection you’d find at your neighborhood Whole Foods or other natural/farmers market type grocery store. Most items are available in smaller bulk packaging (i.e. 3-6 of each boxed, canned, or bagged item).
Availability: Continental U.S.
Upfront/Joining Costs: None.
Shipping/Delivery Info: Free shipping on all orders.
Frontier Co-Op Market
How It Works:
Availability:
Upfront/Joining Costs:
Shipping/Delivery Info: