iHerb vs Other Health Stores. iHerb Shopping Tips.
These days you can order groceries online and get them delivered to you with ease. Many large retailers offer online shopping with delivery or store pick-up for free. Besides popular chains, there are quite a few online-only grocery stores that deliver to your home and offer plenty of healthy choices.
Let’s take a look at 8 such grocery stores and do some comparison:
iHerb
The retailer started with St. John’s wort and has expanded to over 35,000 brand name products from 1,200 suppliers. iHerb advertises prices 30-40% less than competitors and has a discount page for best-selling merchandise.
You don’t need any membership to shop there; products are delivered in the US and internationally. The information about shipping fees in limited, it only says that orders can be eligible for discounted or free shipping. Customers can try different product combinations to discover how it works on their own.
The company does not deliver fresh foods, but focuses on protein, healthy bars, teas, and snacks. Keto diet staples are also sold here. Part of your payments will be donated to educational projects in Cambodia, $3.1 million to date.
Amazon Fresh/ Whole Foods
Amazon Fresh is an innovative grocery delivery and pickup service for Amazon Prime members. It differs from ordering on Amazon website. Only members can use this service to get groceries, household staples, and favorite stuff from local shops and restaurants.
You have to have Amazon Prime membership and also Amazon Fresh add on for $14.99/month. Yearly Amazon Prime membership is $99. Current members can try Amazon Fresh free for a month before deciding. Just don’t forget to cancel if you don’t want to be billed periodically.
Amazon Fresh is constantly expanding, but is not available in all small towns and rural regions just yet. However, having acquired Whole Foods, the delivery will be covering larger territories in the future. Students can sign up for the service, but Amazon Fresh does not deliver to dorms.
Deliveries over $50 are free for members, under $50 - $9.99.
Amazon focuses on all kinds of products, among which you can find virtually all organic options you can think of, so healthy choice is definitely wide.
Thrive Market
This discount market sells healthy and natural products for 20-50% less than other retailers. They carry groceries, cleaning supplies, hygiene products, home décor, and gardening items. They sell popular national brands and their own foods, baby items, and healthcare supplies.
Membership costs $59.95/year with free 1-month trial. Every membership gives a free membership for a struggling family, teacher, veteran, or first responder. Delivery is available in the continental US.
Orders above $49 are free; otherwise delivery fee is calculated based on your zip code.
No delivery of fresh foods is available.
You can search for groceries based on your diet, environmental or social preferences. Examples are gluten-free, keto diet, raw, vegan, fair trade, and B Corp foods.
Vitacost
Vitacost is a very popular platform owned by Kroger. They sell over 45,000 organic groceries, health supplies, vitamins, supplements, sports nutrition, bath and beauty staples, and home and pet products from 2,500 brands at up to 50% off retail.
You don’t have to be a member to shop there; delivery is U.S and international. Continental US delivery is free with orders over $49, Canada and US territories - $9.99 fee. Other international rates vary. No fresh foods are delivered by Vitacost.
This merchant offers a huge variety of products, especially vitamins, supplements, and dietary needs. It also has more coupon codes than some other competitors.
Peapod
This retailer offers organic and common groceries. The delivery trucks are temperature-controlled, so you can get fresh from the farm produce and schedule your delivery up to two weeks in advance.
No membership is needed. Service is available in 24 Northeastern markets. Minimum order is $60. $60-$100 purchase delivery fee is $9.95. Over $100 purchase - $6.95 shipping. Fuel charge might be added for long-distance orders. Peapod offers free 60 days orders for all new customers.
You can search for products based on a few categories: organic, with allergy, or dietary restrictions. Manufacturer coupons are accepted.
Instacart
Instacart is your personal shopper, so you are not limited to one particular store. You can select items from Whole Foods, Wegmans, Costco, Petco, CVC, Walgreens, and more. The selection is quite large and you can choose organic or not categories.
There is no membership and delivery region is limited to Northeastern states. Minimum orders are $10 and delivery fee depends on the size of your order and the time of delivery. First time customers can enjoy a free delivery.
The prices might be higher than in the store at times. In-store discounts are not applied at Instacart, but they have their own coupons. 10% service fee can be added and later deleted at the check-out. You can add a tip for driver to the order.
FreshDirect
This merchant’s specialty is fresh foods, over 3,000 varieties, including meat, produce, seafood, milk products, deli, meals, frozen food, and many more. They also carry local, organic, and natural foods. FreshDirect buys directly from the source, so it’s usually cheaper than shopping at natural foods grocery stores.
No membership is needed, but you can buy a Delivery Pass for free deliveries. Service area is limited to New York and surrounded states.
Most deliveries are $5.99-$7.99 for $30+ orders. New customers can get free 60-day delivery pass. First-time buyers can also get coupons and special discounts.
Direct Eats
Shopping by diet just became very easy with this retailer. Gluten-free, vegan, dairy-free – you name it, they have it. They have about 20,000 non-perishable foods, baby supplies, and pet and beauty products.
There is no membership, ne delivery fee, and delivery is available to the entire continental US. The company does not have any perishables, carries most nationally-recognized brands, and some local specialties.
Brandless
This newcomer to organic and natural online retail sells everything for exactly $3. They sell food, household staples, beauty, personal care, health products, and office and home supplies. The selection is not huge, but they have all the necessities covered.
No membership is required, but B.More membership can give you free shipping deals. Delivery fee in all continental US is $5 flat and free for over $48 B.More member orders.
The store doesn’t carry any perishables and any brand names. However, all their products are GMO-free, artificial preservative-free, no added flavors or colors, and often organic, and did we say, for $3?
While some comparison and trials are definitely needed, with a bit of work you can find a company that will fulfill all your online grocery shopping needs. You can save money and time while shopping from your couch.