Can't wait? Seven online options for same-day delivery
Online shopping typically causes a conundrum: You鈥檝e found what you want, but you鈥檒l have to wait days for delivery. You could buy it in a store, but you鈥檒l spend more time and potentially more money too. And that鈥檚 if what you鈥檙e looking for is in stock.
Soon, this dilemma may be dust. Several large retailers are testing a same-day delivery option,听combining the ease of online shopping with instant 鈥� or near instant 鈥� gratification.
Want to get your order today?聽Same-day delivery is now available for select retailers and locations. Here鈥檚 how and where you can take advantage.
1. Amazon.com Local Express Delivery
Already famous for its two-day聽鈥淧rime鈥� shipping service, Amazon.com now offers a faster option. The online retailer鈥檚 鈥淟ocal Express Delivery鈥� provides same-day service in 10 U.S. cities: Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Indianapolis, Las Vegas, New York City,听Philadelphia, Phoenix, Seattle, and Washington, D.C.
Thousands of items are available for same-day delivery, but not everything Amazon sells. You鈥檒l have to check the product detail pages or look for the same-day option at checkout to see what鈥檚 eligible.
Order deadline times range from 7 a.m in Indianapolis and Chicago to noon in Seattle, with all other locations falling in between.
A shipment of eligible items costs $8.99 plus $0.99 per each item in your order. Amazon Prime members enjoy a flat rate of $3.99 per item.
2. Walmart聽To Go
Walmart鈥檚 鈥淭o Go鈥澛爏ame-day delivery service offers a wide selection of products including electronics, furniture, and groceries. Customers are guaranteed the same prices found in their local Walmart store without the hassle of making a shopping trip.
Shoppers select products on Walmart鈥檚 dedicated To Go website. At checkout, customers choose a four-hour delivery window.
Walmart To Go costs $10 per order for an unlimited number of items, and there鈥檚 a minimum order total required to qualify.
Walmart To Go is currently available for select locations in Virginia, Philadelphia, Minneapolis, San Jose, and San Francisco. Users can check availability at their address using the Walmart To Go website.
Walmart聽says it鈥檚 adding new zip codes all the time, and you can sign up for an account to be notified when service becomes available in your area.
3. eBay Now
eBay Now聽offers same-day delivery from stores including Macy鈥檚, Target, Best Buy, and Office Depot.
Shoppers can聽browse thousands of items and聽order using the eBay Now app on their iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch. A local valet will deliver the order in as little as one hour.
The service costs $5 per order during the beta testing period. Returns, which are also handled by the valet service, are currently free.
eBay Now is currently only available in San Francisco and New York. Follow聽on Twitter聽for updates on new locations.
4. US Postal Service Metro Post
The United States Postal Service (USPS) is getting in on same-day delivery too. The new 鈥溾�溌爏ervice launched in December with its first retail partner, 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, but their site says they鈥檒l soon include others. Customers who purchase items online from聽participating聽local retailers before 2 p.m. can have orders delivered between 4-8 p.m. on the same day.
USPS Metro Post is currently only available to residential customers in San Francisco, and delivery costs vary based on the retailer. Check the Metro Post website for updates on partner retailers.
5. Shutl
聽offers delivery within minutes of purchase from participating local retailers that offer clothing, electronics, and more. This 24/7/365 service lets shoppers choose delivery within 90 minutes of ordering or a one-hour window.
Currently Shutl is only available in the U.K., but service starts in San Francisco and New York in the first quarter of 2013. Shutl plans to expand to at least 10 more North American cities including聽Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, Philadelphia, Washington, Montreal, and Toronto.
6. Postmates Get It Now
Postmates offers its 鈥淕et It Now鈥� service with same-day delivery of 20,000 products from 3,300 stores. This mobile app-based service offers delivery of lunch, office supplies, groceries, and more. Deliveries are assigned to a 鈥淧ostmate,鈥� and order status can be tracked from the mobile app.
Delivery costs start at $6.99 per order, with dynamic pricing based on the time, distance, and location. Postmate鈥檚 Get It Now is currently only available in San Francisco.
7. TaskRabbit Deliver Now
With TaskRabbit鈥檚 鈥淒eliver Now,鈥� customers can have same-day delivery from any local business.
鈥淭askRabbits,鈥� who are regular people vetted by the service, pick up your order and deliver it to you.
Deliver Now costs $10 and is currently only available in San Francisco. However, Taskrabbit鈥檚 general service, which can be used to arrange same-day delivery, is available聽in nine metro areas in the U.S.
Jeffrey Trull is a writer for聽, where this column first appeared.
