THE FUTURE OF GROCERY SHOPPING IS ONLINE

Online grocery shopping in Singapore is starting to gain its foothold in busy Singapore. The increased convenience of clicking on groceries and waiting for delivery is a growing need here.

More online groceries businesses have appeared in the last few years - honestbee, RedMart, and Amazon Prime - just to name a few. Even big supermarket chains like FairPrice and Cold Storage have entered the online arena. With the myriad of online grocers, find out which grocer meets your preferences and needs. Which one delivers the most cost savings to consumers?

Let's break it down for you.

COMPARISON AT A GLANCE

1. HONESTBEE

honestbee is an online concierge and delivery service launched in Singapore in 2015. On honestbee Singapore's site, customers can select items from over 50 stores and receive them at their doorstep. honestbee does not stockpile products in a warehouse - their concierge shoppers hand-pick every item at the selected store near you when you place an order.

This gives customers the widest choice and the freshest items.

It is good to note that honestbee charges customers the same price as the stores. For example, if you are purchasing a carton of Meiji milk from FairPrice via honestbee, you will be paying the same price if you were to purchase the milk directly from FairPrice.

Delivery fee: $4.99 (Free if you meet store's min. order) + concierge fee

2. REDMART

RedMart is an online supermarket founded in Singapore in 2011 with the mission to save customers' time and money on grocery shopping. They offer a wide selection of quality fresh food, household essentials and general merchandise.

Savings on RedMart comes about if you buy in bulk as they adopt a bundle pricing system. For instance, if you were to compare the "Kleenex Clean Care Toilet Tissue 10 X 200S" on RedMart and FairPrice online, you'd notice that if you purchase one of that item, FairPrice online charges a lower price. But because RedMart has a bundle price of $18.95 for 3, the average price for one item is cheaper than FairPrice online.

Delivery fee: $5.99 (Orders < $40), $3.99 (Orders between $40 & $100), Free (Orders > $100)

3. AMAZON PRIME NOW

Amazon's online grocery service, Prime Now, launched in Singapore in 2017. It aims at providing ultra-fast delivery with one or two-hour delivery windows in the same or next day. The customer can choose from tens of thousands of products. This includes groceries, home essentials, baby and beauty products and even electronics.

Unlike other online grocers, Prime Now is currently only available via a mobile app from both the Google Play and App Stores.

Comparisons of several products show that Prime Now's offerings are sold at the same price points as other grocers such as FairPrice online.

Delivery fee: $5.99 (Orders < $40), Free (Orders > $40)

4. FAIRPRICE ON

FairPrice Online is the online platform for the Fairprice supermarket chain. Shop from the comfort of your home anytime and have groceries delivered to your doorstep. FairPrice, apart from the physical stores, owns a fresh food distribution centre and a centralised warehousing and distribution company.

The good news is that FairPrice members continue to enjoy the same in-store rebates when they make purchases online.

It is useful to note that FairPrice's in-store prices and online prices are the same. Unless there are exclusive promotions that are only available in FairPrice, FairPrice Finest, FairPrice Xtra and/or FairPrice Online. At times, there may also be specific in-store promotions where the price card will read 'This store only'.

Same-day delivery is also not available and next-day delivery onwards is subject to availability.

Delivery fee: $7 (Orders < $39), Free (Orders > $39)

5. COLD STORAGE ONLINE

Regular customers of Cold Storage may find more convenience ordering through their online platform. As opposed to the other online supermarkets, Cold Storage offers premium groceries at higher costs. This is similar to their selection in physical supermarkets.

Unlike Fairprice Online, Cold Storage Online offers same-day delivery if you place an order before 10am.

This works best for Cold Storage regulars who prefer certain premium products which are unavailable in other chains.

Delivery fee: $7 (Orders < $59), Free (Orders > $59)

6. ALL FOR YOU (SHENG SHIONG ONLINE)

Sheng Shiong is our favourite budget supermarket chain for many items. All For You is the online grocery platform for Sheng Shiong.

Same-day delivery is available but this is also dependent on the location. Furthermore, delivery might not be available for all locations islandwide as well.

The interface for All For You is not totally user-friendly and looks a bit dated. However, if you're looking for value-for-money products, this should be your choice. Especially if you do not have much preference for premium quality or brands.

Delivery fee: $6 (Orders < $100), Free (Orders > $100)

7. GIANT ONLINE

Giant Online offers another affordable online grocery shopping platform. Expect the same bulk deals that their physical supermarkets offer.

You can also order other items besides groceries such as apparel and furniture through their online platform. It is great that they offer same-day delivery but this depends on the availability of slots. We recommend the earlier you place the order the better.

Delivery fee: $7 (Orders < $59), Free (Orders > $59)

8. OPEN TASTE

If the idea of produce arriving fresh from the farm perks you up, Open Taste will suit you. Open Taste's selling point is to connect grocery shoppers with wholesalers and farmers directly. It is a plus point that they also offer produce from organic farms.

However, Open Taste does not sell processed products that other supermarket options offer. So don't expect to find guilty-pleasure snacks like your Calbee chips.

Open Taste also does not offer same-day delivery but promises to deliver within 36 hours. This is reasonable considering they procure produce from over 200 farms across six countries.

Delivery fee: $4.95 (Orders < $49), Free (Orders > $49)

9. EAMART

The 'EA' in EAMart stands for Everything, Anything which is this online supermarket's selling point. They boast over 3,000 products which have discounts and also offer a rebate system.

If you buy more than $150 worth of groceries a month, 5 per cent rebate will be credited into your EAMart account on the 1st day of the following month. This rebate can then be used in your next purchase on EAMart.

EAMart also offers attractive bulk deals on a wide range of products. Pretty handy for celebrations or festive occasions.

Delivery fee: Free (No min. order)

10. GO FRESH

Go Fresh promises to deliver fresh frozen goods right to your doorstep. If you're looking to get the best selection of seafood or frozen meat, Go Fresh offers delivery right to your doorstep.

Flash sales also occur on Go Fresh each day with fresh produce going for a few dollars cheaper than usual. This is most worth it for items like seafood and frozen steak.

However, unlike other grocery delivery platforms, Go Fresh does not offer same-day delivery. The earliest slot would be the next day if you order before 3pm.

Delivery fee: $15 (min. order is $40), Free (Orders > $60)

OVERALL CONCLUSION

WIDEST VARIETY - GIANT

Giant seems to have the widest selection of products on their platform. With the inclusion of items like furniture, apparel and electronics, Giant trumps in variety. You will not only be shopping for groceries but also for other items in your home as well.

CHEAPEST DELIVERY AND MINIMUM ORDER - EAMART

EAMart has no minimum order and no delivery fee at all. Works best if you need to get some last minute items for festive occasions but will be too busy preparing at home.

HEALTHIEST SELECTION - OPEN TASTE

It's 2019 and you plan to eat clean all day and every day. Open Taste with its affordable options for fresh and organic produce is your best friend in this journey.

BIGGEST SELECTION - HONESTBEE

Honestbee connects you to over 50 stores which basically makes their selection the biggest of them all. Order your lunch along with your groceries at the same time if you want to make it worthwhile.

It really depends on what you find most convenient for you! There are a number of options which will be able to satisfy different preferences.

This article is first published in Shopback.