DoorDash Buys Instacart at $17 Billion as Retail Media Consolidates

DoorDash confirmed on Thursday that it will acquire Instacart at a $17 billion valuation, uniting two of the largest advertising businesses in last-mile delivery. The combined entity will control ad operations that generated more than $1.3 billion in disclosed revenue across recent reporting periods alone.

DoorDash disclosed a year ago that it surpassed $1 billion in advertising revenue in 2024. Instacart, which reports ad revenue quarterly, earned more than $300 million in Q3 this year. Both companies sit in what the industry calls a "mobility" sub-category of retail media (advertising sold by platforms that reach shoppers through delivery apps rather than store shelves).

Why do two competitors make sense as one company?

The companies frame the deal as incremental rather than overlapping. Their joint press release stated: "Families turn to Instacart for the big weekly shop and to DoorDash for meals and nearly anything else they need from their neighborhood in under an hour."

The numbers support that framing. DoorDash reported 993 million total orders in Q3, generating $33.9 billion, per its quarterly earnings released the same day. Instacart processed 91.4 million orders and earned $10.5 billion in gross marketplace sales, per its own report, also published Thursday.

Instacart converts roughly a tenth as many checkouts as DoorDash. Yet its gross marketplace sales run at about a third of DoorDash's size. That gap proves its average order value is far larger. The same product from the same store serves different shopping missions: an impulse snack order versus a full grocery cart.

What role does antitrust politics play?

The timing reflects a changed regulatory climate. DoorDash expanded its lobbying presence in recent years and built ties with the Trump administration, including serving as an inauguration donor, though some prominent Democrats have opposed the company over labor policy and litigation.

The source analysis argues the Biden administration would likely have scrutinized this merger as a potential antitrust violation. DoorDash has already completed a spree of marketplace acquisitions, including Wolt in Finland, Deliveroo in the UK, and SevenRooms, a marketing platform for restaurants, hotels and venues.

The contrast with Kroger and Albertsons is stark. The Biden-era DOJ opposed that grocery merger, and the deal collapsed. The two chains are now suing each other over who caused the failure. The analysis suggests that deal might have succeeded had the parties waited and spent millions on lobbying directed to a Trump-approved recipient.

Who consolidates next?

The deal-making is unlikely to stop here. Valuable independent mobility-and-advertising businesses remain in play, including:

• Lyft, the ride-hailing platform with its own media ambitions
• Gopuff, the instant-delivery service that white labels its ad sales through DoorDash
• GSTV, which sells advertising on gas pump screens

Each represents a delivery-adjacent audience that a larger platform could fold into its ad network. If regulators wave this $17 billion combination through, the independent tier of mobility media becomes an acquisition target list rather than a competitive set.