Uber Eats Grocery Delivery on Thanksgiving Weekend: Shop & Deliver Explained
Gary WhittakerJack Righteous • Uber Eats Canada • Shop & Deliver guide • Updated October 21, 2026
Shop & Deliver is different from picking up a prepared restaurant meal. You select store items, handle out-of-stock products, pay through a supported method and bring the order to the customer. Here is how to decide whether these requests are worth your time—including holiday shopping periods.
October 2026 update: Canadian Thanksgiving was Monday, October 12, 2026. That weekend is over. Use the examples as a retrospective and a reusable comparison for Christmas, weekends and other busy shopping periods—not as a claim that Thanksgiving demand was profitable.
Choose your Uber path
Prefer passenger rides or delivery work?
Uber Driver — passengers
Transport passengers in an eligible car after meeting local rideshare licence, screening, inspection and insurance rules.
Check Uber passenger-driver signup →Referral code: p7sthx1
Uber Eats — deliveries
Deliver food and, if eligible, accept Shop & Deliver orders in your local market.
Check Uber Eats delivery signup →Referral code: mjcfdbc
Referral disclosure: I may receive a referral benefit if you sign up and qualify. Uber controls eligibility, any promotional offers and qualifying work. Approval, bonuses and earnings are not guaranteed.
1. What is Shop & Deliver, and how do you start?
Uber Canada's Shop & Deliver program allows eligible couriers to opt in to shopping and delivery requests. Uber says these offers are labelled Shop & Deliver in the Driver app, so you can tell them apart from ordinary pickup-and-drop-off requests.
- Check whether Shop & Deliver is available for your delivery account and transport mode; keep your Driver app updated.
- Follow the in-app activation instructions, including any Plus Card setup the app requests.
- Review the shopping request, store, items and estimated route before deciding to accept.
- At the store, follow the app's shopping list and customer preferences for unavailable products.
- Pay through the available approved method, follow receipt instructions and deliver the order.
Uber currently says Shop & Deliver orders cannot be selected as an exclusive request type; the app may mix shopping and ordinary delivery offers. You can decline a request. Source: Uber Canada — Shop & Deliver.
2. Plus Card versus personal payment: know the difference
Uber's Shop & Deliver explanation says the Plus Card is optional as a payment method. Where the card is active, it can be used only for approved customer items and is authorized up to the expected order total.
Uber also describes the option of using your own personal payment method and seeking reimbursement through the Driver app. That means you are temporarily using your own funds, so check the applicable terms, receipt requirements and available reimbursement process before you choose to pay personally.
Reference: Uber Shop & Deliver payment explanation.
3. Out-of-stock products and customer substitutions
Shopping requests can become time-consuming when the item a customer ordered is missing. Uber's help guidance describes different preferences: a recommended alternative, a specific substitute, an approval request or a refund. Follow the preference shown for each item rather than automatically choosing something expensive or unrelated.
- Tap the unavailable item in the Driver app and follow the customer's selected replacement preference.
- If asked to suggest an alternative, choose comparable quality and quantity and, where appropriate, a similar or lower price.
- If customer approval is required, send the suggestion and follow the app's response or refund instructions.
- Do not charge the customer for deleted items. When all items are unavailable, follow the app's cancellation or support workflow.
Source: Uber Help — out-of-stock items and replacements.
4. What Thanksgiving shopping taught us to test
Holiday shopping can involve last-minute groceries, desserts, party supplies and convenience items. This is a possible use case, not verified evidence that Canadian Thanksgiving 2026 delivered higher profits. Store hours, substitutions, checkout queues and parking can make shopping requests slower than restaurant pickups.
- Before a holiday: compare stores operating normally with merchants that have reduced hours.
- During busy shopping periods: track substitutions, out-of-stock products, receipt handling and checkout wait.
- After shopping: record the travel distance and whether the destination leaves you far from another active zone.
- Next event: reuse your cost data rather than assuming a holiday bonus or a guaranteed order surge.
For an October 9–12 retrospective, read Friday-to-Monday Thanksgiving strategy and the Canadian Thanksgiving overview.
5. Compare Shop & Deliver against restaurant deliveries
A larger-looking shopping payout can still be worse on an hourly basis if picking items and handling substitutions takes a long time. Compare net earnings per total hour online, not just order value, grocery basket size or a high tip.
A simple scorecard for each order
- Shopping/order pay and tips, with temporary incentives separately identified.
- Total minutes from acceptance to drop-off.
- Minutes spent finding items, replacing products and checking out.
- Kilometres driven and distance from drop-off to the next useful zone.
- Direct operating costs, with vehicle wear and taxes considered separately.
Comparison: estimate (gross earnings − operating costs) ÷ total time spent online. Track several requests before deciding that one type of work fits you better.
Use the 25-Delivery Profit Test and Uber income and tax tracking for the broader framework.
Frequently asked Shop & Deliver questions
Do I have to accept shopping requests?
Uber currently says you may decline a Shop & Deliver request. You may not be able to receive shopping requests exclusively, so review each offer individually.
Must I pay with my own credit card?
Not necessarily. Uber describes an optional Plus Card payment method where available; personal payment and later reimbursement are another option. Follow your app's current instructions.
Does a busy grocery store guarantee a higher payout?
No. Shopping and checkout can lengthen the job. You need the actual offer, real completion time and costs to estimate whether the request is worthwhile.
What if I would rather drive passengers?
Passenger driving is separate from Uber Eats and has stricter city-specific vehicle, insurance, licence and screening requirements. Compare both signup routes below before choosing.
Choose your Uber path
Prefer passenger rides or delivery work?
Uber Driver — passengers
Transport passengers in an eligible car after meeting local rideshare licence, screening, inspection and insurance rules.
Check Uber passenger-driver signup →Referral code: p7sthx1
Uber Eats — deliveries
Deliver food and, if eligible, accept Shop & Deliver orders in your local market.
Check Uber Eats delivery signup →Referral code: mjcfdbc
Referral disclosure: I may receive a referral benefit if you sign up and qualify. Uber controls eligibility, any promotional offers and qualifying work. Approval, bonuses and earnings are not guaranteed.
