The husband of a couple that we are close to had a scary accident -- seizure while driving, followed by two more seizures in the ambulance. Miraculously the accident was single-car and he's mostly ok. But he is not allowed to drive for the next 6 months, which will really be hard for them, among other things, they have kids, etc., and he will have to be making all these trips to the hospital now, and so she will have to take him. And so on and so on.

So several of us have pooled money and it's my job to buy a gift card to give to them.

So, DoorDash in our area seems to be restaurants only. InstaCart though is groceries....

Does anyone have any opinions of the pros and cons of each?

I was considering contacting the wife (who I am closest to) and asking which she would prefer, and I still might do that, but I'm afraid she would say "oh no, we don't need anything" and we all really want to give them something that will contribute to easing the difficulty they will have in the coming months.

Anyway, any advice/comments would be appreciated, esp. since I have never used either!

I think in this case, I’d ask her what she’d prefer. You can describe it as a done deal (already collected the cash), so you just want to know what she’d like.

I try not to use DoorDash or Caviar because I know their fees are huge, and I want my favorite restaurants to survive the pandemic. We call directly and order for pickup, no middleman. But that doesn’t help you in this case.

I haven’t used InstaCart for the same reason. I order and do curbside pickup; I know the grocery workers are being paid correctly. I had delivery once and I felt so bad for the kid who brought my groceries. New in town, wouldn’t be paid for a couple weeks. Even though I tipped in the app, I tipped him in cash too, so he could put some gas in his car.

I agree with AdagioM--but another thing might be whether they have the time or mental space to do much cooking. If not, then DoorDash (despite the fees) might be the best.

But InstaCart is good because no matter what, you always need groceries. They can buy fruits and veg and prepared stuff if cooking isn't something they can tackle now. And it's possible that she will actually look forward to a quick trip to do the grocery pickup at the store, and you would avoid the fees there.

I guess I'm talking myself into InstaCart. I think it's more flexible, whereas DoorDash is just meal takeout.

How about a cash-like Visa or MasterCard gift card?

https://www.giftcards.com/visa-gift-cards
https://www.mastercardgiftcard.com

The recipient can use it like be would a regular Visa or MasterCard debit card, on just about anything, with just about any merchant who typically accepts Visa or MasterCard.

Blue Apron?

I’ve always gone Croddy Amazon cards myself, although that may not convey the sentiment you’re going for.

I will say that Insta cart has worked well for us.