6 online grocery delivery services that make life easier for busy New Yorkers - and how their prices compare

How it works: Create a free account, then start shopping and adding items to your cart. You can browse by aisle and curated categories, or take advantage of features like Order Genius and Express Shop. Order Genius analyzes your past purchases to recommend products you'll like, and Express Shop quickly generates product results for you based on your grocery list.

Peapod offers special discounts of up to $5 off during certain two-hour delivery slots throughout the week, so if you're flexible with when you receive your order, take advantage of this feature. It also lets you schedule deliveries up to two weeks in advance.

Fees:

• Free to create an account
• $9.95 delivery fee, with a minimum order of $60
• $6.95 delivery fee on orders of $100 or more

Grocery offerings: Peapod carries a large assortment of your favorite brands as well as its own in-house brand. The organic selection is robust, and its seasonal curations are also worth a look.

Price comparison:

• Fuji apple: $1.10/ea
• Boneless chicken breast: $3.79/lb
• One dozen large white eggs: $2.09

Special programs and discounts: First-time customers get $20 off and 60 days free delivery. In addition to weekly promotions, these programs help you save money:

The VIPea Club rewards shoppers who spend $2,000 in a six month period with exclusive offers, customer care priority, and an extra $10 referral bonus.

PodPass is a program that saves on monthly delivery fees. The best value option is a $55/year pass that's valid for Tuesday through Thursday deliveries.

Stop & Shop store members should connect their account to Peapod to earn gas and school rewards.

How it works: Instacart brings together local supermarkets on one platform. Create a free account, then choose your store to start shopping. In New York, options include Costco, Fairway, Whole Foods, Morton Williams, and CVS.

The platform allows you to select back-up items in case the ingredient you want is sold out or unavailable, and you'll have a dedicated shopper who communicates with you via text to let you know when items aren't available or when they've been swapped.

Delivery is available in as little as an hour, but you can also schedule it up to a week in advance. Delivery fees may increase during popular times of the week and delivery hours depend on your local store hours.

Instacart is a great grocery delivery option for groups like apartment roommates or families because you can create group carts to shop together.

Fees:

• Free to create an account
• $11.99 delivery fee on orders under $35, with a minimum order of $10
• $7.99 delivery fee on orders of $35 or more
• $13.99 one-hour delivery fee on orders under $35, with a minimum order of $10
• $9.99 one-hour delivery fee on orders of $35 or more

Grocery offerings: The online prices can differ from in-store prices, but you can find each store's policy regarding price adjustments under the store name.

Price comparison:

• Fuji apple: Varies by individual store
• Boneless chicken breast: Varies by individual store
• One dozen large white eggs: Varies by individual store

Special programs and discounts: Instacart compiles each store's coupons on to the store page so they're easy to find and use.

Instacart Express is a $149 annual membership for free delivery on all orders of $35 or more. You can take advantage of a free two-week trial before committing to the program.

How it works: Only Prime members (sign up for a free trial here) are eligible to use Amazon's grocery delivery service. Once you've added AmazonFresh to your account, you can start shopping.

There are two types of delivery available: Attended and Doorstep. Attended Delivery is a one-hour time slot where you receive your order in a paper bag, while Doorstep Delivery is a two- to three-hour time slot where your order is dropped off in temperature-controlled totes.

Fees:

• $14.99 monthly membership fee
• $9.99 delivery fee on orders under $50
• Free delivery on orders of $50 or more

Grocery offerings: The biggest advantage of using AmazonFresh is the ability to shop Whole Foods Market produce and prepared foods. If you like the organic and natural options at Whole Foods, it's easy to get them through AmazonFresh. The Local Market category highlights local makers like Maple Hill Creamery, Tate's, and Junior's.

Price comparison:

• Fuji apple: $1.16/ea
• Boneless chicken breast: $6.47/lb
• One dozen large white eggs: $2.99

Special programs and discounts: Your first 30 days of AmazonFresh are free, after which a $14.99 monthly fee applies. Coupons are available across categories in the Fresh Deals section.

How it works: Create a free account in under a minute, or sign in with your FreshDirect account information, then start shopping and adding items to your cart. Browsing and navigation on the site encourages discovery rather than deals.

If you need your groceries quickly and hate waiting at home during two-hour delivery slots, FoodKick provides the solution — you can get delivery within an hour, and it offers plenty of one-hour slots throughout the day.

Fees:

• Free to create an account
• $3.99 delivery fee, with a minimum order of $20
• $5.99 one-hour delivery fee, with a minimum order of $20

Grocery offerings: FreshDirect's sister service is a more curated and localized grocery shopping experience. It offers a wide variety of categories, but there are fewer options within each category, they tend towards smaller brands, and we found they tend to be more expensive than the options at other grocery services. FoodKick only currently serves New York City (Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens), so you can find city favorites like Doughnut Plant and Baked by Melissa.

Price comparison:

• Fuji apple: $1.50/ea (organic only)
• Boneless chicken breast: $7.99/lb
• One dozen large white eggs: $3.59

Special programs and discounts: First-time customers get 30 days of free delivery.

As with FreshDirect, DeliveryPass membership gets you unlimited free deliveries. If you're a frequent customer, it'll save you on the fees that can add up quickly.

How it works: Create a free account in under a minute, then start shopping and adding items to your cart.

Part of Jet's 2018 rebrand is a focus on the busy city-dweller experience. As a result, the City Grocery service is simple and streamlined: You can schedule for same day or next day three-hour delivery time slots, you don't need to reach an order minimum, and there are reorder and deals features.

Fees:

• Free to create an account
• $5.95 delivery fee, with no minimum order amount

Grocery offerings: You can find everything you normally shop at the store in addition to Jet's private label brand Uniquely J. The New York Favorites shop carries local brands like Van Leeuwen, Big Gay Ice Cream, Pat LaFrieda, and Gotham Greens.

Price comparison:

• Fuji apple: $0.99/ea
• Boneless chicken breast: $3.19/lb
• One dozen large white eggs: $3.59

Special programs and discounts: Jet offers everyday low prices and there are no special programs.