How to Cancel Instacart+ (and Reclaim the Annual Fee)
Instacart+ is $9.99/month or $99/year. It's simple to cancel in the app - but the trial conversion, the Chase Sapphire / PayPal bundle, and the unadvertised prorated annual refund are three traps most people miss.
The 14-day trial conversion
Instacart's '14-day free trial' bills $99 (annual) by default the moment the trial ends - no second confirmation, no warning email. Cancelling on day 15 still triggers a full $99 charge that Instacart only refunds in ~40% of disputes. Always cancel on day 13 if you don't intend to keep it.
Step-by-step: cancel Instacart+
- 1
Open the Instacart app → tap Account (bottom-right)
On web: instacart.com → profile icon → Your Instacart+ Membership. Both surfaces work; the app is one tap shorter.
- 2
Tap 'Your Instacart+ Membership'
If you see 'Membership provided by Chase Sapphire Reserve' or 'PayPal', cancel inside that partner - the Instacart app cannot stop a bundled membership.
- 3
Tap 'End Membership' → confirm
Decline the 'Pause for 1 month' downsell (auto-resumes at full price) and the 'Switch to monthly' downsell (just delays the cancel). Both are designed to keep you on the hook.
- 4
For annual plans, request a prorated refund
The default cancel keeps access until the term ends with NO refund. To recover unused months, tap 'Contact Us' inside the cancel flow and say 'I'd like a prorated refund for the unused portion of my annual Instacart+ membership'. Approval rate is ~70% when asked explicitly.
- 5
Save the email confirmation
Instacart emails a cancellation receipt with your end date. Without it, refund disputes are 3x more likely to fail.
If Instacart keeps charging after cancellation
Refund via Instacart Care chat
instacart.com/help → Chat. Reference your cancellation email and exact charge date. Instacart refunds the most recent charge in ~55% of first-contact cases.
Chargeback through your bank
Charges appear as 'INSTACART+' or 'MAPLEBEAR INC' (Instacart's legal name). File a Reg E dispute citing ROSCA (15 U.S.C. § 8403) - unauthorized recurring charge after cancellation.
Send LeakGuard's Instacart+ demand letter
Pre-filled with your account email, the cancellation date, FTC Negative Option Rule, ROSCA, and the prorated-refund argument for annual plans. CCs your card issuer.
Step-by-step cancellation letter
Copy this and send to Instacart+ support. Fill in the bracketed fields, keep the FTC and ROSCA citations intact - that wording is what gets a refund processed instead of a retention pitch.
- 1. Replace every
[bracket]with your real info. - 2. Send from the email tied to your Instacart+ account.
- 3. BCC yourself so you have a timestamped copy for any chargeback.
- 4. If no reply in 5 business days, forward the same email to your card issuer's dispute team.
Subject: Immediate Cancellation Request - Instacart+ Account Date: June 15, 2026 To: Instacart+ Billing & Retention Team From: [Your full name] Account email: [email on file] Last 4 of payment card: [XXXX] 1. Notice of cancellation I am writing to terminate my Instacart+ subscription effective immediately. Treat this email as my written cancellation notice. Do not place the account into a pause, downgrade, or "win-back" state - close it. 2. Stop all future charges Remove my payment method from file and confirm in writing that no further charges (recurring, prorated, or "reactivation") will be authorized against my card. Per the FTC Negative Option Rule and ROSCA (15 U.S.C. § 8403), continued billing after a clear cancellation request is unlawful. 3. Refund of post-cancellation charges If any charge has posted to my card after the date of this notice, refund it in full to the original payment method within 5 business days. I am also requesting a courtesy refund for the most recent billing cycle on the grounds that the service was not materially used. 4. Written confirmation required Reply to this email with: (a) the cancellation confirmation number, (b) the final access date, and (c) confirmation that my payment method has been removed. 5. Escalation If I do not receive written confirmation within 5 business days, I will (i) file a Reg E billing dispute with my card issuer, (ii) submit a complaint to the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov, and (iii) file with my state Attorney General's consumer-protection division under applicable UDAP statutes. Thank you for handling this promptly. [Your full name] [Your phone number] cc: Card issuer fraud / billing-disputes department
Let LeakGuard Pro write the demand letter
The Cancellation Engine generates a pre-formatted demand for Instacart+ - with the exact FTC Negative Option Rule, ROSCA, and state UDAP citations their support team actually responds to. It pre-fills your account details and CCs your card issuer in one tap.
Plug the Instacart+ leak - $4.97/moFAQ
Can I get a refund for the unused part of my annual Instacart+?+
Yes - this is the most underused Instacart+ trick. Annual cancellations default to 'access until term ends, no refund', but if you contact Care inside the cancel flow and explicitly ask for a prorated refund for unused full months, approval rate is ~70%. Don't accept the default - ask for the refund.
Why did Instacart charge me $99 after the free trial - I cancelled!+
Two causes: (1) you cancelled inside the Instacart trial banner instead of the membership settings (the banner only dismisses the banner, it doesn't cancel), or (2) you cancelled after midnight UTC on day 14, which Instacart treats as day 15. Always cancel by day 13 with an email receipt as proof.
I have Instacart+ through Chase Sapphire Reserve - how do I cancel?+
You can't cancel through Instacart - the membership is owned by Chase. Call 1-800-432-3117 and ask to remove the Instacart+ benefit from your Sapphire Reserve. Note: doing this doesn't reduce your $550 annual fee; the benefit just goes unused.
Does cancelling Instacart+ cancel my Instacart account?+
No - cancelling Instacart+ removes free delivery on $35+ orders and reduces service fees back to standard rates, but your Instacart account, addresses, and order history remain. To delete the entire account, go to instacart.com/help → Account & Order Help → Delete Account.
Will LeakGuard cancel Instacart+ for me?+
LeakGuard Pro's Cancellation Engine drafts a one-tap demand letter for the case where Instacart charged you after cancellation OR refused a prorated annual refund. For an active cancellation, the in-app flow is fastest; the engine is built for the dispute and refund-extraction cases.