LANSING – If you're running low on groceries but don't want to leave the house, there are other ways to keep your pantry stocked.

Grocery stores are one of the essential services allowed to remain open despite Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's executive order that mandates all Michiganders stay at home except in certain circumstances.

Meijer, Kroger, Walmart, Target and Aldi offer grocery delivery and pickup. Online shopping at all five stores can be done either online or by app.

'It is kind of scary in stores'

Brandi Matteson has worked for Instacart since June. She's a 5-star shopper and has completed more than 1,000 shopping trips in Greater Lansing. She said she's never seen anything like the atmosphere at grocery stores.

The frantic shoppers came in waves, she said. Wave 1: When MSU canceled on-campus classes. Wave 2: When K-12 schools shut down. Wave 3: When Whitmer shut down the dining areas of bars and restaurants. Wave 4: Whitmer's order to stay at home.

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With each wave, the orders increased in number and size. It's a type of panic that Matteson has never seen: even as Hurricane Matthew sped toward her home in Florida in 2016.

"It is kind of scary in stores...I've never seen panic like this," Matteson said. "We're all just running ragged."

Schedule delivery early, be patient and communicate with your shopper

Her phone goes off all day, from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., unless she mutes the notifications for new orders, she said. As of Tuesday afternoon, Instacart didn't have any available delivery slots until Thursday.

"Be patient, it's going to take us a little longer to do shops right now," Matteson said. "There are going to be essential items sold out everywhere. We can't control the inventory."

Matteson said of stores in Greater Lansing, Aldi was doing the best at keeping shelves stocked, and Kroger was doing the worst.

"Look at what we’re doing in the delivery industry, we're providing a service for a lot of people who literally cannot go out – especially if either they or a loved one in their home are immunocompromised," she said. "We make it so they can get what they need while keeping their family safe."

Matteson gave tips to people looking to order through grocery delivery services:

Leave delivery instructions for your shopper.

Schedule delivery times as early in the morning as possible so the shelves are stocked when your shopper is there.

Remember: shoppers are doing the best they can to get what you ordered, but the item is not always in-stock.

If your delivery is coming after the sun goes down, leave your porch light on so your shopper can see your house number.

Keep an eye out for messages from your shopper about delivery time and substitutions that may need to be made

How to order online

Once you're logged in or have created an account, begin adding items to your cart, just as you would while shopping online at any other retailer. Add the number of each item you want and if you have specific instructions.

Once you're done, click the cart icon to continue placing your order. You can choose your delivery date and time. Same-day pickup and delivery is available.

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Many grocery stores use Shipt or Instacart to complete its order pickups and deliveries.

By directly using Shipt, customers can have items from CVS, Petco, Office Depot, Office Max, Meijer and Target delivered to them.

Instacart delivers from Sam's Club, Costco, Aldi, CVS, Meijer, Kroger, Petco, Fresh Thyme, Better Heatlh, Gordon Food Service and Target.

Delivery and pick up is not available in every zip code.

How much is delivery or pickup?

ALDI:

ALDI offers both delivery and pickup of grocery orders.

You can schedule a delivery up to seven days in advance, an hour from when you placed the order or anytime in between.

With your first three orders of $35 or more, ALDI is offering free delivery. After that, orders above $35 have a $3.99 delivery fee.

ALDI's curbside service allows you to order groceries online and pick them up in the store parking lot.

Shop here.

Kroger

Kroger will deliver groceries for $9.95. Orders can only be paid for with credit or debit cards. Cash, checks, gift cards and government benefits are not accepted.

Kroger gives shoppers the option for their order to be left at their door, instead of having to be home for the delivery.

Grocery pick up at the store is free. Arrive at any time during your chosen slot to pick up your groceries. You can schedule a pick up time up to three days in advance. Once there, call the number on the sign in the grocery pickup parking area and someone will bring your order out to you.

Shop here.

Meijer

Meijer offers grocery delivery and pickup at the store. Pickup costs $4.95 and delivery is $9.95. No membership is required for either option and there is no minimum for orders.

Groceries can be picked up or delivered as soon as in one hour from your order, but due to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's stay at home order, delivery slots are scarce.

A Shipt shopper will be filling both delivery and pickup orders. They'll let you know where and when to meet them to pick up your order.

You must be home to accept the delivery of your order. Shoppers can not purchase tobacco, prescription medicines, propane tanks or lottery cards.

Shop here.

Target:

Target is offering a free, four-week trial for Shipt delivery of groceries or other items from the store. After the initial four weeks, an annual subscription for Shipt is $99 for unlimited orders of $35 or more. You also can pay per order.

Target also allows customers to pick up their order in the store or have their order delivered to their car in the parking lot.

The store warned shoppers that due to high demand, some items might be unavailable or delayed.

Shop here.

Walmart

Walmart allows customers to order groceries online and pick them up in the parking lot at a designated location. At-store pickup is free.

It accepts SNAP/EBT for payment, but not WIC or eWIC.

No Lansing area locations offer grocery delivery.

Contact reporter Kara Berg at 517-377-1113 or kberg@lsj.com. Follow her on Twitter @karaberg95.