Instacart and Walmart Spark do not publish the same rules, and it is worth separating them. Walmart requires no alcohol certificate at all — the Spark Driver App Terms say Walmart provides no training for how to provide Services except where required by law, while still making the driver responsible for checking recipient ID and refusing an intoxicated recipient. For Instacart, check the requirements shown inside your own Shopper app, because platform policies change without notice. No third-party course grants access to either platform.
Instacart shoppers who want to fulfill alcohol orders must meet these requirements:
- Follow Instacart's alcohol rules — including the ID-check steps in the shopper app
- Be 21 years or older — Instacart's minimum age for alcohol delivery
- Verify customer ID at delivery — scan or manually check a valid government-issued ID
- Customer must be present — never leave alcohol at the door without age verification
- Follow state delivery hour restrictions — alcohol delivery is limited to certain hours in some states
When you complete alcohol certification, Instacart enables alcohol orders in your shopper app. You shop for the items at the store, then deliver them to the customer. At delivery, you must verify the customer's age — the Instacart app will prompt you through this process. Alcohol orders tend to have higher item totals, which can mean larger percentage-based tips.
Spark drivers who want to deliver alcohol must:
- Check your state's rules — Walmart publishes no certificate requirement for Spark drivers
- Be 21 years or older — minimum age requirement
- Verify customer age at delivery — valid ID required, customer must be present
- Follow Walmart's delivery protocols — alcohol must be delivered with the rest of the order
Walmart Spark handles alcohol delivery as part of regular grocery orders. When a customer orders alcohol through Walmart's delivery service, certified Spark drivers can accept these orders. At the door, you verify the customer is 21+ with a valid ID. Spark alcohol orders are part of larger grocery batches, so they often come with higher overall pay.
What an independent course actually gives you — plus every other delivery platform:
- Enroll in the National Alcohol Delivery Training Certification — $35
- Complete the 1-hour online course — covers ID verification, state laws, refusal procedures
- Pass the exam — scenario-based questions drawn from real delivery situations, scenario-based questions
- Download your certificate — immediate access after passing
- Keep your certificate on file — for an employer, your own records, or a state regulator that asks for proof of training
The same ID-checking and refusal skills apply on Amazon Flex, DoorDash, Uber Eats, Grubhub and Gopuff, but each platform sets its own rules. Check each app before relying on any single certificate.
Instacart trains shoppers itself: its own announcements describe a shopper training curriculum on checking IDs and refusing deliveries, and we found no Instacart page requiring an outside certificate. Some states set their own rules for delivery drivers, so check your shopper app and your state. Our $35 online course covers the same ID and refusal skills.
Walmart publishes no certificate requirement for Spark drivers. Its Spark Driver App Terms say Walmart provides no training except where required by law, while still making drivers responsible for checking the recipient's ID and refusing intoxicated customers. Some states set their own rules, so check your state.
Neither Instacart nor Walmart Spark publishes a requirement for an outside certificate, so no single certificate is accepted by both. Our course teaches the ID and refusal skills both platforms expect at the door.
You must be at least 21 years old to deliver alcohol on Instacart. This is a federal and state legal requirement, not just an Instacart policy.
