Amazon is expanding its Amazon Key program, which lets its delivery drivers access a Prime customer’s garage to drop off orders, to more than 5,000 U.S. cities and towns, wherever its grocery delivery services are available from Amazon Fresh or Whole Foods Market.
The program, free to Prime members, was first tested three years ago in more than 60 locations, making it a fairly lengthy pilot as these things go.
Customers with a compatible garage door opener or a myQ Smart Garage Hub can connect the myQ app with Key, and choose “Key delivery” at order checkout. The driver then accesses the garage using a one-time key, and the customer is notified when their groceries arrive by either the Key app or Amazon’s mobile shopping app.
In a recent survey by Morning Consult commissioned by Amazon, nearly 70% of Americans said they favored grocery delivery as a time saver. Of the 54% who said convenience was the most important benefit of grocery delivery, 77% said the time savings was also an advantage.
To view a video of their delivery, customers can use a compatible Ring smart home camera, or a LiftMaster smart garage camera powered by myQ with a myQ video storage subscription.
“Customers who tried Key In-Garage Grocery Delivery have loved the service, which is why we’re expanding it to everywhere Amazon offers grocery delivery,” said Pete Gerstberger, Head of Key by Amazon in a release. “As customers look for more convenience in their daily lives, we’re excited to deliver another service that not only helps them save time, but provides peace of mind knowing that tonight’s dinner is safe in their garage and out of the weather.”
In other grocery news, Amazon has been opening new Fresh stores in the past year that use its Dash smart cart for faster checkout, while also piloting the Amazon One payment by biometric palm scanner at a Whole Foods store in Seattle. It has already been tested at Amazon Go and Amazon Books stores in its hometown.