California law governs these terms, and any non-arbitration disputes must be brought in courts in San Francisco, California.
This analysis describes what Instacart's agreement states, permits, or reserves. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Regulatory applicability and practical outcomes may vary by jurisdiction, enforcement context, and individual circumstances. Read our methodology
Users outside California are required to litigate non-arbitration disputes in San Francisco federal or state courts, which may create practical barriers to pursuing claims in-person.
Instacart rewrote its entire Terms of Service, adding 367 new sentences including sections on AI-powered services, updated arbitration procedures, and revised data handling practices. The restructuring makes it harder to compare what changed because the entire document was reorganized.
View change record →For any disputes that fall outside the arbitration clause, users must litigate in San Francisco County courts under California law, regardless of where the user is located. This may create logistical and cost barriers for users in other states or Canada.
How other platforms handle this
In the EU and EEA, the choice of Texas governing law shall not apply only where a mandatory consumer protection law explicitly prohibits such choice of law provisions.
These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of California and the United States without regard to conflicts of laws provisions
The Federal Trade Commission has jurisdiction over ZipRecruiter's compliance with the EU-U.S. DPF, the UK Extension to the EU-U.S. DPF, and the Swiss-U.S. DPF.
"These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to conflict of law principles. For disputes not subject to arbitration, you consent to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in San Francisco County, California.Excerpt from Instacart's Terms of Service
1.
Enforcement risk, jurisdiction flags, contract triggers, and due diligence action items.
Get the research letter
Companies change their terms quietly. We read every version and catch what actually changed. One email a week on the changes that matter and what they mean.
Users outside California are required to litigate non-arbitration disputes in San Francisco federal or state courts, which may create practical barriers to pursuing claims in-person.
For any disputes that fall outside the arbitration clause, users must litigate in San Francisco County courts under California law, regardless of where the user is located. This may create logistical and cost barriers for users in other states or Canada.
ConductAtlas has identified this type of provision across 267 platforms. See the full comparison.
No. ConductAtlas is an independent monitoring service. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Instacart.