Walmart Customers Are Demanding Convenience—And Paying Up for It

People like Walmart’s (WMT) prices. But they’re also picking the retailer for convenience—and paying more to do it.

Walmart is profiting from the desire of consumers to stay home and have goods delivered to them, CEO Doug McMillon told investors during a conference call Thursday. The retailer’s revenue from Walmart Plus—which offers free delivery for $12.95 a month—jumped year-over-year by double digits in the fiscal fourth quarter.

Customers, including Plus members, paid even more to have groceries and other goods delivered within three hours for about 30% of orders, executives said. That shot up to 77% on Christmas Eve, they said.

Boosting ‘Ability to Serve People How They Want to Be Served’

“We’re strengthening our ability to serve people how they want to be served in the moment,” McMillon said, according to a transcript of the call made available from AlphaSense. “That’s what’s driving our growth.”

Walmart pharmacies now provide same-day delivery, and the company has set itself up to offer same-day service to 93% of US households, Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey said. 

The company’s shares dropped Thursday after executives shared less-optimistic forecasts than analysts were anticipating. Walmart projects its revenue will grow 3% to 4% both in the current quarter and for the full 2026 fiscal year, lower than the expected 3.7% and 4.2% growth, respectively, that was put forward by Wall Street analysts. 

McMillon said he was confident Walmart had a lucrative future in catering to consumers’ demand for convenience. 

“If I could change anything about how we’re perceived today, it’d be that more people know about our breadth of assortment online and our increasing delivery speed,” he said.