Commissary Delivery Benefits Expand in 2024
In 2024, more Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA) shoppers have the option to get home delivery for Commissary purchases at stateside military bases.
A DeCA home delivery pilot program started in 2022 is expanding and is anticipated to be available nationwide by the end of 2024.
The program was slated to expand regionally in the summer of 2024, offering more home delivery options to Commissary shoppers in the western part of the country. That expansion was scheduled to go fully national, and all customers are expected to have home delivery options from the local stateside commissary by the end of the year.
At press time this expanded option is not intended for OCONUS bases. It is expanding for USA-based Commissaries only.
Related: Disabled Veteran Benefits Guide
Commissary Delivery Service
The Defense Commissary Agency director announced the expansion at a logistics industry trade show, noting the program will be rolled out based on the ability of local delivery companies selected to serve military bases.
Delivery pricing may be established by distance, with closer deliveries potentially costing less. At press time, DeCA’s delivery pilot program functioned at only eight military bases in the USA, but those eight bases have racked up tens of thousands of sales.
Initial data from the pilot program indicates that most Commissary home deliveries happen off-post, but the number of on-base deliveries is close to four in ten.
Bases Participating in the DeCA Pilot Program
Before expanding, the initial pilot program for grocery delivery started at these bases:
- Scott Air Force Base, Illinois
- Fort Liberty, North Carolina
- MacDill AFB, Florida
- Fort Belvoir, Virginia
- Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia
- Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington
- Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, California
- Naval Base San Diego, California
The Value of Commissary Home Delivery
When you live on base, getting simple necessities via home delivery from Instacart or DoorDash is difficult. Many civilians don’t realize most military bases require a military ID to enter, and most delivery services can’t get past the front gate.
A military spouse feeding a family while the servicemember is deployed overseas can use the added help a Commissary home delivery could provide.
Related: Disabled Veteran Benefits Guide
Who Can Use DeCA Commissaries?
According to the Defense Commissary Agency, the following shoppers may use DeCA Commissaries and may qualify for home delivery:
- Active duty
- Guard and Reserve members
- Military retirees
- Medal of Honor recipients
- 100 percent disabled veterans and authorized family members
- Veterans with a Department of Veterans Affairs service-connected disability
What To Know
If you want to see if your base participates in Commissary home delivery, check with the Commissary near you or use the Store Locator tool at Commissaries.com.
Related: Disabled Veteran Benefits Guide
About the author
Editor-in-Chief Joe Wallace is a 13-year veteran of the United States Air Force and a former reporter/editor for Air Force Television News and the Pentagon Channel. His freelance work includes contract work for Motorola, VALoans.com, and Credit Karma. He is co-founder of Dim Art House in Springfield, Illinois, and spends his non-writing time as an abstract painter, independent publisher, and occasional filmmaker.
