A $99 Instant Pot Pays for Itself in 5 Weeks
Two delivery nights a week runs about $183/month after fees and tips. Cooking those same meals with an Instant Pot costs about $97/month in groceries and electricity. The math is almost embarrassingly fast.
Payoff Time
1.2 mo
Instant Pot Duo vs Food Delivery (2x/week)
Product cost
$99
one-time
Annual savings
$1,032
vs Food Delivery (2x/week)
The Setup: The Takeout Trap
Most people know cooking at home is cheaper. The problem is it's also slower, harder, and competes with your couch and your phone. That's exactly the problem an Instant Pot solves: it makes home cooking fast enough to actually win against the DoorDash impulse.
A pot roast that takes 4 hours in the oven takes 75 minutes under pressure. A pot of beans you'd have to remember to soak overnight is ready in 45 minutes from dry. The Instant Pot doesn't just save money — it removes the friction that sends people to their food delivery app.
Our base case: you order delivery twice a week — Friday and one random weeknight. Average order is $32 including delivery fees and a reasonable tip. That's $183/month quietly disappearing into the delivery economy. With an Instant Pot, those same 8 monthly meals cost about $11.80 each in groceries — a $95 total.
The Math
Monthly net savings of $86 means a $99 Instant Pot breaks even in about 1.2 months (5 weeks). After that, every dinner you cook instead of order is pure money back in your pocket.
| Instant Pot + Groceries | Food Delivery (2x/wk) | |
|---|---|---|
| Upfront cost | $99 | $0 |
| Monthly recurring | $97 | $183 |
| Month 1 total | $196 | $183 |
| Month 2 total | $293 | $366 |
| ★ Breakeven (~5 weeks) | ~$212 | ~$212 |
| Year 1 total | $1,263 | $2,196 |
| Year 3 total | $3,591 | $6,588 |
| 5-year total | $5,919 | $10,980 |
* All figures are estimates. See methodology for assumptions.
Cumulative Cost Over Time
The lines cross at the breakeven point — that's when the savings zone begins.
The "If You Actually Use It" Caveat
Here's the honest version: an Instant Pot sitting in a cabinet has a payoff time of never. The appliance has a notoriously bad reputation for being bought with enthusiasm, used twice, and then becoming a very expensive cabinet decoration.
The math only works if you actually replace at least one takeout night per week with a home-cooked meal. One night a week. That's the bar. Anything above that and the savings compound fast. Below it, you're paying for a countertop appliance.
The good news: the Instant Pot is specifically good at meals people order delivery for. Pulled pork. Chicken tikka masala. Soup. Risotto. Chili. These are genuinely easier in a pressure cooker than on the stovetop.
Sensitivity Analysis: Your Results May Vary
Payoff time changes based on how much you currently spend.
Committed cook (3 deliveries replaced/week)
You batch cook and lean on the IP heavily. Meal prep mode.
24d
$1548/yr
Regular cook (2 deliveries replaced/week) (our base case)
Two nights a week — our base case. Friday dinner + one weeknight.
1.2mo
$1032/yr
Occasional cook (1 delivery replaced/week)
You cook one delivery-replacement meal per week. Modest but consistent.
2.3mo
$516/yr
"A $99 Instant Pot saves $1,032/year if you use it to replace 2 delivery nights a week. Payoff: 5 weeks."
What We Recommend
All three picks run the same core 7-in-1 functions. The differences are capacity, build quality, and whether the display is analog or digital. Payoff time assumes 2 replaced delivery nights/week.
Instant Pot Duo 3-Quart Mini
$59
upfront
0.7mo
payoff
$1032
/ year
Perfect for 1-2 people. Smaller footprint on the counter. Same 7-in-1 functions, faster heat-up time. Excellent starter Instant Pot.
See on Amazon →Prices updated automatically. Affiliate link.
Instant Pot Duo 7-in-1 (6-Quart)
$99
upfront
1.2mo
payoff
$1032
/ year
The original. The best-selling kitchen appliance of the past decade. Feeds 4-6 people comfortably. This is what most people should buy — it's the base case for all our math.
See on Amazon →Prices updated automatically. Affiliate link.
Instant Pot Pro 10-in-1 (6-Quart)
$149
upfront
1.7mo
payoff
$1032
/ year
Adds sous vide and improved steam release. If you're serious about meal prep and want the nicer display and quieter lid, this earns its price premium in about 2 extra weeks.
See on Amazon →Prices updated automatically. Affiliate link.
What we didn't account for
- → Your time. Cooking takes 30-60 minutes even with an IP. Delivery takes 0 minutes of your time. We can't price your evening hours for you.
- → Counter space. The Instant Pot is not small. If you have a galley kitchen, factor this in before buying.
- → We used modest delivery costs. If your average DoorDash order is $45+ after fees, the payoff is even faster. If you order budget takeout, it's slower.
- → When it doesn't pay off. If you already cook most meals at home, adding an IP saves marginal time but not much money. The savings come from replacing delivery, not from replacing stovetop cooking.