Starbucks completed the rollout of its 'Order & Pay' app Tuesday. The app, which allows customers to pay and order before they reach the store, was first tested in Portland, Oregon and slowly expanded to locations across the Pacific Northwest.
With the nationwide rollout now complete, most Starbucks stores are app-compatible for both iPhone and Android users.
The coffee chain announced that its app would begin supporting mobile ordering at 7,400 of its stores in the United States, giving users the opportunity to order and pay for their drinks before they even arrive at their local Starbucks.
“Bringing Mobile Order & Pay to our customers is about meeting their needs of convenience and customization at any time of the day,” Starbucks’ Chief Digital Officer Adam Brotman, said in a press release on the company’s website.
An estimated pick-up time lets coffee drinkers know when their beverage should be ready so they can time their pick-up for when it's at its freshest. Starbucks estimates the typical wait time given in the app will average around 3-5 minutes at most stores, with the window depending on the number of mobile orders in the queue and what a person's order entails.
The Order & Pay app is designed to reduce lines and wait times for commuters. Mobile users will be able to place their order, pay, and skip the lines entirely.
The mobile Order and Pay app was initially slated to be rolled out across the country near the end of the year. But after seeing early success and growing customer demand, Starbucks accelerated the national release of the app.
Starbucks is taking an aggressive move toward the growing trend of mobile ordering. Taco Bell, Domino’s and Chipotle have all put out their own mobile apps that allow customers to order and pay from home in recent years. McDonald’s just released its own new mobile app and has other plans in store for the mobile market.
Starbucks, meanwhile, has plans to use the Pay & Order mobile app to transition into a delivery service in the future.
