Instacart bid dayparting

Bid Dayparting is useful when you want to adjust bids dynamically by weekday and time of day, for example increasing bids during high-conversion periods and lowering them during low-efficiency periods.

1. Feature Overview

Bid Dayparting calculates and syncs bids hourly based on the bid multipliers you configure for each time slot.

Formula:

Current Bid = Base Bid x Bid Multiplier

Notes:

• Supports up to two decimal places

• Unconfigured time slots default to 1.00

• If the calculated result exceeds the Instacart platform limit, the system applies the platform maximum or minimum instead

Supported ad type:

• Sponsored Product

Execution timezone:

• PST

2. Create a Bid Dayparting Rule

From the Automation Rules page:

1. Click Create Rule

2. Select the advertiser

3. Select Bid Dayparting

4. Enter the rule name

The page will remind you that:

• Bid multipliers support two decimal places. If the resulting bid exceeds the platform cap, the capped value is used to keep the ad serving normally.

• Automation rules only apply to active targeting and start running at the top of the hour.

• After automation is enabled in Xnurta, bid changes made in the Instacart console or in third-party platforms may be overwritten. Maintain bids in Xnurta whenever possible.

3. Configure Bid Multipliers by Time Slot

On the dayparting panel, you can set different bid multipliers by weekday and hour.

You can configure time slots in the following ways:

• Click a single time slot to set a multiplier

• Drag across multiple time slots to apply the same multiplier in bulk

• Edit an existing slot to overwrite the previous multiplier

• Click Reset All to clear all configured time slots

Rules:

• Maximum multiplier: 1000

• Up to two decimal places

• Unconfigured slots default to 1.00

Reference:

• 1.00 means keep the base bid unchanged

• Greater than 1.00 means increase the bid

• Less than 1.00 means decrease the bid

4. When the Rule Takes Effect

Bid Dayparting runs hourly and usually takes effect from the next top-of-hour execution window.

Example:

• If you edit the multiplier for 14:00-18:00 at 10:20, the new setting does not retroactively affect time slots before 10:00

• The system recalculates bids using the updated schedule in the next eligible execution window

5. Instacart-Specific Notes

5.1 Sponsored Product Campaigns with Bid Auto-Optimization

If a Sponsored Product campaign has Instacart bid auto-optimization enabled, Bid Dayparting is skipped.

5.2 System-Added Terms

Terms automatically added by Instacart are not modified by Bid Dayparting even if the campaign is linked to the rule.

5.3 Platform Bid Limits

Final bids are constrained by Instacart API limits:

• If the calculated bid is too high, the system uses the maximum allowed bid

• If the calculated bid is too low, the system uses the minimum allowed bid

6. Recommendations

• If platform auto-optimization is already enabled, Bid Dayparting is not the best primary control method for Sponsored Product bidding.

• Bid Dayparting works especially well for promotions, event windows, and periods with clear intraday traffic patterns.

• Before full rollout, test on a small set of campaigns for at least one full day cycle.