Azure Standard is a great option for organic, bulk groceries. But is it best for your family? Here are some pros and cons of shopping with Azure Standard.
Ditching the grocery store is more than just a trend. It’s a great way to truly examine your food supply and grow connections with your food.
Chicken and beef look great, packaged neatly on a grocery store shelf. But that picture is doing consumers a disservice.
A 2021 study found that 40 percent of children think bacon and chicken nuggets are plant-based foods.
I don’t think it’s a surprise that in 2025, 6 in 10 Americans reported it’s important to them to know where their food comes from.
Enter in – Azure Standard.
Azure Standard is an online, bulk, organic grocery store. It’s an incredible option for people looking to shop healthier for a great price.
There are some nuances that make shopping at Azure Standard different. Are they worth learning? Let’s look into it together!
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More About Azure Standard
Azure Standard is an online, bulk, organic grocery store. It’s a one-stop shop for everything from bulk baking goods to nutritional supplements. It’s truly a wonderful resource for non-GMO products.
Deliveries are scheduled about once a month.
You place your orders online, where they are fulfilled at the main warehouse in Oregon. From there, your goods are loaded onto a semi truck that makes stops at multiple locations. When your goods ship, your card is charged, and you are notified about the preliminary pickup time and location.
The drivers work with your drop coordinators to work out the time and pickup locations. Your drop coordinator is a fellow Azure Standard customer who volunteers their time and efforts to bring Azure Standard to an area that might not otherwise get it.
It’s not uncommon for customers to drive 45 minutes or more to a drop location. If there is enough demand for an order in a certain area, you can create your own stop along the route with the help of a drop coordinator.
It’s essential that you sign up for email updates and provide your contact information to your drop coordinator.
Several Azure customers gather to help the delivery truck driver unload the groceries and sort them by customer. Many hands make light work! Once you have your goods (I like to double-check my order by referencing my Azure account on my phone), you can load your car and leave.
Pros to Shopping with Azure Standard
​When you commit to anything, there are pros and cons to that commitment. Let’s look at the good and the bad that come with shopping at Azure Standard.
1) The Azure Website is Easy to Navigate
Since Azure Standard is a website-based ordering system, they win huge points for having an easy-to-navigate website. From both a mobile and desktop perspective, I am always able to access the latest products, my past orders, and any of my account information.
2) Delivery Locations Are Usually Local
I am so fortunate to have a drop location at the next town over. If, for some reason, the demand at my current drop were to disappear, there is another drop about 30 minutes away from my house.
Via the website, you can select drop locations and work with drop coordinators, no matter where you choose to pick up.
3) So Many Ways to Save Money (So You Don’t Have to Pay Full Price!)
Azure dedicates a tab on the website to what’s on sale. I can also stay up to date with email messages on sale items. This is a great way to save money on organic products!
Azure cash is another great way to save money.
Azure Cash is a rewards program that gives you a percentage back on certain groceries. When you purchase more, you get more Azure cash. What’s great about this feature is that you can save it up and use it on future orders! If you order exclusively through Azure Standard, you can expect to accrue Azure cash quickly.
The final way to save money with Azure Standard is to use the referral program.
When you share your link (it’s generated when you create your account. Here’s mine!) and others make a purchase of $100 within 60 days, you can get a $25 on your account as an Azure thank you!
When you find yourself reordering a product, check and see if it has an Azure share link. You can share affiliate links from your account or for specific items.
If you are interested in supporting our work here at The Learning Life, you can use our Azure Standard link! Start your account by clicking here or clicking on the picture below.
4) Azure Standard Offers a Wide Variety of Products
Azure Standard is one of the places to get bulk goods, raw cheeses, and all-around natural food.
In recent years, they have expanded their product line to include baby items, beauty items, and laundry items. I have noticed that these items rotate, whether they’re seasonally available or have limited availability. But as popularity grows, I’m hoping home goods are more readily available.
5) There Are No Membership Fees
This is one of the top three reasons I use Azure Standard. I love the fact that I don’t have to pay a membership fee!
There are plenty of other clean-eating, online grocery stores that require you to pay a monthly or annual membership fee. I understand that it takes a fee to operate services like this. But the additional cost when I’m already paying extra for higher-quality food can be a deterrent.
I also love the fact that Azure Standard doesn’t charge a membership fee because I don’t order every month. I usually order every six months. My account stays active, I still have access to quality food, and I’m not paying an additional fee on the months I’m not using their services.
6) They Stay On Top of Reminders
I know what stage my order is in every step of the way, thanks to Azure Standard’s communication settings.
Orders must be finalized and sent to Azure Standard prior to purchase. This means you can load your cart up, but not confirm your order. It’s important you pay attention to what stage your order is in!
When you confirm your order, you will get an email saying so. You will thus get follow-up emails for when your order ships, when your card is charged, and when your order is expected to arrive.
If your order date, time, or pickup location changes, you will also get an email encouraging you to coordinate with your drop coordinator.
Even though picking up my groceries can be inconvenient or hard to schedule, the effective communication makes it all worth it!
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Related Blog Posts
Beginner’s Tips for Buying Meat in Bulk
Cons to Shopping with Azure Standard
While I love Azure Standard, there are some downsides to shopping with a bulk goods, online grocery store.
1) Not All Items Ship
Azure Standard determines inventory when your order is processed to ship, not when you place your order. That means that you may order something, but it won’t ship.
Azure is great about flagging items that are low in stock or letting you know when they will return to stock. And you are never charged for items that don’t ship.
However, it can be hard to go without items for a period of time. Especially if they aren’t available from another resource.
2) Purchasing in Small Quantities Might Not Make Sense
Your Azure order is a monthly occurrence. That means if you exclusively shop with Azure Standard, you need to order enough goods to get you through the month.
While they do offer bulk dairy products and pantry staples, it can be hard to store those items if you aren’t already equipped with large glass jars and other bulk storage solutions. The same applies to refrigerated items. Do you have the space to store a month’s worth of dairy products?
The shipping process may also impact your purchase selections. I have never had a refrigerated item show up spoiled, but that doesn’t mean it won’t happen.
3) Delivery Times Aren’t Usually Consistent or Convenient
Your truck delivery time will likely not fall on the same day or time. So it’s impossible to anticipate a delivery.
Personally, I have had deliveries happen in the first week of the month and the last week of the month. I have picked up deliveries at 10 am and others at 5:45 pm.
If you work a job that you can’t step away from, you should definitely consider getting help to pick up your orders.
Struggling to store and cook bags and bags of food?
When you buy food in bulk or work with a farmer and find yourself with bags of beef fat and beef bones, it can be overwhelming to figure out how to use up everything! If you want insider tips on how I practice what I talk about, sign up for my email newsletter!
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