🛒 Groceries
A shopping list that writes itself from the dinners you’ve planned, leaves off what’s already in the pantry, and adds the things you always buy.
Meals → Groceries
How the List Is Made
Every dinner you plan adds its ingredients, for the servings on its card, and amounts for the same thing are added up. What’s already in your pantry is left off. The list looks ahead as far as you shop: a week by default, changed in Account → Settings → Groceries → Grocery Shopping Frequency.
- Under each item, the dinner that needs it and its day (“+ 2 more” when several do).
- At the bottom, In Your Pantry shows what was left off because you have it, each with Add Anyway. When its heading says “2 to check”, two of them have amounts that can’t be compared (a “head” of garlic against “2 cloves”): they’re marked “check the amount”. Assumed on Hand is salt, oil and other basics.
- Don’t need something? Tap the × at the end of its line. A dinner’s ingredient leaves this trip only (your pantry isn’t changed) and comes back if another dinner needs it. Undo is there for a few seconds.
- Rather buy something else? Tap an ingredient’s name and type what you buy instead (“butter lettuce” for “romaine lettuce”). It’s remembered: every recipe that asks for romaine lists butter lettuce, with “(romaine)” after it, and butter lettuce in your pantry counts for those recipes. The recipes themselves don’t change. To go back, tap the name and clear it.
- Skip a dinner on Home and its ingredients leave the list.
Want organic? Tick produce, meat or everything in Settings → Groceries → Organic Groceries. Copy List and Instacart add “organic” to those.
Adding Your Own Items
Type anything into the box at the top (paper towels, birthday candles) and tap Add. It goes in its aisle and says who added it. Add the same thing again another week and it becomes one of your Usuals.
Under the box, Restock shows what ran out in your pantry, newest first: tap one to put it on the list.
Usuals
The things your family buys again and again. Tap + Usuals, tap what you need (− and + set how many), then Add N Items to List.
- A Usual on the list says “Usual”. Its × takes it off the list this time; it stays in your Usuals.
- Something you haven’t needed in months quietly drops out of Usuals. Type it again to bring it back.
Shopping
- Tick items as they go in the cart. Everyone in the family sees the same ticks, so two people can shop one list.
- Shopping together? Pull down from the top of the list to see the other person’s ticks right away.
- Copy List copies it as text, for a text message or a notes app.
- Instacart ↗ copies the list worded for Instacart’s assistant and opens Instacart: pick your store, open the assistant and paste. Copy again after adding things and it asks: Only What’s New, so your cart doesn’t get doubles, or Everything.
- Usually … under an item, in grey, is the product your family buys for it most, learned from grocery receipts you add to the Pantry (“Chips: usually cape cod sea salt kettle chips”). Instacart gets up to three, in order of preference, so it picks yours instead of guessing.
- Expand All opens every aisle at once.
Putting It Away
Back home, tap Add to Pantry (it shows how many you ticked). A popup shows where each thing goes; confirm and they’re in your pantry, and off the list. If you forget, Home and Groceries offer it a couple of hours after your last tick.
When you’re done with the week, Clear All Items at the bottom starts the list fresh.
Forwarding your store’s receipt later? Things you already put away from the list aren’t added again. See Grocery receipts.
Still Stuck?
Email [email protected] and we’ll get back to you. Or see all help articles.