Using the Shopping List
This page is the operational guide for adding items, overriding a default brand, and sending a cart to Instacart — the workflow you use day-to-day. For the underlying capabilities (aisle grouping logic, UPC matching, pantry deduction mechanics), see the Features page; for the homepage pitch on why AislePrompt exists, see the homepage.
Build a list with AI →- 1. Retailer selector — tap to switch between Walmart, Target, Whole Foods, Costco, Publix, and other Instacart retailers.
- 2. Aisle grouping — items auto-sort into Produce / Dairy / Meat / Pantry / Frozen.
- 3. Dedup & unit merge — "1 lemon" + "2 lemons" across recipes → one row of "3 lemons".
- 4. Brand badge — remembered SKUs (Great Value, Barilla, …) appear next to the item.
- 5. Pantry deduction — greyed line shows ingredients skipped because you already own them.
- 6. One-tap checkout — the green pill opens a pre-filled Instacart cart at the selected retailer.
New to AislePrompt? Three ways to build your first list
Option 1 — Ask the AI: Open AI chat, describe a meal ("pasta for two tonight"), and the AI fills the shopping list automatically. No account needed.
Option 2 — From a recipe: Open any recipe page, tap the Instacart cart icon on an ingredient or the full recipe, and it flows straight into your list. Works on any of the 62,000+ recipes in the catalog.
Option 3 — Type any item: On this page, use the text input at the top and type any grocery item ("Greek yogurt", "olive oil", "cherry tomatoes"). Free-text covers tens of thousands of grocery products — no recipe needed.
All three paths land in the same shared list. Mix and match. When you're ready, tap the green "Shop on Instacart" pill at the bottom to send the cart.
Workflow tips on the list view
Checked items collapse out of view so the active list stays short and scannable — tap "Show completed" at the bottom to bring them back. Long-press any row to edit quantity or units in place; swipe left to remove a single line without re-adding it. Use the search field at the top of the list to jump to an item across long carts (40+ items). For the underlying aisle-grouping logic, see Features → Shopping list.
Recipe + chat ingestion
Add a recipe and the ingredients flow into the list automatically. Ask the AI "make this gluten-free" and the list updates. Tap an ingredient on any recipe page to drop just that one item into the list — works for dinner-tonight runs without committing to a full plan.
Overriding a default brand
Tap any item in the list to open the brand picker. Pick a different SKU — store brand, larger size, organic variant — and AislePrompt remembers that choice for the next cart, so staples (pasta, oils, condiments, dairy) auto-fill with your preferred brand on subsequent runs. Mark any item "always buy fresh" to skip brand pre-selection entirely — useful for produce. For the technical description of how UPC matching works, see Features → Shopping list.
Pantry-aware deduction
If fewer items appear on your list than expected, the pantry deduction removed items you already own — open your pantry inventory to see what was subtracted. Toggle any deducted item back on with one tap if you want it shipped anyway. Full deduction mechanics (partial quantities, per-item overrides) are on the Pantry page.
Sending the cart to Instacart
Pick your preferred retailer in the retailer selector — Target, Walmart, Whole Foods, Costco, Publix, Wegmans, Aldi, and most regional US chains — then tap the green "Shop on Instacart" pill at the bottom of the list. AislePrompt opens an Instacart cart with every unchecked item; you select a delivery window and complete payment on Instacart's checkout page. An existing Instacart account is required to place the order — payment and delivery are handled entirely by Instacart. Cart didn't open? See the FAQ below.
Keyboard navigation and screen-reader support
Every shopping-list interaction described above has a keyboard equivalent so the page is fully usable without a touchscreen or mouse. Tab walks through items in render order (aisle headers, then rows within each aisle, then the retailer selector and the "Shop on Instacart" button). Space on a focused row toggles the checked state — the equivalent of tapping the checkbox. Enter on a focused row opens the brand picker — the keyboard equivalent of long-press. Delete or Backspace on a focused row removes the line — the equivalent of swipe-left. / (forward slash) jumps focus to the search input at the top of the list. Aisle headers are <h3> landmarks so screen readers can navigate aisle-by-aisle with the heading shortcut (VoiceOver rotor / NVDA H key). Each row exposes an aria-label that reads the quantity, item name, current brand selection, and pantry-deduction state aloud, and the retailer selector is a labelled <select> so it announces both the current store and the available alternatives. Focus-visible outlines stay on in keyboard mode so you always know which row is active. For AislePrompt's broader accessibility posture — ARIA practice, OS text-size handling, prefers-contrast support, bilingual UI — see Features → Accessibility & language support.
FAQ
Do I have to sign up to build a shopping list?
No. Guest mode keeps the list in browser localStorage. Sign up only for cross-device sync or family sharing.
Can I add items manually, without a recipe?
Yes — type any item into the input at the top and it appears in the right aisle automatically. Free-text matching covers tens of thousands of grocery products.
Does the list dedupe across multiple recipes?
Yes. Two recipes that each call for "1 lemon" produce a single "2 lemons" line. Units normalize automatically (cups → grams, oz → ml).
Can families share a list?
Yes. Households on a shared profile see the same list in real time across every member's device.
I tapped "Shop on Instacart" but no cart opened — what now?
Pop-up blockers are the usual cause: AislePrompt opens Instacart in a new tab and Safari/Chrome can block it on the first tap. Allow pop-ups for aisleprompt.com, then tap again. On iOS Safari, also check Settings → Safari → Block Pop-ups is off for this site. If the cart still does not open, sign in to Instacart in another tab first and retry — Instacart sometimes refuses to receive an external cart without an authenticated session.
Can I use the shopping list with a keyboard or screen reader?
Yes — every touch interaction has a keyboard equivalent. Tab walks through aisles and rows, Space checks/unchecks an item, Enter opens the brand picker (long-press equivalent), Delete removes a row (swipe-left equivalent), and / jumps to the search input. Aisle headings are real h3 landmarks for rotor / heading-shortcut navigation, and each row carries an aria-label that announces quantity, item, selected brand, and pantry-deduction state. See the "Keyboard navigation and screen-reader support" section above for the full mapping.