One of the easiest things to do is go to the grocery store to pick up one thing and end up buying several other things without getting what you originally went to the store for. People use their smartphones for just about everything; watching movies, listening to music, reading books, playing games, you name it. There's a service or app for just about everything you could want your Android device to do, so why not use it to help you keep track of your grocery shopping? This is a list of top shopping list apps that'll help you stay organized on your next grocery run. Hit the break to get started.
Out of Milk is one of the top list apps on Android, and it's been around for quite some time. It's packed with tons of features to help you keep your shopping trips extremely organized, and even extends a bit beyond just grocery shopping into a to-do list. One of the most innovative features that really makes this app stand out is real-time sharing of shopping lists with other users alongside a web interface. If you live with other people and you both split up the shopping duties, this can be an incredibly helpful to use. You can both actively add and remove items from your current shopping list, so when one person is out shopping and checking off things they're buying, any other person reading that list will see which items that were already bought. This helps to avoid buying more than one of something you need, which can save you money and the headache of returning it. Plus, this works on a web page, too, so even people in your house without smartphones can take advantage of it.
On top of the real time sharing, Out of Milk also lets you make a “pantry list” of things you have at home. If you think you might be out of sugar, for example, but you didn't put it on your shopping list, you can simply check your pantry list and see if you have any left. Both of those lists work extremely well together to make sure you never forget any necessities.
Aside from the two lists and sharing, there's a handful of other features in the app, including grouping for different products, the ability manually enter product information or scanning it in with a barcode, price information and price history on products, and a few other things. The pro version of the app, which only runs a few bucks, gives you theme and widget support and allows you to store coupons in the app. Overall, it's an excellent app that's worth trying out.
Play Store Download Link (Pro)
OI Shopping List is from OpenIntents, a developer who has a large catalog of simple, great apps in the Play Store. Their Shopping List app is no exception, especially if you just need something clean and simple with a bit of customization. Plus, it's a totally open-source application, and that always tends to score a few extra points in the Android community.
OI Shopping List doesn't have as many features as other apps in the list, but it takes a few things and does them really well. The app gives you the ability to create several different check lists which can be anything from a grocery list or a to-do list, then gives you a handful of customization options and extra features to go along with it. The app can store different prices for different stores, which can help you keep track of how much things cost from store to store. You will also find a ton of customization options. You can change the font style, size, and color, and the app features many different themes to change the entire application. Want a traditional sticky note appearance for your shopping lists? No problem. Prefer something a little more Holo-esque? It can do that, too. For those of you that like simple, yet flexible and customizable apps, OI Shopping List is an excellent choice.
The app is free in the Play Store, and there are several extension apps that integrate nicely with it from the same developer.
Our Groceries Shopping List is a fully-featured app supported by a web interface that also includes cross-device and cross-platform syncing of lists. The biggest trick up its sleeve is it's baked-in ability to store ingredients for recipes, which can be handy if you're making a shopping trip just to pick up something for a specific meal.
The app has a very nicely designed Holo interface, so it gets points for style. Aside from that, it's fairly basic, but the really interesting stuff shows up when you start putting together your shopping lists. You can set up a shopping list for whatever you need to pick up, and if you tie together multiple phones with a single email address, any device that sees the list can update it and the changes will be immediately reflected on other devices in the group. It supports Android devices, iOS devices, and BlackBerry devices, so as long as everyone else in your family has some type of smartphone, you're in luck.
In the shopping list menu, you can add and remove items from the list, as well as put each different item into a specific category. Carrots and apples would fall into a produce category, for instance. This makes organization in longer shopping lists a bit easier. You can scan barcodes to add items or to add details and pricing to items as well, and all of this is instantly mirrored on any device that's connected to your account. Aside from the shopping lists, the app also offers recipe lists. You can create different recipes and add the specific ingredients it calls for, including how many of each ingredient you need. Selecting an item from this screen doesn't mark it off of anything, though; instead, selecting an ingredient will immediately add it to your shopping list so you'll know to pick it up next time you're out.
Overall, if you have split the shopping duties with other family members and often cook meals that require specific ingredients, Our Groceries Shopping List is worth a look. It works extremely well and offers a simplistic interface in front of some pretty robust features.
Evernote isn't a shopping list app, per se, but if none of these other apps have really caught your eye and you already use the extremely powerful Evernote for other notes, it isn't hard to set it up to act as a fantastic grocery list/to-do app. Evernote has full check list support within notes, and any notes you edit are synchronized across any devices signed in with your account. This can easily replicate the lists and synchronization that other apps offer. However, other Evernote features can take it just a bit farther, especially if you like to meticulously track your receipts, spending, and coupons.
Thanks to Evernote's ability to store tons of pictures and other types of files, it can be used to store receipts for certain shopping trips alongside your grocery lists, as well as storing any coupons or discounts you may need when you're out shopping. And with Evernote's sorting functions and tagging abilities, keeping everything tracked and organized is just as easy. You could set up a notebook specifically for shopping lists and files related to it, then create a shopping list with a deadline by the end of the week. After picking up everything you needed, scan the receipts into the grocery list note and store them to keep track of later on. You can even use the tags to try and keep up with fluctuating prices for different products.
Evernote isn't the simplest solution, so if you're just looking for something quick and easy to use just for making shopping lists, it may not be your app. If you're already a heavy Evernote user, though, why not throw in some grocery lists on top of everything else while you're there?
These are just a few apps that can make your shopping trips a bit more organized and less of a headache. Did we miss any of your favorite apps that you like to use instead? Let us know in the comments.
A couple of months ago, Splashshopper grocery list program quit working. It was about 4 years old but easy to use, logical, and efficient. But I had to make a change. I did a lot of checking around and settled on Out of Milk. Their Tech. Support has been very prompt and very willing to pass on almost every question i had to their development team.
There is no key or symbol you can tap to take you directly to your Needed grocery list. You need to scroll all the way to the bottom of all the categories to get to it. Ponder how that works when you are shopping and moving from department to department ;(
I can’t search for an item and quickly mark it for purchase.
I find the categories, which are listed above the Needed items, a nuisance. I don’t care of the needed items are grocery store categories, more or less, i.e. i don’t care if they are vegetables, pasta, cosmetics. I just want to quickly access my Needed list, and see an alphabetized list of needed items.
I’ve been trying out quite a few apps in this category. Many are either too simple or has too many features. My current favorite is https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.swiftlist
It is extremely easy to use, clean interface and allows me to organize items according to the supermarket where I do my shopping.
Does your app have prices?
Yes, you can add prices to items with Listonic. ;-)
Yes, you can add prices.
I believe Staple List is a great newcomer to the shopping list arena. With powerful budgeting and cost analysis and tracking of your shopping habits it helps with features people need like calculating totals on the fly and allowing you to view most visited stores and how much you spend there over a specific time period. It learns from you as you shop and enhances your ability to make best choice decisions.
Is there no way to enter an item.. say perhaps Wonder Bread, and get a general, on average price in your area? I am not sure if I am not using the apps right or if this feature doesn’t exist. Any Help?
Try flipp, it gives you the flyers for your zip/postal code and you can create a shopping list that will show the sales for those items OR you can easily use the search feature to find Wonder Bread if it’s on sale.
Doesn’t yet scan barcodes yet, though.
I love it, especially the quick list!
Thanks Jacklyn, there are some cool updates on the way including a even smarter quick list :)
Gosh, I just use the notepad on my phone to keep my list. Works great for me! :)
I used to do that, but one of these apps really do work better. It often remembers what you bought in the past, so once you type a couple letters it brings up previous categories. It’s much easier to share with your partner(s). So while one person is driving to the store, the other can update the list in real time. You can create different lists (chores, Grocery, hardware store, etc) and share them across other platforms and users. You’re completely correct that a notepad works! This just works “better”. Yes, that’s my subjective opinion, but think you should give it a try.
Now I just want one geo based.
Since I’m in extrict budget, I need an application were I can scan the items…everytime I use the calculator I have a big difference in prices.
Try to use ( Shop Calc ) it will help you to put the name of item and the price and scan it .
Still waiting for the right app in this category. Must haves: 1) sync across multiple devices (my wife makes the list. I do the shopping), 2) Isle location specifics like NandOut (graphical…not just a number) so I’m not running back and forth down an isle trying to find one item among 1,000 , 3) import from CSV file like Out of Milk (except their importer is not working for my list of 350 items). Don’t see this is any app so far.
Question for anyone: do any of these apps allow you to set your own categories? I’m using Listonic, I also tried some other one (can’t remember sorry) and in both, all the categories are fixed. You can change an item from one category to another, but you can’t create new ones or delete existing ones. The way I shop, I don’t categorise things in types of food, but in which shop I buy it from – eg I buy meats in a number of different shops and markets, and dry goods in the same place I buy some fresh produce and some cleaning agents. Any ideas?
NandOut gives you complete control over its hierarchical data base. You create any category and then map its
store aisle location for your shopping list. I put a 10 minute instructional on the Google Play to help you get the most from the app.
The only problem is the scanner for the free version DOES NOT work. Ugh!
I loved OI shopping list with the exception that i cant save my items list externally, so when i change my phone or have to factory reset i have to start all over again
I just downloaded Out of Milk and used it to go shopping. It seems very nice, especially the synch between the website and mobile. Thanks for your guidance.
Also try “Veggie Shopping list generator” it sorts in store and aisle and create a shopping list from recipes.
Give NandOut a try from Google Play. You can easily maintain its database and it sorts the list in aisle sequence.
NandOut is what I’ve been looking for, EXCEPT is can’t sync with other devices :( Love the isle location and need that. Hate running back and forth down isles trying to remember where an item is.
We used to use Out of Milk, its good but it didn’t have the flexibility we were looking for… Well, we were looking for an app that could support all kinds of lists like Movies to see, books to read, places to go, etc… My wife and I started using ‘Lists 2 Share’ it handles them all and seems to sync better than other apps.
You should use Springpad. That app does everything you are asking for.
Still loving Lists~2~Share… We use it a lot now and have so many different lists we share on there
Give Mark!t a try. Very simple…
But you say this serves to compare prices, but what if you just want to make shopping lists and swiftly mark products as you buy without complexities or maintaining prices, but the speed is what you want, I said that is great.
Have you tried CartCrunch? SUPERB!
The only grocery list app that I liked was Cloudlist which is defunct. All these apps have critical issues. I need an app that let’s me share some lists and not others. I need a database of my items tied to the list (not the user – I am looking at you, OutofMilk). Lastly, I need to be able to import my list of items.
None of these apps fulfill my requirements.
Don’t forget “Myshopi”. I was pretty happy as my wife coukdsend me the list while I arrived at the store.