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The free tool below runs entirely in this browser — no account, nothing stored or transmitted. Redact anything you would not want kept before you type it.
Open the companion tool →Why a fixed basket is the honest instrument
Prices move for supply, season, and promotion. Holding the list constant is the only way an ordinary shopper can see whether the same basket costs more at different times or channels.
State attorneys general have opened surveillance-pricing inquiries into grocery and retail, and several states have bills aimed at essentials; a personal log is a legitimate datapoint to include.
The protocol
- Fix a list of 10–15 items you buy regularly, with sizes and brands.
- Record the price, store, date, and time for each, twice a week for two weeks.
- Note any loyalty card, app, or coupon used and whether it changed the price.
- Compare the same items across two stores and, if possible, online versus in-store.
- Write the pattern, then keep, switch, or report — do not guess from one shop.
What the tool does
Build a grocery price comparison log It runs locally in this browser and sends nothing.
Limit first: This is a record-keeping and comparison aid, not legal or financial advice. It cannot prove that a price was personalised, and it does not know what a company's pricing model does internally.
Open the companion tool →Cost and free path
Cost: Free: one complete run in this browser, no account. Optional $4 one-time unlock allows unlimited runs of this tool on this browser. The free path and safety guidance never require payment.
Rule status (mixed route): Status, 2026-10-03: no federal essential-goods pricing rule; several state attorneys general have open surveillance-pricing inquiries and bills are pending in multiple states.
Automated decision this documents: dynamic or personalised pricing on essential goods
Free path, in order (no cost):
- BLS Consumer Price Index for the official trend to compare your log against
- Your state attorney general's consumer protection division
- A local consumer or food-security organisation that tracks grocery pricing
What this cannot do: It cannot prove that a price was personalised, and it does not know what a company's pricing model does internally.
Sources checked 2026-10-03 · source bank reviewed against the live pages listed in metadata.
One human next step
If the same basket costs materially more across sessions or channels, send the log to your state attorney general; several are accepting pricing complaints and a structured log is easy for them to use.
Research log and safety checks
AI-assist path: not used for a verdict. This builder organises the reader's own documents and names an independent source; it does not infer authenticity, eligibility, or legal rights. §6.9/§6.10/§6.11 disclosed in the batch report; §6.12 status line carried in metadata as `status_line`.
§0.5 protection result: category is ai-pricing-transparency; crisis-adjacent: no; fear/urgency/scarcity toolkit used: no. The protective function is free and the paid feature is convenience only.