How does the shopping list work?

What lands on the list, automatically

An item appears here the moment any of these is true - no need to add it yourself:

• State-tracked items - its status is set to “Need to Buy”, by hand or when Oiko restores an archived item that was low when it was removed.
• Count-tracked items - stock is at or below its Low Alert threshold, stock has gone negative, or an upcoming Planned meal needs more of it than you currently have (that shortfall is shown as “Need To Buy: N”).

Thresholds and Count vs State are set per item on the Add/Edit Item form. More on item fields →

Quick Add

For a one-off thing that isn't part of your regular inventory - like batteries for a kids' toy. It creates a lightweight ad-hoc item already marked “Need to Buy”. As you type, Oiko suggests matching archived items so you're not duplicating something you've bought before.

Restocking an item

Tap Quick Restock on any item. Count-tracked items ask how many you bought and add that to existing stock; state-tracked items just flip back to In Stock. Either way you can optionally set an expiry date at the same time. If the item has no category yet (for example, one added via Siri Shortcuts), restocking opens the full Edit form first so you can set one.

Bought vs Delete

Ad-hoc (Quick Add) items get a Bought button instead of Restock - it archives the item, logs it as bought in Activity, and notifies the rest of your household. Delete (the bin icon, available on every item) also archives it, but without logging a purchase. Either way the item isn't destroyed - it's archived and can be restored later by adding a new item with the same name. More on deleting and archiving →

An item linked to an upcoming meal or a task can't be deleted from here until you unlink it - Oiko shows you which meals or tasks are blocking it, with a link straight to each one.

Export / Share

The share icon in the header groups everything currently on the list by category and either opens your device's share sheet or copies it to the clipboard, ready to paste into WhatsApp, Messages, or wherever you shop from.

Automatic, from order emails

Premium households can also forward order confirmation emails to have items picked up automatically. More on order email scanning →