Investigation reveals algorithmic experiments charging neighbors different amounts for identical items
A Consumer Reports investigation uncovered Instacart running AI-powered pricing experiments that charge different customers different amounts for identical groceries—sometimes varying by 23% for the same basket at the same store at the same moment.
The findings reveal algorithmic price testing on essential food purchases. Using hundreds of volunteers shopping simultaneously across major chains, researchers discovered price manipulation affecting three-quarters of products tested. Shoppers had no knowledge they were part of active experiments while grocery inflation already strains household budgets.
The Hidden Experiment Affecting Your Grocery Bill
Coordinated tests reveal AI algorithms sorting shoppers into different price brackets for basic necessities.
The investigation reveals systematic testing across major retailers. Thirty-nine Seattle shoppers ordered identical 20-item baskets from the same Safeway on the same day. Instacart’s AI sorted them into five different price brackets, with totals ranging from $114.34 to $123.93. In Ohio, Target customers faced four price tiers for the same cart, spanning from $84.43 to $90.47.
Key findings from the Consumer Reports study:
- Evidence found at Albertsons, Costco, Kroger, Safeway, Sprouts Farmers Market, and Target
- Price differences reached $2.56 per individual item
- About 75% of products showed varying prices across simultaneous shoppers
- Instacart confirmed 10 retailer partners currently run pricing experiments
- Frequent families could pay hundreds to over $1,000 extra annually
Columbia Business School’s Len Sherman warns of broader implications: “Every step that we take as a consumer is being bundled together in these massive databases and being analyzed so that the next time we confront a purchase decision, everything we’ve ever done is going to factor into the price we see.”
Instacart defends the practice as helping “retail partners learn what matters most to consumers and how to keep essential items affordable.” However, shoppers who discovered they were unwitting test subjects described the practice as “manipulative and unfair.”
The company insists current experiments are “randomized” rather than personalized, but experts warn the infrastructure for targeted surveillance pricing already exists.
What This Means for Your Family’s Food Budget
Simple steps to protect yourself while regulators catch up to algorithmic pricing.
Start checking your Instacart receipts against in-store prices and comparing costs with family members placing similar orders. The FTC is scrutinizing these practices, and lawmakers are advancing the Stop AI Price Gouging Act. Until then, your grocery dollars remain subject to experiments you never agreed to join.
