ManyStops or AnyList

AnyList is a well-made shared shopping list, with recipes and a meal calendar beside it. This page puts the two apps side by side for one kind of week: one list, shopped across several stores. Everything we say about AnyList comes from its own website and help pages, read in September 2026. Where its site says nothing about something, we say that too.

A handwritten shopping list on a notepad. — Every list app starts from the same place: what the house needs this week.

What AnyList does well

AnyList shares a list with the people you live with, and a change shows up for everyone at once. It imports recipes from websites and plans meals on a calendar. It runs on your phone, your computer and Apple Watch, and you can add items by Siri or Alexa.

With AnyList Complete, its paid plan, you can assign items to stores and filter the list by store. You can give each store its own order of categories, with aisle names you type. You can also enter what an item costs at each store, and AnyList shows the cheapest store for that item. AnyList Complete is $9.99 a year for one person, or $14.99 a year for a household.

What matters when you shop at several stores

These are the questions a week at several stores raises. Each answer for AnyList is what its own site describes. In ManyStops the list, your stores and your prices are free, and the decisions come with Plus. Every new account starts with a free trial of Plus.

One list, split between your stores: ManyStops: each item carries the stores that sell it, and each store gets its own list for the trip.; AnyList: with AnyList Complete, you assign an item to a store and filter the list by store.
Which stores to go to today: ManyStops: Decide lays out each way to do today's stores, with the drive. With Plus, it also says what each way will likely cost.; AnyList: its site describes a filter for each store. We found nothing there about planning the trip itself.
Your own prices, at any store: ManyStops: you type a price as you pick the item up, or photograph the receipt afterwards. The price is shown again the next time you stand in front of that item.; AnyList: with AnyList Complete, you enter prices and see a running total. You can compare one item's price across your stores.
The list in the order you walk the store: ManyStops: it learns each store's order from the order you pick things up, with nothing to set up.; AnyList: you arrange the categories for each store yourself, once.
Whether the trip can wait: ManyStops: it works out what has probably run out at home. With Plus, when nothing is urgent, it says the trip can wait, and until when.; AnyList: we found nothing about this on its site.
Who owes what after a shared trip: ManyStops: with Plus, it shows each person's share after a shared trip.; AnyList: we found nothing about this on its site.
Shopping with no signal: ManyStops: it keeps working at the back of the store and catches up when you are back online.; AnyList: its site does not say.
Ads: ManyStops: none.; AnyList: its site does not say.

When AnyList is the better fit

If you do most of your shopping at one store, a good shared list is most of what you need. AnyList is a strong one. Its recipes and meal calendar sit right beside the list, and they work on your watch. Its household plan covers everyone at home for one yearly price. ManyStops Plus covers you and one more person, and Teams covers a whole group.

When ManyStops is the better fit

ManyStops is built for the week that takes in several stores. It helps with the choice before you leave: which stores to visit, and what the trip will cost. It keeps your own prices at every store you use, the independent ones included. It can also tell you the trip can wait this week.

Moving your list across

Copy your list as text from the app you use now. In ManyStops, open Import a list in the menu and paste it. Each line becomes an item.

Read from anylist.com and help.anylist.com in September 2026. Plans and prices change, and AnyList's own site is the place to check them.

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