New York AG Scrutinizes Instacart's Algorithmic Pricing
Practices
On January 8, 2026, the New York Attorney General's Office
sent a formal information request to Instacart seeking details
about its pricing practices and compliance with New York's
recently enacted Algorithmic Pricing Disclosure Act. The AG's
letter follows a December 2025 report by Consumer Reports and
Groundwork Collaborative alleging that Instacart users were shown
materially different prices for identical products at the same
stores and at the same time.
The AG's letter raises concerns that Instacart's pricing
experiments—and the tools it offers to retailers and CPG
brands—may constitute "personalized algorithmic
pricing" under New York law, which requires a clear and
conspicuous disclosure whenever an algorithm sets prices using
personal data. The Attorney General specifically questions whether
Instacart's current disclosures, which appear only through
fine-print links on certain pages, satisfy
