Shopping Lists & Sharing

With pon, you can easily create shopping lists to organize your purchases.

Create a shopping list:

  1. Go to the list overview.
  2. Tap on the “+” symbol.

Edit a shopping list:

  1. Swipe from right to left over a list in the list overview.
  2. Select “Edit” to change the name or settings.

Delete a shopping list:

  1. Swipe from right to left over the list.
  2. Select “Delete” – done!

💡 Tip: In pon, often one single shopping list is enough, as items are automatically grouped by shopping locations.

In pon, you don’t need a separate shopping list for each supermarket – because pon automatically organizes your items by shopping locations.

📌 In other apps, you might create a list for “Walmart” and a list for “Target” – in pon, one single shopping list is enough, such as “Shopping List” or “Weekly Groceries.”


Why does this work better?

1️⃣ Automatic grouping by shopping locations
➡️ Instead of manually managing different lists, your items are automatically grouped by shopping locations.
➡️ All items for Walmart, Target, Costco, and others are neatly organized in one list – but sorted by supermarket.


2️⃣ Dynamic adjustment based on your location
➡️ When you enter a supermarket, pon automatically moves that store to the top so you can immediately see what you can buy there.
➡️ This means you don’t have to jump between different lists.

Example:

  • You’re shopping and standing in Walmart.
  • pon recognizes this and shows you all items for Walmart directly at the top of the list.
  • Later, if you’re at a Target, that supermarket will move to the top.

Result: Everything stays organized without the need to manage multiple lists.


3️⃣ Alternative locations – when you can buy items at multiple supermarkets
➡️ If you can buy an item at multiple stores (e.g., “Milk at Walmart or Target”), you can assign alternative locations to it.
➡️ Depending on where you are, the item will automatically be assigned to the appropriate supermarket.
➡️ If you don’t buy it, pon will move it back to its original group – keeping your list always up-to-date.


4️⃣ Perfect overview – where is it most worth shopping?
➡️ Since pon groups items by supermarket, you can see at a glance where you have the most items to buy.
➡️ This way, you can easily decide which store is most worth visiting, because you can get the most items there at once.

📌 Example:

  • You have 8 items for Walmart, 5 for Target, and 2 for Costco.
  • pon will display this grouping directly on your list.
  • Now you can decide whether to go to Walmart first, since you have the most items to buy there.

In pon, you can customize the order of your shopping lists so that your most important lists are always at the top.

Here’s how to change the order:

  1. Press and hold a shopping list.
  2. Drag the list to the desired position.
  3. Let go – done! 🎉

📌 Note:

  • The lists will stay in the exact order you arrange them – pon does not automatically reorder them.
  • If you only use one shopping list, you don’t need this feature – in pon, one list is often enough, as items are automatically grouped by shopping locations.

Adding items in pon is fast, easy, and flexible. There are several ways to do it, depending on how you prefer to enter your items.


 1️⃣ Add items from the product catalog

  1. Open a shopping list.
  2. Tap on the “+” at the bottom right.
  3. The product catalog will open – here you’ll find all categories with suggestions.
  4. Tap on an item to add it to the list.

💡 Tip: Items you buy often are quicker to find in the “Frequently” and “Suggestions” sections!


 2️⃣ Search directly for an item

  1. Tap on the “+” in the shopping list, then tap on “+” again or directly into the search field.
  2. Type the first few letters of the item – pon will immediately suggest matching products.
  3. Select the desired item.

📌 Tip: pon takes into account how often you buy certain items, so your most important products will appear at the top!


 3️⃣ Add items using the barcode scanner

  1. Tap on the “+” in the shopping list.
  2. Select the barcode scanner at the bottom left.
  3. Scan the barcode of a product – pon will automatically recognize it and add it to the list.

💡 Tip: If a product is not in the database yet, you can save it directly as a custom item so you can quickly find it next time!

In pon, you can manually sort your items or use smart sorting to keep your list perfectly organized.


1️⃣ Manual sorting via drag & drop

Press and hold an item and drag it to the desired position.
✅ You can rearrange items within the list or move them to another supermarket section.
✅ This allows you to organize your shopping in the most efficient order according to your shopping route.

📌 Example:
You want to move “Tomatoes” further up because you buy them right at the entrance? Just drag and drop them to the desired spot!


2️⃣ Smart sorting – pon automatically learns how you shop

If you want to save time on manual sorting, you can use smart sorting:
✅ pon remembers the order in which you check off items while shopping.
✅ On your next shopping trip, these items will be automatically sorted in the same order.
Manual changes improve smart sorting as pon adapts to your shopping behavior.

📌 Example:
If you always check off milk first, then bread, and finally pasta in the supermarket, pon will adopt this order for future shopping trips.

💡 Important: If you “uncheck” an item (remove the checkmark), this action will not be included in the smart sorting as pon interprets it as an “Undo.” The order will remain unchanged.

💡 Tip: If you rearrange an item later, pon will still consider this change and adjust the future order accordingly.


3️⃣ Move items to a different shopping list

Swipe an item from right to left.
✅ Tap the blue arrow to move the item to a different list.

📌 Example:
You accidentally have an item in the “Weekly Groceries” list but want to move it to the “Party List”? Just swipe & move!

In pon, you shouldn’t just leave checked-off items on the list but actively remove them – because this helps pon learn your shopping habits and automatically optimize your lists.


Here’s how to remove checked-off items:

Pull the list down – all checked-off items will be immediately removed.
✅ Alternatively, you can set up for checked-off items to be automatically removed as soon as you close the app.
📌 Go to a list → Tap on the list name → “Other” → “Automatically remove items”.

💡 Tip: If you just want to check off items but not delete them right away, you can also manually “uncheck” them – but keep in mind the next point!


Why is removing checked-off items important?

pon remembers your shopping order:
➡️ As soon as you check off and remove an item, pon saves the order in which you complete your shopping.
➡️ The next time, these items will be automatically sorted correctly.

pon recognizes which items you need regularly:
➡️ Checked-off and removed items help pon learn when you need to repurchase certain items.
➡️ They will then automatically appear in “Suggestions” or under “Frequently”.

📌 Important:

  • If you uncheck an item, it doesn’t count as a purchase for pon – the app interprets this as an "Undo" and doesn’t learn from it.
  • There’s no need to “keep” items on the list in pon, as suggestions and smart reminders automatically take care of this for you.

The Smart Sorting in pon helps you automatically sort your shopping list by remembering the order in which you check off items while shopping. Over time, your list adapts to your shopping route – all without manual adjustments.


How does pon learn the correct order?

pon analyzes exclusively on your device (it is never transmitted to us) your shopping behavior based on the following criteria:

Check-off order
pon remembers the order in which you check off items. If you always check off "milk" first, pon will automatically place this item higher on the list next time.

Location recognition
For your shopping to be counted, pon must recognize that you are actually in a supermarket. For this, location recognition must be enabled – but pon does not store location data and does not transmit anything to third parties.

Shopping location assignment
Items must be assigned to a specific shopping location (e.g., “Milk – Walmart”). Items with the setting “any” cannot be sorted meaningfully, as they can be bought at any store.

Minimum number of items
For pon to calculate a meaningful order, at least five items per shopping trip should be checked off.

Deleting after shopping
pon only learns from your shopping if you remove the checked-off items from the list. You can do this by pulling the list down or shaking your iPhone.

📌 Important: If you later “uncheck” an item, pon interprets this as undoing – the check-off order will not be saved in this case.


What does this mean for you?

The next time you add an item to your shopping list, pon will automatically sort it in the same position where you last checked it off in the supermarket.

📌 Example:

  • If you always check off apples first because they are right at the entrance, pon will automatically place them at the top of your shopping list on your next trip.
  • If you want to change the order, you can easily move the items manually – these changes will then be incorporated into smart sorting and help it better adapt to your shopping habits.

pon also remembers how often you buy items.

In addition to the order, pon also remembers how often you buy certain items.

📌 As soon as a frequently bought item is running low, pon will automatically suggest it in the
➡️ “+ → Suggestions” section.

So you don’t have to keep recurring items permanently on your shopping list, there’s the product catalog with these sections:

Frequently – Items you buy particularly often.
Suggestions – Items that should be repurchased soon.
Custom – Your custom-added products.
All – A complete overview of all saved items.

If smart sorting isn’t working as expected, there could be several reasons for this. For pon to learn the correct order of items, certain conditions need to be met:

Set a shopping location:
pon can only learn the smart sorting for items on your list that are assigned to a specific shopping location. If an item is marked as “any”, pon cannot learn the order, as this item can be purchased at any supermarket.

At least five items per shopping trip:
For pon to calculate a meaningful order, at least five items must be checked off during a shopping trip. Fewer items are not enough to determine a reliable order, and as a result, pon will not learn in this case.

Enable location recognition:
pon needs to recognize that you are actually in a supermarket during your shopping. For this, location recognition should be enabled.

Remove items from the list after shopping:
Only when you remove checked-off items from the list can pon mark the shopping as complete and save the order. You can do this either by swiping down (pulling the list down) or shaking your iPhone. If you later “uncheck” items, pon interprets this as an undo, and the position won’t be saved.

What can you do?

👉 Check if your items have a specific shopping location (not “any”).
👉 Make sure you can check off at least five items per shopping trip.
👉 Enable location recognition if it’s turned off.
👉 Remove checked-off items from the list after shopping.

If you follow all the points and smart sorting still doesn't work, it can help to manually sort the items first. These adjustments will also be used by pon to further improve smart sorting.

When you share a shopping list with others, pon will show you which items have been newly added or changed.


Blue dots – what do they mean?

🔵 A blue dot before an item means:
➡️ The item has been newly added or updated by another participant.
➡️ This way, you can instantly see what has changed without having to search through everything.

📌 When do the blue dots disappear?
✅ Once you close pon, all items are marked as “read” and the blue dots disappear.

💡 Tipp: Falls du gerade einkaufen bist und neue Artikel von einem anderen Teilnehmer erscheinen, kannst du die blauen Punkte nutzen, um schnell zu sehen, was sich seit deinem letzten Blick auf die Liste geändert hat.


🔔 Stay instantly informed

If you want, you can also receive push notifications to stay informed about changes to your shopping list.

📌 Here’s how to activate notifications:
➡️ Open a shopping list → Tap on the list name → Select “Notifications” and enable the desired options.

To share a shopping list with others, you can easily add participants:

1️⃣ Add participants:

  • Open the shopping list you want to share.
  • Tap on the list title or the action icon (share) at the top right.
  • Select “Add participants”.
  • Tap on “+” to add someone.

2️⃣ Invite via email or link:

  • Via email: Invite participants directly via email by tapping on “Invite”.
  • Via link: Create a participation link and share it via WhatsApp or another messaging app. Just select “Send link”.

Important note for use with multiple people:

Each participant should have their own pon account. This is the only way the app can distinguish between different people and fully utilize features like automatic push notifications.

Example:
If Martin is currently shopping at Walmart, everyone else will receive a notification:
📢 “Martin is currently shopping at Walmart. Is there anything else missing from the shopping list?”

Synchronize lists across multiple devices:

If you want to use your lists on multiple devices, simply create a pon account:

  • Go to Settings (⚙️) → Sign In and create an account.
  • Sign in on all your devices with the same account.
  • Your lists will be automatically synchronized across your devices.

This way, your shopping is always perfectly organized – whether alone or shared with others!

In pon, you can easily share shopping lists with others. However, for optimal collaboration, each participant should have their own pon account.

Personalized push notifications:
When a list is shared, pon sends automatic push notifications when a participant edits the list or is currently shopping.
Example:
📢 “Martin is currently shopping at Walmart. Is there anything else missing from the shopping list?”

If all participants use the same pon account, the app cannot distinguish who is currently shopping – and no one will receive a notification.

Faster list synchronization:
When you allow pon to receive notifications, the list synchronization speeds up. pon sends silent push notifications as soon as a list is updated. This means:

  • Your list will be updated before you even open the app.
  • If another participant adds new items, you can see them immediately – even if you're currently in the supermarket.
  • pon can remind you of items you might have missed.

Privacy & Security:
We take privacy very seriously and do not send unsolicited messages or ads. All notifications are designed to make your shopping more efficient. You can find more information in our privacy policy.

When you share a shopping list with others, you can always see who is participating:

1️⃣ Show participants:

  • Open the shopping list and tap on the list title.
  • Select the “Participants” section.
  • Alternatively, in a list, tap on the action icon (⋮) at the top right and select “Add participants”.

2️⃣ Can I remove participants from the list?

In pon, all participants are equal. This means that no one can be directly removed by another participant.

If someone should no longer participate in the list, there are two options:

The participant removes themselves:
Ask the person to delete the list on their device. It’s easy to do:

  • Swipe from right to left in the list overview with your finger.
  • Select “Delete”.

Alternative: Clone the shopping list and share it again:
If you don’t have direct control over whether someone leaves the list, you can clone the list for yourself and share the new version only with the desired participants:

  • Swipe from right to left in the list overview.
  • Select “Clone”.
  • In the new list, you can then invite participants again.

This way, you have full control over who you share your shopping list with – without any restrictions for other participants.

When you share a shopping list with others, pon can automatically notify you when someone is currently shopping at a known supermarket. This way, you can quickly add missing items or let others know if something has changed.


🔔 Automatic notification when shopping

✅ pon recognizes when a participant is shopping at a learned supermarket.
✅ You will receive a push notification with the information:
📢 “Lisa is currently shopping at Walmart – is there anything missing?”

📌 Benefit: If you remember something, you can directly add items to the list before the person reaches the checkout.


📍 How does pon know when someone is shopping?

The shopping location must be learned – pon only recognizes supermarkets that you or other participants have already used.
Location sharing must be enabled – this is the only way pon can recognize when someone starts shopping.
The user must have the shared shopping list open – so pon knows they are actually shopping there.

📌 Privacy:
➡️ pon does not store or transmit location data.
➡️ The app only triggers the information that someone is currently shopping at a supermarket named “Walmart” or “Target.”
➡️ pon does not know the exact location, only the name of the shopping location for the notification.


🔧 Here’s how to activate the feature:

➡️ Open a shopping list.
➡️ Tap on the list name.
➡️ Select “Notifications” → “Notify participants”.

💡 If you don’t want to receive notifications, you can disable them anytime in the settings.

In pon, there are the sections "Frequent," "Suggestions," "Own," and "All." If you want to delete products that you have added yourself or that are misspelled, you can do so easily:

1️⃣ Delete own products:
➡️ Go to the "Frequent," "Suggestions," "Own," or "All" section.
➡️ Swipe from right to left over the item.
➡️ Select the "Delete" option.

⚠️ Important note:
✅ Predefined products from the product catalog cannot be deleted because the catalog is regularly updated. Deleted items will reappear after an update.

🔍 Important: This feature does not work in the search!