Developed in North Bay and now available across Canada in English, Gofer.run aims to simplify one of consumers\u2019 most time-consuming tasks: figuring out where to buy what. Users can share smart lists with family members, digitize handwritten notes, and run comparisons that prioritize the lowest overall basket rather than just individual deals<\/p>\n
With grocery bills still climbing, a North Bay-based\u00a0startup is betting that price transparency can put money back in your\u00a0pocket. Gofer.run, a free\u00a0app, compares unit prices across nearby stores and builds the lowest-cost basket based on how many stops a shopper is willing to make.<\/p>\n
The app is\u00a0designed to give shoppers more control at the checkout.<\/p>\n
Gofer.run is a grocery comparison app that helps you\u00a0identify the lowest prices across multiple grocery stores in your area. The company says it\u00a0often saves users about 25 per cent\u00a0on their grocery bill.<\/p>\n
“At a time when food prices remain elevated across Canada, the app aims to bring transparency and competition back into everyday grocery shopping,” says a company release.\u00a0“The January 2026 Consumer Price Index\u00a0report confirms Canada leads the G7 in terms of food inflation at 6.3 per cent, following increases of more than 25 per cent\u00a0over the past five years. For many households, those increases have added up quickly.”<\/p>\n
Unlike traditional flyer apps or store-specific tools, gofer.run compares prices across all grocery stores in your neighbourhood and recommends the most cost-effective combination of stores for a user\u2019s grocery list. It picks up both sale and non-sale priced items and then compares them across all stores in a shopper\u2019s specified area to find the lowest cost per 100 grams or 100 millilitres.<\/p>\n
It can take a minute or two to do a \u201cgofer run,\u201d depending on the size of your\u00a0list, as the app is crunching a tremendous amount of data. It is comparing product by product across all stores.<\/p>\n
“For instance, if ketchup is on your list, it will pull all ketchup products from all stores and compare prices,” says\u00a0Co-Founder Mark Sherry. “Once the shopper has input their grocery list into gofer.run the app then uses an algorithm to give the shopper the best combination of stores and products to reduce their bill. So, if there are 50 items on a list, it will pick the lowest cost store that can fulfill all the items if the shopper wishes to only shop at one store.”<\/p>\n
If the shopper chooses to go to two stores, it sorts the lowest cost bundles by store, three stores the same, up to six stores.<\/p>\n
“One specific item on the returned grocery run may not be the lowest cost overall, but the combined basket of goods is the lowest based on how many stores a shopper is willing to go to. If shoppers are willing to go to more than one store, it literally could save a family of four hundreds of dollars per month.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe use technology in a practical way,\u201d Co-Founder Eric Dion added. \u201cIt\u2019s not about changing what people buy; it\u2019s about helping them avoid overpaying for the items they are looking for. We have created a ‘Trivago’\u00a0for groceries.”<\/p>\n
How Gofer.run Works<\/p>\n
Users enter or upload a grocery list, and gofer.run analyzes prices across nearby grocery stores to show where each item is cheapest. The app then provides a clear breakdown of potential savings, empowering shoppers before they ever step into a store.<\/p>\n
\u201cPrice transparency changes behaviour,\u201d said Dion. \u201cWhen consumers can easily compare prices, it encourages fairer competition and discourages tactics that rely on hidden markups elsewhere in the cart. We are building the one app that helps consumers with all their grocery-meal planning needs.”<\/p>\n
Key Features Include:<\/p>\n
\n\tPrice comparison by unit across neighbourhood stores (e.g., $\/100 grams or $\/100 millilitres) for accurate product comparisons
\n\tSmart grocery lists that can be shared with family members before the actual \u201cgofer run\u201d so all household members can add to the list
\n\tWeekly flyers\/Price-matching lists to easily use in-store
\n\tPhoto search, allowing users to snap a picture of a product to compare prices while actually shopping, or find out which stores carry the product
\n\tList digitization, converting handwritten lists into digital ones
\n\tSaved lists and multiple shopping runs for recurring trips
\n\tEndless Recipes, easily allowing ingredients to be added to a \u201cgofer run\u201d
\n\tHighlights Canadian products by designating products with a maple leaf.
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The company claims early users say the app not only helps reduce grocery costs but also simplifies decision-making.<\/p>\n
Gofer was developed in North Bay,\u00a0with a focus on everyday Canadians who shop across multiple grocery chains and want simple, unbiased price information.<\/p>\n