# Pinch Grocery Prices (Australia) (remote · pinch-app.com)

Live Australian grocery prices from Woolworths, Coles, Aldi and Harris Farm.

- Trust score: 71/100 (medium)
- Registry status: active
- Liveness: live
- Owner verified: no
- Last scored: 2026-08-17

## Components

- remote · `pinch-app.com`: 71/100 (this document), [markdown](https://verifymcp.io/servers/com-pinch-app-grocery/api-mcp.md), [page](https://verifymcp.io/servers/com-pinch-app-grocery/api-mcp)

## Channel facts

- Endpoint: `https://pinch-app.com/api/mcp`
- Transports: `streamable-http`
- Auth: `required`
- Version: `1.0.0`

## Trust breakdown

How this component scores in each security and reliability category. Every signal is checked automatically against the live server, and we only credit what we can confirm. Scores are 0–100 per category. Scoring method: https://verifymcp.io/docs/scoring (what has changed: https://verifymcp.io/docs/scoring/changelog)

Scored 2026-08-17.

- **Endpoint Security**: 89/100
  - The endpoint's TLS certificate is valid, in date, and uses a strong key.
  - Authorisation is enforced on tool calls, but the challenge carries no valid RFC 9728 metadata, so a client cannot discover where to get a token.
  - HTTPS is enforced; there's no plaintext access path.
  - The HSTS (Strict-Transport-Security) header is present.
  - DNSSEC check failed: this domain isn't protected by DNSSEC.
- **Transport & Reachability**: 100/100
  - Verified streamable-http transport via a live MCP handshake.
- **Schema Quality & AI Usability**: 63/100
  - AI-judged instruction clarity (excellent).
  - Context-footprint check failed: tool/resource definitions use about 2886 tokens (~288/item across 10 items; 10 tools + 0 resources), over budget; trim descriptions and params.
  - Usage-examples check failed: none of the tools include examples.
- **Stability & Change Management**: 0/100
  - Stability not yet verified: not enough scan history yet (needs a 30-day window).
- **Tool Coverage**: 97/100
  - 100% of tools have a non-trivial description (not blank, and not just the tool's name).
  - 90% of tool parameters carry a description.
- **Capabilities**: 60/100
  - Spec-recency check failed: implements MCP spec 2025-06-18; the latest is 2026-07-28.

**Unverified: 1 category.** A category scored 0 because we could not verify it: authentication we do not have, an unreachable endpoint, or not enough scan history. We only credit what we can confirm.

## Install

### Claude

```bash
claude mcp add --transport http com-pinch-app-grocery https://pinch-app.com/api/mcp
```

### Codex

```toml
[mcp_servers.com-pinch-app-grocery]
url = "https://pinch-app.com/api/mcp"
```

### opencode

```json
{
  "$schema": "https://opencode.ai/config.json",
  "mcp": {
    "com-pinch-app-grocery": {
      "type": "remote",
      "url": "https://pinch-app.com/api/mcp",
      "enabled": true
    }
  }
}
```

### OpenClaw

```bash
openclaw mcp add com-pinch-app-grocery --url https://pinch-app.com/api/mcp --transport streamable-http
```

### Hermes

```yaml
mcp_servers:
  com-pinch-app-grocery:
    url: "https://pinch-app.com/api/mcp"
```

### Other

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "com-pinch-app-grocery": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://pinch-app.com/api/mcp"
    }
  }
}
```

The mcpServers block is a cross-client convention. Remote transports vary, so check your client's docs.

## Changelog

Every change recorded for this component, newest first. Days that predate change tracking, or that we cannot explain, say so: "we were watching and nothing happened" and "we were not watching" are different claims.

### 2026-08-17 (score 71, +35)

- [security improvement] Transport: unverified → pass
- [security] Authorization: Authorisation is enforced on tool calls, but the challenge carries no valid RFC 9728 metadata, so a client cannot discover where to get a token.
- [functional regression] MCP protocol: unverified → fail
- [functional improvement] Tool coverage: unverified → 100
- [functional] First check of Schema quality: fail
- [functional] First check of Tool coverage: 90
- [functional] First check of Schema quality: excellent
- [functional] First check of Schema quality: fail

### 2026-08-15 (score 36)

First indexed and scored.

## MCP tools (10)

### `search_products` (~125 tokens)

Search Australian grocery products across Woolworths, Coles, Aldi, and Harris Farm. Returns product name, price, brand, category, unit price, and whether it's on special.

Input parameters:

- `category` (string): Filter by category
- `limit` (number): Number of results (1-50, default 20)
- `on_special` (boolean): If true, only return products on special
- `query` (string, required): Search query (e.g., 'full cream milk', 'chicken breast')
- `retailer` (string)
- `sort` (string)

### `get_product` (~41 tokens)

Get detailed information about a specific grocery product by its ID. Product IDs are returned in search results.

Input parameters:

- `product_id` (string, required): Product ID from search results

### `compare_prices` (~63 tokens)

Compare prices for the same product across retailers using its barcode. Returns all retailers stocking the product, sorted cheapest first. About 7,800 products have barcode matches.

Input parameters:

- `barcode` (string, required): EAN-13 barcode (e.g., '9300675016902')

### `get_price_history` (~75 tokens)

Get historical price data for a product. Shows price changes over time with stats (lowest, highest, average). History depth depends on your tier (30-365 days).

Input parameters:

- `days` (number): Number of days of history (default: max for your tier)
- `product_id` (string, required): Product ID from search results

### `get_specials` (~123 tokens)

Get current grocery specials and promotions. Filter by retailer or category. Results include savings amounts. Updated weekly. Specials captured before the most recent Wednesday catalogue changeover (Coles/Woolworths) are excluded as unconfirmed; after a changeover the list can be near-empty until the next collection. Individual products still expose such prices via get_product with special_may_have_ended: true.

Input parameters:

- `category` (string): Filter by category
- `limit` (number): Number of results (1-50, default 20)
- `retailer` (string)

### `get_cheapest` (~74 tokens)

Find the cheapest option for a product across all Australian grocery retailers. Searches by name and returns results sorted by price ascending.

Input parameters:

- `limit` (number): Number of results (1-50, default 10)
- `product_name` (string, required): Product to search for (e.g., 'full cream milk 2L')

### `decompose_product` (~743 tokens)

ADVANCED / single item. Do NOT use this to build a shopping list: for any list of 2 or more items, call build_basket (one call, server-side). Use decompose_product only to break ONE item into structured search attributes when you intend to override build_basket's pick for that single item. This does not call any API; it is a structured reasoning step.

OUTPUT: canonical_query, disqualifiers, and suggested_category for that single item.

Fill in every field based on what a typical Australian family would mean by this item. CORE RULE: Unless the user literally specifies a brand, brand_preference MUST be null and the strategy is cheapest-first (unit_price_asc, no retailer filter).

Input parameters:

- `barcode_eligible` (boolean, required): true for branded packaged goods (Weet-Bix, Vegemite, cheese slices, chips). false for fresh produce, meat, and store-brand generics. When true AND a result has a barcode, call compare_prices to check…
- `brand_preference` (string): ONLY set this if the user LITERALLY named a brand (e.g. 'Weet-Bix', 'Vegemite'). If the user wrote a generic item like 'milk', 'chicken breast', 'eggs', 'bread', this MUST be null. When null, Pinch f…
- `canonical_query` (string, required): The cleaned search term to use with search_products. Strip sizes and brands (unless brand IS the product, like 'Vegemite'). 'chicken breast bulk pack' becomes 'chicken breast fillets'. 'Sanitarium We…
- `category_path` (array, required): Ontological path from general to specific, e.g. ['meat', 'poultry', 'chicken', 'breast'] or ['pantry', 'cereal', 'wheat biscuits']
- `disqualifiers` (array, required): Terms that indicate a WRONG product. Results containing these MUST be excluded. e.g. for 'chicken breast': ['thigh', 'drumstick', 'wing', 'nugget', 'schnitzel', 'crumbed', 'marinated']. For 'Vegemite…
- `qualifiers` (array, required): Soft preferences that improve a match but don't disqualify if absent. e.g. ['skinless', 'boneless'] for chicken breast, ['Australian'] for sultanas
- `quantity` (object, required): Target size. Use to filter results after search. Family intent means prefer larger sizes for better unit price.
- `raw_input` (string, required): The item exactly as the user wrote it
- `suggested_category` (string): The grocery store category to filter search results. Use this to prevent wrong-category contamination. e.g. 'Pantry' for rice crackers (prevents dairy lunch packs), 'Fruit & Vegetables' for fresh pro…

### `batch_search` (~668 tokens)

ADVANCED / manual selection. Do NOT use this to build a shopping list: for any list of 2 or more items, call build_basket (one call, server-side, cheapest pick per item). Use batch_search only when you need the RAW candidate products for items you intend to select MANUALLY (for example, to override build_basket's pick on one item). It searches multiple items in parallel and returns raw candidate products per query (up to candidates_per_retailer per retailer) with NO filtering or scoring applied.

WORKFLOW:
1\. Call batch_search with your shopping list items
2\. Review the candidates for each item. For each query, pick the single best product_id per retailer that actually matches what the user wants (correct product type, reasonable size, not a different product). If none of the candidates are a good match for a query, call batch_search again with a refined query (e.g., more specific terms, different wording)
3\. Once you have confirmed product_id selections for all items, call save_basket with your picks

TIPS:
\- Set product_type to help narrow results to the right category (e.g., fresh_produce for herbs and vegetables)
\- Each candidate includes a product_categories field (JSON array of retailer category labels like 'Yoghurt', 'Herbs & Spices', 'Sausages'). Use this to distinguish the actual product type when names are ambiguous (e.g., 'oregano' the herb vs 'oregano sausages')
\- Prefer products where the name clearly matches the query intent
\- For staples (milk, eggs, bread), the cheapest option is usually the store brand
\- If results look wrong (e.g., searching 'rosemary' returns snacks instead of herbs), retry with a more specific query like 'fresh rosemary'
\- Each item includes a 'cheapest' hint with one entry per retailer. This is the cheapest candidate whose product_categories match the inferred subcategory for the query, NOT necessarily the lowest unit_price overall: a clearly off-category cheaper item (e.g., a snack bar under 'peanut butter') is deliberately ex…

Input parameters:

- `candidates_per_retailer` (number): Number of candidate products to return per retailer per item (1-30, default 10). Use more candidates if you expect ambiguous results.
- `items` (array, required): List of grocery items to search (1-20 items).
- `retailers` (array): Filter to these retailers only. If omitted, all 4 are searched.

### `save_basket` (~196 tokens)

ADVANCED / manual commit. Do NOT use this to build a basket from a shopping list: for any list of 2 or more items, call build_basket (it searches, picks the cheapest, totals, and returns a share_url in one call). Use save_basket only to commit a basket from product_ids you have ALREADY chosen yourself (for example, after overriding build_basket's pick on an item). It computes totals and returns a shareable basket URL.

For each item, provide the query string and one product_id per retailer (the best match you found in batch_search results). You do NOT need a pick for every retailer; omit a retailer if no good match was found.

IMPORTANT: Only call this after you have reviewed batch_search results and confirmed your picks. Do not pass product_ids blindly from search results.

Input parameters:

- `selections` (array, required): List of confirmed product selections, one entry per shopping list item.

### `build_basket` (~515 tokens)

MANDATORY for shopping lists. When the user gives you 2 or more grocery items, call this tool ONCE with the full list. Do NOT call decompose_product, search_products, or batch_search per item: this tool searches every item in parallel with built-in query analysis (category routing, brand aliases, subcategory boost) and returns a basket with per-item cheapest pick, per-retailer options, basket total, retailer totals, and a shareable share_url. If the user named the stores they shop at, pass them in 'retailers'; otherwise omit it to search all four.

VALIDATION (mandatory before rendering): The search engine uses keyword matching, so wrong products leak through. Items flagged with a 'review' field on their cheapest pick are LIKELY WRONG and need your attention first. Then scan ALL picks (flagged or not) and check: (1) Is the product actually what was asked for? (e.g. 'frozen chips' is NOT 'frozen blueberries', 'sweet potato' is NOT 'potato', 'chicken fingers crumbed' is NOT 'chicken breast') (2) Is the size/form correct? (e.g. 400g pack is not a valid match for '2kg') (3) Is the selected option the cheapest CORRECT product, not just the cheapest product? If a pick is wrong: pick the correct product from by_retailer options for that item, or mark as '(check in store)'. Recalculate basket_total from your corrected picks.

OUTPUT FORMAT: Line 1: '**Cheapest basket: $X.XX**' (use corrected basket_total). Then ONE markdown table with columns: Item | Product | Store | Price | Size. Then one line: 'View and share this basket: <share_url>'. Use '(check in store)' in the Product cell for items in items_missing or where no correct product exists. No preamble, no per-item narration, no follow-up offers.

Input parameters:

- `items` (array, required): Shopping list items exactly as the user wrote them, e.g. ['4 bananas', 'whole chicken', '12 free range eggs', 'full cream milk 2L', 'spaghetti', 'sliced white bread']. Include any size/quantity in th…
- `retailers` (array): Only return results from these stores. Omit to search all four.

## Diagnostics

Captured diagnostic sections: TLS, DNSSEC, Authorisation, Transports. The full working is on the page: https://verifymcp.io/servers/com-pinch-app-grocery/api-mcp#diagnostics

## Score history

- 2026-08-17: 71
- 2026-08-16: 36
- 2026-08-15: 36

## Links

- Remote endpoint: https://pinch-app.com/api/mcp
- Authorisation metadata: https://pinch-app.com/.well-known/oauth-protected-resource/api/mcp
- Website: https://pinch-app.com/
- Changelog RSS feed: https://verifymcp.io/servers/com-pinch-app-grocery/api-mcp.xml
- Changelog JSON feed: https://verifymcp.io/servers/com-pinch-app-grocery/api-mcp.json
- HTML version of this page: https://verifymcp.io/servers/com-pinch-app-grocery/api-mcp