How to connect Instacart to Claude Cowork

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Introduction

Cowork is Anthropic's AI agent for knowledge work. Think of it as Claude Code for everything else. It works autonomously with your computer, local files, and applications to accomplish complex tasks.

This guide walks you through the easiest and most secure way to connect your Instacart account to Cowork via Composio Connect, enabling it to create a shoppable recipe page for lasagna, generate a grocery list for a vegan dinner, find grocery stores near 90210 in the US, and more such actions on your behalf without compromising your account security.

Also integrate Instacart with

Connecting Instacart to Claude Cowork

1. Open Customize

In Claude Desktop, click Customize in the left sidebar, then select Connectors and click the + icon at the top.

Claude Desktop connectors screen with Add custom connector selected

2. Add the Composio MCP server

Click Add custom connector and paste in the Composio MCP server URL:

bash
https://connect.composio.dev/mcp
Add custom connector dialog with Composio MCP server URL

3. Authorize in your browser

Click Connect. You'll be redirected to a browser window where you can authorize Composio to continue.

Composio authorization screen for Claude Cowork

4. Connect your Instacart account

Back in Cowork, ask the agent to connect to Instacart or give it any Instacart-related task.

For example, ask Cowork to:

  • "Create a shoppable recipe page for lasagna"
  • "Generate a grocery list for a vegan dinner"
  • "Find grocery stores near 90210 in the US"

It will prompt you to authenticate and authorize access.

That's it. Composio's tools are now available in Cowork, and your Instacart account is ready to use.

What is Claude Cowork?

Claude Cowork is Anthropic's agent for general knowledge work. It can use your computer, files, and connected applications to complete longer-running tasks across your work tools.

With Composio Connect, Cowork can securely access apps like Instacart through MCP without you sharing account credentials directly with the agent.

What is the Instacart MCP server, and what's possible with it?

The Instacart MCP server is an implementation of the Model Context Protocol that connects your AI agent and assistants like Claude, Cursor, etc directly to Instacart's shopping and recipe platform. It provides structured and secure access to Instacart's APIs, so your agent can create shoppable lists, generate recipe pages, and discover nearby retailers on your behalf.

  • Instant shoppable list creation: Ask your agent to generate a shareable Instacart shopping list page from a set of grocery items or meal plans.
  • Recipe page generation: Have your agent create a recipe page on Instacart, complete with a unique URL for easy sharing and shopping.
  • Nearby retailer discovery: Let your agent find available Instacart retailers in your area based on postal code and country code, so you always know where to shop.
  • Shareable shopping experiences: Generate URLs for both shopping lists and recipes, making it simple to share curated grocery plans with friends, family, or colleagues.

Supported Tools & Triggers

Tools
Create Recipe PageCreate a recipe page on instacart + return shareable url.
Create Shopping List PageCreate a shopping list page on instacart + return shareable url.
Get Nearby RetailersGet nearby retailers by postal code + country code.

How to build Instacart MCP Agent with another framework

FAQ

What are the differences in Tool Router MCP and Instacart MCP?

With a standalone Instacart MCP server, the agents and LLMs can only access a fixed set of Instacart tools tied to that server. However, with the Composio Tool Router, agents can dynamically load tools from Instacart and many other apps based on the task at hand, all through a single MCP endpoint.

Can I use Tool Router MCP with Claude Cowork?

Yes, you can. Claude Cowork fully supports MCP integration. You get structured tool calling, message history handling, and model orchestration while Tool Router takes care of discovering and serving the right Instacart tools.

Can I manage the permissions and scopes for Instacart while using Tool Router?

Yes, absolutely. You can configure which Instacart scopes and actions are allowed when connecting your account to Composio. You can also bring your own OAuth credentials or API configuration so you keep full control over what the agent can do.

How safe is my data with Composio Tool Router?

All sensitive data such as tokens, keys, and configuration is fully encrypted at rest and in transit. Composio is SOC 2 Type 2 compliant and follows strict security practices so your Instacart data and credentials are handled as safely as possible.

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