It’s time to get organized.
Whether you own or rent, live in a house, a townhouse, an apartment or even a tiny home, your home is probably full of your stuff. Though you may not think so at first, your stuff is likely worth quite a bit. Furniture, clothes, electronics – if your personal property were damaged, how much would it cost to replace? Adding it all up may seem overwhelming, but luckily, there’s an app for that. In fact, there are several apps and we rounded them up in search of the best home inventory apps.
What is a home inventory?
A home inventory can help you organize and assess the value of the personal belongings inside your home. Once you know the value of your belongings, you can choose the appropriate insurance limits to help protect your stuff should the worst happen. If it did and you were to need to file a homeowners or renters insurance claim, that home inventory would be incredibly helpful in ensuring you’re made whole for the personal property losses you might face. Your home inventory is a handy place to store the information and documents your insurance company and agent will want to see to support a claim, like receipts, serial numbers and model numbers for your belongings.
What to include in a home inventory:
If the idea of creating an inventory of all the contents in your home makes you want to run for the hills, don’t tie up your laces just yet. While you do need to gather a lot of information for a home inventory, the process isn’t as tedious as you might think. In fact, you can even take a video of your home or provide pictures for proof of what you own. But if you do want to go the more detailed route, make sure to mark down the following for each item during your inventory:
- A description
- A picture or video (this will allow you to prove its previous condition to your insurance provider!)
- Cost at the time of purchase
- Current appraised value (*this isn’t required and is only recommended for extremely rare or expensive items)
- Date and location of the purchase
- The receipt (or picture of it) if you have it
- Serial number
Why is a home inventory important?
Before getting started, you may ask yourself, “is a home inventory really necessary?” Great question. A home inventory is pretty important, as it’ll help you determine how much personal property coverage you need for your belongings. You’ll also be grateful you made one if you ever have to file a claim with your insurance provider. Not only will it help you remember exactly what you have in your home should you lose multiple items in a break-in or a house fire, but it’ll also ensure you can get the full value of your items when filing a claim.
What to look for in a home inventory app:
When deciding on the best home inventory app for you, there are a few features you should keep in mind to help make things easier on yourself. In addition to the cost of the app, these features include:
- Ability to create and print labels
- Ability to upload videos or photos per item
- Barcode scanning functionality
- Categorical capabilities (By room, type of item, location, etc.)
- Cloud accessibility
- In-app calculators
- Search feature
Our Top 5 Inventory Apps
- Home Inventory (Available on iOS)
While this app is the most expensive one that we will review here, we believe that this small investment will pay off for homeowners and renters. The app in itself has tools focused on ensuring that you have the appropriate insurance coverage for your home and personal property. Home Inventory has a desktop and mobile app set up, allowing you to access your coverage from home or on the go. You can add notes to each item listed, as well as scan barcodes and attach additional information pertaining to your home’s value.
- Encircle (Available on iOS, Android)
The Encircle app is a great choice for both Apple and Android users to keep an updated inventory of their valuables. Encircle allows you to upload unlimited photos and videos of your home, personal belongings, as well as document value as you go. The Encircle platform also has a feature that provides expert advice on how to assess any damage you need to file a claim for directly through the app. With the Encircle app, rest assured knowing this trusted platform has been tracking all of your belongings and can offer expert assistance until your home insurance coverage takes over.
- BluePlum Home Inventory (Available on iOS)
BluePlum Home Inventory is a great way to manage your belongings, all in one place! While it is only available on iPhone, there is a desktop platform and app that have the ability to sync with each other when connected to the same wifi network. With this app, you are able to upload photos and documentation of your belongings while also grouping them by the room they are in in your home! BluePlum also keeps track of your annual depreciation date and ongoing value of your items in regards to your insurance coverage, should they ever get stolen.
- Momento Database (Available on Android)
With a recurring payment of $3 a month, Memento Database is a great option for Android users to store and keep track of their stuff. Similar to BluePlum, the Momento platform also has a desktop website that can be synced with your mobile phone in order to keep your personal items in order. It is a very user-friendly app that allows you to easily organize your life, without the hassle of having to learn more about data collection!
- Smart Inventory System (Available on Android)
This easy to navigate inventory app was designed to be simple, and that is exactly what it is! Smart Inventory System has three levels of sorting within the app, making it easy for you to categorize and manage your items. This app even works offline, meaning should your power go out, you will still have access to your personal information catalogue. This app also uses QR code scanning technology to help you organize and manage your personal belongings, all while tracking their ongoing value. If your item does not have a barcode or QR code already, the app will automatically make one for you.
