Help — how to use BoxTracker

Getting started with box tracking

BoxTracker helps you keep track of things stored in boxes, warehouses, basements or garages. Recommended workflow:

Create storage locations — places where your boxes are kept (e.g. Basement, Garage, Attic, Balcony).
Create boxes and assign them to storage locations. Each box automatically gets a QR code.
Add items to boxes — name, description, quantity, optionally a photo and expiration date.
Print QR codes and stick them on boxes. Scan with your phone to instantly see the contents.

Storage & Structure

Storage locations can be nested to create a tree structure. For example: House → Basement → Left Shelf. Assign boxes to specific locations so you always know where they physically are.

Tags — Organize Across Boxes

Tags let you categorize items regardless of which box they are in. Practical examples:

Season (Summer, Winter, Christmas) — find all Christmas decorations even if they are in three different boxes.
Person (Martin, Eva, Kids) — know who owns what.
Status (Lent Out, Needs Repair, To Discard) — track what needs attention.
Priority (Important, Spare Parts) — quickly find what matters.
Room (Kitchen, Bedroom) — where an item belongs, even if it is temporarily elsewhere.

Add tags when creating or editing an item. Enter them separated by commas — if a tag does not exist yet, it will be created automatically.

Expiration & Alerts

For items with an expiry date (food, medicine, batteries, fire extinguishers), set the expiration date. BoxTracker will alert you by email before anything expires. The Expiration section shows all items sorted by date. Daily and monthly reports are sent automatically.

Groups — Sharing with Others

Groups let you share boxes with colleagues, teammates or anyone you work with. Use cases:

Shared storage — everyone can see what is in the basement or garage.
Moving — everyone sees which boxes are packed and what is inside.
Company storage — employees have an overview of materials and tools.

QR Codes

Every box has its own unique QR code. Print it and stick it on the box — anyone with a phone can scan the code and see the contents. In the group or storage detail, you will find a button for bulk printing QR codes on a single A4 page.

Public Sharing

Boxes and entire groups can be shared via a public link — anyone with the link can view the contents without logging in. Useful for moving (the carrier sees the item list), inventory, charity collections or selling. Find the public link in the box detail; enable public inventory in the group settings.

Search

Search looks through item names, descriptions and box names. You can find an item even if you do not remember which box it is in. Results can be further filtered by tag.

Favourite boxes

Mark the boxes you use most with the star ☆ on the box page or in the box list. Your favourites (personal — other group members do not see them) and recently opened boxes are right on the home page — the + button adds an item straight away. In the box list just start typing to filter boxes instantly (press / to jump to the field).

Box & item photos

You can add a photo to any box or item. Photos are automatically resized and a thumbnail is created. On the box detail page, the photo is displayed prominently at the top — useful for quick visual identification of contents.

Box notes

Each box can have a short note — displayed as a yellow banner on the detail page. Use it for important reminders: "Fragile!", "Do not touch", "Winter items only", etc. Notes are also visible to visitors of the public link.

Lending tracker

You can record who you lent an item to, when and the due date. The Lending page shows all lent items at a glance. Overdue items are highlighted on the dashboard. Examples:

Tools — lent the drill to a neighbor, due back by Friday.
Books — track who borrowed what from the library.
Company equipment — keys, projectors, laptops and who has them.

Regular audit

You can set an audit interval for boxes (3, 6 or 12 months). BoxTracker tracks the last audit date and shows a dashboard alert when it is time to check a box. Confirm the audit with a single click on the box detail page. Useful for warehouses, archive boxes or valuable items.

Export & Import

In your profile, you can export all data as CSV or JSON — useful for backup or migration to another system. The CSV file can be opened in Excel. Import allows you to bulk-upload items from a CSV file into a selected box.