We Tested Home Inventory Apps. These Are the Best Ones.
These apps can make an overwhelming process a little easier.
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Updated · 3 min read
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Editor & Content Strategist Making a home inventory — a record of everything you own — is a smart idea in case you ever have to file a home insurance claim. But listing every piece of furniture, decor and clothing can be overwhelming.
Home inventory apps can make the job faster and easier. I tested a bunch of them to find the ones that actually lived up to their promises.
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✔️ Ease of use. Was the interface intuitive, or did it take a while to figure out how to add items and keep everything organized?
✔️ Efficiency. Because creating a home inventory can be so time-consuming, I prioritized apps that made the process quicker.
✔️ Ability to back up and share your inventory. You may want to send your inventory to your partner or insurance adjuster. I favored apps that made this easy.
✔️ Cost. Although I tested several paid apps, I found the free ones were generally just as good. As a result, I didn’t include any paid options in this list (though some have premium upgrades available).
Based on these criteria, here are the best home inventory apps I discovered.
Biggest time-saver: Bevel
✅ Best feature: AI technology that translates photos or videos into an itemized inventory.
❌ Downside: Price estimates can be inaccurate.
How it works: Bevel was created after the 2025 Los Angeles fires to help survivors put together lists of items they’d lost for their insurance companies. The site, bevelmade.com, speeds up the process of making an inventory by using AI to scan photos or videos of your home.
I started by snapping a photo of my office. Bevel identified more than 20 objects, including a desk chair (which it estimated at $250), a waste basket ($40) and a coffee mug ($15). A brief video pan of the same room took about six minutes to upload but turned up dozens of other items.
As with any AI tool, Bevel is prone to errors. For instance, the site valued my cheap Target computer keyboard at $150, and thought my Google Nest router was a diffuser. Fortunately, it’s easy enough to edit or delete listings.
You can also add individual items to each room, with or without a photo. I liked that the site prompts you with other things you might want to add. For example, when I entered a queen-size bed, it suggested things like a mattress, bed frame and night table. You can customize the quantity and cost of each item.
The website adds it all up for you, showing you the total estimated value of the objects in each room and for the house overall. This is a handy way to figure out how much personal property coverage you need.
Available for: Web.
Sharing and download options: You can export your inventory to a spreadsheet or share it with someone else.
Best for voice entries: InventAI
✅ Best feature: Offers a voice option so you can make entries without typing.
❌ Downside: Doesn’t accept videos.
How it works: As its name suggests, InventAI is another home inventory app that relies on AI technology. However, this one is designed to enter one item at a time.
For instance, I took a photo of my computer, and the app created an entry called “Lenovo ThinkPad Laptop.” In the kitchen, it correctly identified a Frigidaire over-the-range microwave. However, in one instance it mislabeled a loveseat as an armchair.
If you need to correct something, you can rename the item either by typing or by hitting the microphone button to speak into your phone. It’s easy to add a bunch of items in a row by hitting the “Add another” button. Previous entries are automatically saved so you don’t waste time going through a bunch of confirmation screens.
To organize further, you can create “containers” within rooms, such as a closet within a bedroom. There are fields to enter the price and quantity of each item, as well as a description.
Note that this app doesn’t attempt to estimate the cost of the things it identifies. You’ll have to put in prices yourself.
Available for: Android, web. (At the time of this writing, the iPhone app was “coming soon.”)
Sharing and download options: You can invite others to view or contribute to your home inventory. Exports are available as PDF, JSON or Excel files.
Best non-AI app: HouseBook
✅ Best feature: Clean, intuitive interface.
❌ Downside: Having to enter everything manually.
How it works: If you’re looking for a non-AI option, this app might fit the bill. It lets you organize your inventory into rooms and containers, then add items with or without a photo.
For each entry, you can fill out fields such as the brand, model, serial number, quantity and price per item. You can also add tags for further organization. The “House Info” tab gives you the total value of all your stuff, based on the prices you’ve entered.
Choosing “add multiple items” means that as soon as you hit “save” on one entry, the camera will come up so you can take a picture of the next item. This helps speed up the process. However, this is a more manual way of creating an inventory than you’d find with either of the previous two apps.
The free version of HouseBook allows up to 200 entries. (For context, I inventoried more than 50 items in my office alone.) To make the most of your allotment, you can add sets of things as single entries, such as your 300-book library or a group of 10 bath towels.
Available for: Android, iPhone, web.
Sharing and download options: You can export your inventory as a PDF or CSV file, or back it up to the cloud. The app can also grant sharing access to others, such as a roommate or partner.
Best old-school option: United Policyholders Home Inventory Spreadsheet
✅ Best feature: Its comprehensive list of every household item you can imagine.
❌ Downside: Doesn’t easily allow for photos and video to be added.
How it works: If you prefer spreadsheets to apps, check out this offering from United Policyholders, a consumer advocacy group. This home inventory template saves you time by coming preloaded with hundreds of suggested items, divided into different tabs by room.
Scanning the list and noting the items you have is quicker than typing everything from scratch. Plus, it can help jog your memory about small things you might’ve overlooked. Once you’ve saved the sheet to your computer, you can customize it any way you’d like. For example, you might want to add columns for quantity or cost.
The template’s been around for a while, judging by a few items on the sheet (cassette player, anyone?), so you’ll likely have to do some editing. And the nitty-gritty level of detail won’t suit all homeowners. For example, do you really need to list how many self-help books you have vs. sci-fi novels?
But it’s easy enough to delete irrelevant entries, and collectors may find the ultra-detailed tabs useful.
Available for: Excel.
Sharing and download options: You can share your spreadsheet the same way you would any other Excel file.
An alternative to home inventory apps
Perhaps the quickest way to create a home inventory isn’t by using an app or spreadsheet at all. Simply taking a video of each room of your house can be an efficient way to document everything you own. I tried it myself and got through two floors plus a garage and deck in about 30 minutes.
Taking photos instead of video is another option. Both videos and photos let your insurance company easily see the value of your belongings.
💡Why make a home inventory?
In the aftermath of a disaster, you’ll likely be grieving the loss of your home, looking for a temporary place to live and struggling to figure out what’s next. Having a home inventory can make filing a claim easier and lighten your burden during a stressful time.
Putting together an inventory can also help you make sure you have enough coverage. You might not realize just how much your stuff is worth until you start documenting it all. If you discover that your personal property coverage limit isn’t enough, you’ll have time to increase your limit before disaster strikes.
Tips for creating a home inventory
If trying to count every kitchen towel makes you want to give up altogether, start with the most valuable items. This might include:
- Furniture.
- Electronics.
- Jewelry.
- Artwork.
- Musical instruments.
- Collections.
- Power tools.
Store your home inventory somewhere outside your home, such as in the cloud or a safe deposit box at the bank. Having an inventory won’t do you any good if the computer it’s on burns up in a fire.
Update your inventory every few years, especially if you redecorate or make major purchases.
Making a claim without an inventory
If disaster strikes before you’ve gotten around to creating an inventory, you can try the following to get the most from your home insurance claim:
- Check your phone and social media accounts for photos of the interior of your home. You can also ask family and friends if they have any pictures taken at your house.
- Look for a list of common household items, such as the United Policyholders inventory above, to help refresh your memory.
- Check your order history at the online stores where you shop most often. Your email account may also have receipts for past purchases.
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