Containd App
Looking for help? Check out our Youtube tutorials. Links at the bottom.
The Problem With Physical Inventory
Most people have more stuff than they can reliably remember. Where did that box of holiday decorations end up? Which drawer has the spare charger? Traditional inventory apps ask you to type names into a list, one by one, which is slow enough that most people give up before they finish.
Containd takes a different approach. It is built around two ideas: make capturing items as fast as possible, and make organizing them look like the real spaces they live in.
Faster Ways to Build Your Inventory
Containd offers several paths to add new items, all designed to minimize manual data entry:
Photo capture — take a photo and the app creates a new item with the image attached.
Barcode scanning — scan a product barcode and the app can look up product information automatically.
AI-assisted creation — point the camera at a group of items and let the app detect and create multiple entries at once.
Document extraction — photograph a receipt, label, or product sheet and pull structured data from the image.
Each method produces a real inventory entry with images, categories, custom fields, and tags, not just a name in a list.
Visual Organization on a Spatial Canvas
The most distinctive feature in Containd is the 2D canvas. Instead of scrolling through alphabetical rows, you arrange items on a zoomable, pannable workspace that can show a background image of the actual shelf, drawer, box, or room.
This matters because spatial memory is powerful. Seeing a virtual version of a physical space helps you remember where things are, even months later. You can drag items around, group them, zoom in to inspect details, and zoom out to see everything at once.
Finding Things Later
Building the inventory is only useful if you can search it afterward. Containd supports:
Full-text search across names, descriptions, tags, and custom fields.
Tree navigation through nested locations and containers.
Barcode and QR entry — scan a label to jump directly to the matching item.
Deep links — open a specific item from another app or a shared link.
Statistics and overviews for the items visible in any location.
Labels, QR Codes, and Printing
Containd can generate labels with QR codes that link back to any item. Labels can be shared as images or printed using supported Bluetooth thermal printers directly from the app.
Offline First, Free to Use
The entire core app runs offline. No account is required. All data is stored locally on the device. When you want extra features like AI-powered item creation or cloud backup, those are available as optional connected services.
Backup and Data Control
You can create full backups, restore from previous backups, and export your data. Google Drive sync exists as an experimental option. You stay in control of what leaves the device.
Part of a Larger Toolkit
Containd works with several companion apps that extend its capabilities:
Banana Scale sends real-world measurements into Containd so items arrive with dimensions already filled in.
Beacon Scout tracks Bluetooth-tagged items by signal strength and links back to the matching inventory entry.
URLs2QR generates and scans QR codes, including codes that link directly to Containd items.
Containd Kanban offers a recursive task-planning workspace that can complement inventory management.
Simple Hidden Notes provides lightweight note collections that can be opened directly from Containd items.
Future plans include hardware integrations such as Bluetooth beacons, label printers, RFID readers, and LED indicators, all designed to make managing physical items easier.
Containd is available for free on Android and iOS. Visit the software page for download links, or subscribe to the newsletter to follow development.
Need some help? Check out some tutorials:
Youtube playlists with help and tutorial videos for Containd:
