Managing your inventory

Adding a new item

You can add an item from your Dashboard or from the Inventory page. Tap the big + button (top right) and fill in the details.

1. 1

   Tap "+ Add" in the top right

   This opens the Add item panel. You can also tap the "Add item" button on the Dashboard.

2. 2

   Enter the item name

   Type what the item is — be as specific as you like. Cheddar cheese, Leftover lasagne, Skimmed milk.

3. 3

   Set the quantity and unit

   Enter the amount you have and choose the unit from the dropdown: grams, kg, litres, ml, pieces, or any custom unit.

4. 4

   Pick the storage zone

   Tell FridgeFlow where in your fridge this item lives. This powers the Fridge Visualizer view.

   ❄️ Freezer

   🔝 Top shelf

   📦 Middle shelf

   ⬇️ Bottom shelf

   🥬 Crisper drawer

   🚪 Door
5. 5

   Add an expiry date

   Tap the date field and choose the use-by or best-before date from the calendar. This is what drives FridgeFlow's alerts.

6. 6

   Optional extras

   You can also add a purchase price (useful for tracking costs), tags (like "dairy" or "meal prep"), and notes.

Import items from a receipt

Save time by scanning your grocery receipt. FridgeFlow uses OCR (Optical Character Recognition) to automatically extract item names, quantities, and prices — then you add storage details in one go.

1. 1

   Tap "Import Receipt" on the Inventory page

   Look for the Import Receipt button in the top right, next to the + Add button.

2. 2

   Upload or capture your receipt

   You can:

   • Drag and drop a receipt image (JPG, PNG, HEIC)
   • Click to browse your files
   • Use your camera to take a photo (mobile)
3. 3

   Wait for OCR processing

   FridgeFlow will analyze your receipt and extract items, quantities, and prices. This usually takes 10-30 seconds depending on receipt size.

4. 4

   Review extracted items

   Check the list of items that were detected. Each item shows:

   • Item name (cleaned and normalized)
   • Quantity with unit (kg, g, pcs, etc.)
   • Price per item

   If something looks wrong, you can rescan or proceed to edit individual items.

5. 5

   Add storage details for each item

   For each extracted item, set:

   • Fridge zone: Where you'll store it (freezer, top/middle/bottom shelf, door, drawer)
   • Expiry date: When it will expire (smart defaults provided based on item type)

   FridgeFlow automatically suggests storage zones and expiry dates based on the item type. For example, milk defaults to 5 days, bread to 7 days, and frozen items to 6 months.

6. 6

   Add all items to inventory

   Tap "Add all items" to bulk-import everything. All items will be added to your inventory with their prices tracked for budget insights.

Smart Scan — add items with a photo

Smart Scan uses AI vision to recognise grocery items from a single photo. Snap a picture of your grocery bag, your counter after a shop, or individual items — and FridgeFlow will identify everything automatically.

1. 1

   Tap "Smart Scan" on the Inventory page

   Look for the Smart Scan button with the camera icon. You can also access it from the dashboard quick actions.

2. 2

   Upload or take a photo

   You can:

   • Drag and drop a photo onto the upload area
   • Click "Browse files" to pick a photo from your device
   • On mobile, use your camera to take a photo directly
3. 3

   Wait for AI analysis

   FridgeFlow uses AI vision (Google Gemini 2.5 Flash by default) to recognise items in the photo. This usually takes 5–15 seconds.

4. 4

   Review and edit detected items

   Check the list of detected items. For each item you can edit:

   • Name — correct any misidentified items
   • Quantity and unit — adjust amounts
   • Fridge zone — select where to store it
   • Expires in — set the number of days until expiry

   Remove any items you don't want to add by tapping the X button.

5. 5

   Add all items to your inventory

   Tap "Add all items" to bulk-import everything. All items will appear in your inventory with their details pre-filled.

Partial consumption

Not everything gets used all at once. Partial consumption lets you deduct a portion of an item — pour 200ml from a 1L bottle of milk, use 5 of 20 potatoes — without marking it as fully consumed. The remaining quantity updates automatically.

1. 1

   Tap "Use" on an item

   From the inventory list, hover over an active item and tap the Use button. Or open the item detail page and tap "Use some".

2. 2

   Enter the amount to use

   Type the quantity you want to consume. Use the quick amount buttons for common portions (e.g., "Half" or predefined amounts).

3. 3

   Preview the remaining amount

   FridgeFlow shows you how much will be left before you confirm. Make sure it looks right.

4. 4

   Confirm

   Tap Confirm to deduct the amount. The item's quantity updates and you'll see the change in your activity log. If the quantity reaches zero, the item is automatically marked as consumed.

Viewing and filtering your inventory

The Inventory page shows all your items by default. Use the filter tabs at the top to quickly find what you need.

The Fridge Visualizer

Switch to the Fridge view for a visual layout of your fridge. Items appear as colour-coded labels in the zone where they're stored.

1. 1

   Switch to Fridge view

   On the Inventory page, tap the Fridge toggle in the top right (next to the List toggle).

2. 2

   Read the colour codes

   Red = expired or expiring today. Orange/Amber = expiring within a few days. Green = fresh, no rush.

3. 3

   Tap any item chip to open it

   Tapping a coloured chip opens the item's detail page where you can edit it or log a status change.

4. 4

   Add items directly to a zone

   Each zone has a small + Add button. Tap it to add a new item that's pre-filled with that zone.

Editing an item

1. 1

   Find the item

   Scroll through your inventory list or use the search bar to find it.

2. 2

   Tap the item to open it

   This opens the item detail page showing all its information.

3. 3

   Tap "Edit"

   Change the name, quantity, expiry date, or any other field. Tap Save when you're done.

Marking items as used or wasted

When you finish an item or need to throw it out, update its status. This keeps your inventory accurate and powers your waste analytics.

Deleting an item

To delete an item entirely (not just log it as used), open the item and tap the Delete button at the bottom. You'll be asked to confirm before anything is removed.

Common questions