How Do You Keep Track of Your Collection?

I was wondering if anyone knows any good free sites or software that allows you to keep track of one's figure collection.

I've yet to make an actual record of the toys in my collection. Which I guess has to be odd, seeing as how it feels like I've been collecting for forever...

So any good suggestions?

I know there is Dash Collector-ActionFigures: For Action Figure Collectors to Buy, Sell, Manage, and Value Their Collection

its free for the most part. they have removed a bunch of features on the free side, and now wants you to pay for them (ex. figure value). Also I find it hard sometimes to find a figure to add to your collection because some people add wrong pictures and wrong discriptions thus finding the one you have poses a bit of a problem.

Wait, so the figures have to be registered on the actual site in order for them to be added to your collection - you can't upload pics/info for a certain figure yourself?

You can add info and pics, if I'm not mistaken.

you can edit the info, and add your pics, but if your not the first one to add pics then someone elses pic will show up first.

Just use Microsoft excel or word and make a spreadsheet and add pics that way. Or use openoffice if your a cheap bastard like me.

^ lol

I use MS word, and Flikr.

I use Excel, but this app isn't bad if you collect Marvel figures and have an iPhone..

Free iPhone checklist for marvel universe - Toy Discussion at Toyark.com

At one point I actually had used some old fashioned notebooks to keep tabs on my items. Eventually that evolved into an HTML page of my entire collection, but I brought that site down many years ago.

I did have a Battle Beasts Collection app for my iPhone back when I used to use one. Now I have no record of anything.

For me being as close to a completest as I can be I keep track of my collection through my want list. If it's not on there then i probably have it. What's crazy is when I do set aside time to take inventory and realize I have been selling things I didn't have in my own collection. That is what recently happened to my 80s Joe stuff. I was selling figures I got in lots thinking I had them in my own collection. now I need to try and find some one who has what I need for a decent p[ricce or hope it shows up in the next lot I buy.

by the way I collect the following lines
GI joe 1982-1992
GI Joe modern if it is a remake of a vintage figure
He-man vintage
He-man classic
She-ra vintage/classic
Voltron vintage (have 3 subs for the new stuff)
Thundercats vintage (still deciding what scale to collect in the new stuff)
MASK
Silverhawks
Star Wars vintage
Star Wars galactic heroes - only need a few mroe troup builders then I am done
WWE Rumblers
ATeam vintage both scales
Ghostbuster vintage (trying to decide if I am going to get the new stuff... being this far behind makes it hard)

yeah all of that on a youth directors salary.

The iPhone Marvel Universe checklist is pretty good, but there are mistakes and missing pics. For example the last wave of Spider-Man figures still are listed by Hasbro's placeholder names, but most of them had name changes by the time they got released.

Yea I just tried it out, 25 bucks for a year isn't bad, just not something I am obsessed with. But it's all ready for when I am. Thanks for the site man!

I use an Excell spreadsheet that I made and have refined over the years to keep track of my items. I try to update it daily. It's a lot of work, but it saves me from buying duplicates and from going crazy looking for items within my collection. I haven't found anything online that is as effective.

I collect whatever looks cool to me, so I have a bit of everything. I use shmax.com for my transformers, but I'd love to find something similar that I could use for everything.

I'm kinda surprised that HISS Tank, TFW, Toy Ark, and Thundercats.ws haven't pooled there collective people into building some kinda service for collectors. I'd be down for helping make that happen.

Anyone want to post their preformated excel spreadsheets?

Spread sheet via OpenOffice.

I agree, I would help out. All my collection is MOC and I take pictures of each figure in a light tent so the background is white (no wood table backdrop, or wallpaper, etc. lol). Not to nag on anyone elses pics, But I believe mine would be up there with good picture quailty.

As for my collection, I have all my pictures in their respected folder (ex. Marvel Universe 3.75, Marvel Select, Player Select, Spider-Man 3.75, etc.) and I have just a simple list on MS Word.

photobucket. per my signature.

I use the app on my ipod which keeps Marvel legends, universe, xmo, spiderman etc, it's free, easy to use, I can check off what I have, how many I have and put in the condition of the item, pretty handy, it's not as up to date as I'd like but it;s free. I'd say simply get a list of what's available/made and then just copy/paste it into notepad and then go through your own collection and add a checkmark or have it beside it,

Now that I have my own house, I need to keep track of my collections. That's gonna be fun.

I use Microsoft Office Access as the database, then export the fields to Excel and access the spreadsheets on my Blackberry. I have all Marvel, DC, Halo, Nascar, Diecast, Misc. I have each one with name, series, size, desc. and photo.

I have, original G.I. Joes, G.I. Joe 25th Anniversary, JLU's, Marvel Universe, the original Voltron Pilots, A voltron masterpiece, Original Super Powers, Banpresto Robotech transformable valkyries about 4 inches each, The Original Robotech pilots, Star Wars Vintage collection (new versions, not the originals), hotwheels diecast Batmobiles 1:50 scale, Diecast 1:64 Scale Batmobiles (any brand as long as they are different batmobiles), the 3.75" movie maniacs, Starling Lineups Raiders & Lakers, Mcfarlanes Raiders & Lakers, 90s xmen figures, wwe 3.75 build n brawl figures, Saint Seiya original 4" Diecast figures, and 1:64 diecast famous TV and Movie vehicles.
The way that i keep track is I have a packaged image of every item with the price that i paid for typed on the jpeg, in a folder by each collection. Then i have all of those folders in 1 folder Called My collectables. That's it.
I am up to date with all of my collections. I am just waiting for things to get released, like the last JLU packs, Marvel universe and Star Wars vintage collection. The rest is done!....But i have yet to see the 3.75 Street fighter figs, those might be an additional collection, depending how they look.

I've been using Shmax.com for my Transformers collection. I haven't really kept track of my other collections, but I'm thinking of using Google Docs to whip something up to put on my toy blog.

I'd absolutely love that - it'd be nice to have a decent step-off point with a pre-formatted one!

And, wow...did NOT expect my name to be splashed up front and center on the Ark's home page. It's just "whoa", I'm pretty dang new here. But I have to say I'm grateful though - thanks Deefuzz

And didn't expect so much helpful feedback in this time-frame as well. So thanks a lot to all you guys too. I tried out that Dash website, it's pretty neat, aside from the occasional duplicates that are cataloged, along with totally messed up images - who decided to put a DC Direct Blue Lantern Flash pic for the DCUC Blue Lantern: Flash figure? Humorously, it's the same thing with CnC Arkillo and his DC Direct counterpart.

Though the issue is that I also collect a decent portion of Japanese action figures/toys as well, and most of those seem non-existent on that site (of course...). So I think I'll couple that site together with logging my collection in a spreadsheet. That's where a nice pre-formatted spreadsheet would come in handy, 'cause I'm hapless at where to even start (with categories, grades, etc.)

Everybody's listing their lines, so I guess I'll do it too:

-Marvel Legends (+Icons, Showdown, etc.) (ToyBiz/Hasbro)
-Legendary Comic Book Heroes
-Marvel Universe
-Spider-Man (+Classics, Origins, Movie(s), etc.)
-Marvel Select
-Diamond Select Minimates (Marvel, DC, Indies)
-Shocker Toys' Indie Spotlight
-Star Wars (3.75" mostly)
-GI Joe (started out with Pursuit of Cobra)
-Transformers (Movie(s), Generations, RID, etc.)
-NECA (mostly Player Select)
-DCUC (along with whatever the "rebrand"/"relaunch" will be called)
-DCU Infinite Heroes (I only own like 2...)
-DC Direct
-Green Lantern Classics
-LEGO BIONICLE/Hero Factory
-Play Arts (+Kai, etc.)
-McFarlane (Halo/Halo: Reach)
-Masters of the Universe Classics
-Mobile Suit Gundam (American Bandai)
-Gundam Fix Figuration (think that's what it's called)
-Bandai's Robot Spirits/Damashii
-Bandai's D-Arts
-Max Factory/Goodsmile's figma (+Nendoroid)
-Kaiyodo's Revoltech
-Various Model Kits (Bandai Gundam/miscellaneous aircraft)
-Jazware's Mortal Kombat (one sole figure - yay....)

Funnily enough I was just updating my spreadsheet last night.

I use it to keep track of what I own, what I want to sell, what I have duplicates of, where the item physically is, what I intend to buy and what I want, etc.

I have about 40 different categories as columns then a list under every category heading. Probably not much use for anyone else as it's not particularly sophisticated and very personalised!