Countstead
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Inventory guides

A BoxHero alternative for iPhone and iPad

By Imdad Ismail · Updated

Countstead is a BoxHero alternative for iPhone and iPad: an inventory app you can use without an account, with your records kept on the device. BoxHero is a cloud inventory app made by BGPworks, a company in Seoul, South Korea. It has apps for iPhone, iPad, Android, Windows, and Mac, plus a web app, and its paid Business Plan gives several people their own logins. If more than one person needs a login, or you need Android or a computer, choose BoxHero. If your business records its stock on an iPhone or iPad without separate staff logins, try Countstead first.

I make Countstead, so this is not a neutral comparison, though I have tried to be fair to BoxHero. I have not used BoxHero myself, so every BoxHero fact here comes from its public pages: BoxHero’s website, help center, changelog, terms, privacy policy, and App Store listing as they stood on 18 October 2026. The sources are listed at the end. The page compares features and plan limits, not what each plan costs. BoxHero changes its plans now and then, so check its own site before you decide.

Download Countstead for iPhone or iPad
A Countstead item showing its balance, location, and Add stock, Remove stock, Count, and Transfer actions.
An item in Countstead, with its balance at one location and the actions that change it.

BoxHero vs Countstead at a glance

BoxHero has a free Personal Plan and a paid Business Plan. Where a BoxHero feature depends on the plan, the table names it.

BoxHero vs Countstead (BoxHero facts checked 18 October 2026)
FeatureCountsteadBoxHero
DevicesiPhone and iPad, on iOS or iPadOS 17 or later.iPhone and iPad (iOS or iPadOS 15.5 or later), Android, desktop apps for Windows and Mac, and a web app.
AccountNot needed for local use. Optional cloud sync, part of the Countstead Pro subscription, uses Sign in with Apple.Required. You sign up with Google, Apple, Kakao, or an email address before using it.
Where your records are keptIn a local database on your device. They leave it only if you turn on cloud sync.In BoxHero’s cloud, hosted on Amazon Web Services in the United States, and synced to each device.
Without a connectionEvery core action works offline, including adding items and recording counts.BoxHero’s website says its mobile app works even when you’re offline. Its help center does not say which actions work offline.
Free plan30 active items at one location. Archived items do not count.Personal Plan: 100 items, one user, and one location. Items are counted as unique SKUs, not quantities.
Several people with their own loginsNot available. There are no staff logins or shared workspaces.On the Business Plan: 3 users, with more as an add-on, and roles that set what each person can do.
Barcode scanningYes. Codes are read on the device and matched against your own items.Yes, with the phone camera or a barcode scanner, on every plan.
Printing barcode labelsLabel sheets with Countstead Pro.Label printing inside BoxHero on the Business Plan. BoxHero also offers a free, separate Label Designer for Windows and Mac.
Low stockThe free Low Stock view lists items at or below the level you set. Low-stock alerts on this device are part of Countstead Pro.A low-stock list, with warnings sent through BoxHero’s mobile app, by email, or both, on the Business Plan.
Stock historyEvery stock movement is kept, with no time limit. A correction adds an entry instead of rewriting the original.30 days of activity history on the free plan and the full history on the Business Plan. BoxHero’s mobile app lists the 100 most recent entries; older ones are on the web. Editing a past entry recalculates the stock after it; the edit gets a version number, and earlier versions stay viewable.
Spreadsheet import and exportCSV import of up to 10,000 rows, and a full CSV export of your inventory.Excel import and export on every plan, including bulk edits of existing items.
App languagesEnglish, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese (Brazil), Japanese, Korean, and Indonesian.English, Spanish, French, German, Russian, Japanese, Korean, Indonesian, Thai, Vietnamese, Portuguese (Brazil), and Chinese (Simplified and Traditional).
Ordering and salesNo orders. Countstead records each sale or delivery as a stock movement.Restock orders and sales orders on the Business Plan. BoxHero also keeps a list of the businesses you buy from and sell to, used in those orders.
Connections to other business softwareNone.A developer API on every plan, a Slack connection, live event feeds to your own systems, and links to other apps through third-party automation services. BoxHero’s help center says it has no direct connection to Shopify, WooCommerce, QuickBooks, or Xero.

What both apps do

Both apps find an item when you scan its barcode, and both can bring in an existing spreadsheet: Countstead reads CSV files, and BoxHero reads Excel files. Both can show what is running low. In Countstead, the free Low Stock view in Reports lists items at or below the threshold you set for each item at each location. BoxHero’s low-stock list and warnings are part of its Business Plan.

BoxHero keeps each business’s inventory in a shared workspace that holds its items, locations, and users: one location on the free plan, and three on the Business Plan with more as an add-on. Countstead keeps a separate balance for each item at each location, and more than one location needs Countstead Pro.

When BoxHero is the better choice

BoxHero does a lot more than Countstead. If any of these describe your business, choose BoxHero or another cloud service.

  1. Several people update the same inventory

    BoxHero’s Business Plan gives each person their own login, with roles that range from full access to view-only.

  2. You use Android or a computer

    BoxHero has an Android app, desktop apps for Windows and Mac, and a web app.

  3. You want ordering and sales in the same app

    BoxHero’s Business Plan includes restock orders and sales orders, and BoxHero keeps a list of the businesses you buy from and sell to. Countstead records each sale or delivery as a stock movement; it does not create restock or sales orders.

  4. You need a free plan for up to 100 items

    BoxHero’s free Personal Plan holds up to 100 items. Countstead’s holds 30 active items, and past that you need Countstead Pro.

  5. You want a developer API or a Slack connection

    BoxHero has a developer API on every plan and a Slack connection. Countstead has neither.

  6. You need Russian, Thai, Vietnamese, or Chinese

    BoxHero’s app includes those languages. Countstead’s nine languages do not.

  7. Your iPhone or iPad runs iOS or iPadOS 15.5 to 16

    BoxHero runs on iOS and iPadOS 15.5 or later. Countstead needs iOS or iPadOS 17 or later.

When Countstead makes more sense

Countstead suits a small business that keeps physical stock and records it on an iPhone or iPad, without separate staff logins.

  1. You would rather not create an account

    You can add items and record stock straight after installing the app, without signing up for anything.

  2. You want your records on your own device

    Your items and their history are stored on the iPhone or iPad itself. They are copied to Countstead’s servers only if you turn on cloud sync, which is part of Countstead Pro.

  3. You want offline use spelled out

    Every core action in Countstead works with no connection, including adding items, scanning, counting, and correcting entries. BoxHero’s website says its mobile app works offline too; its help center does not list which actions do, so ask BoxHero if that matters to you.

  4. You want the full history on a free plan

    Countstead keeps every stock movement with no time limit, on the free plan too, and a correction is added as a new entry, so the original stays visible. BoxHero’s free plan shows 30 days of activity.

  5. You want a low-stock list without paying

    Countstead’s free Low Stock view lists items at or below the level you set. BoxHero’s low-stock list and warnings start on its Business Plan.

  6. You work in Italian

    Countstead’s app is available in Italian. BoxHero’s list of app languages does not include it.

Moving your items from BoxHero

BoxHero exports items to Excel, and Countstead imports CSV, so your item list comes across after one extra step. The history does not: each item starts with the quantity you import, and past movements stay in BoxHero. To keep a record of them, export BoxHero’s transaction history to Excel too, from the Export to Excel button on its Transactions page. If you pay for the Business Plan, do both before you cancel: BoxHero’s help center says your data is kept for up to 1 year after that, but only some of it is accessible on the Personal Plan.

  1. Export from BoxHero

    In BoxHero’s web or desktop app, go to Data Center, then Items, then Export to Excel, and include every column. Keep the original file.

  2. Save a CSV copy

    Open the file in a spreadsheet app and save it as a UTF-8 CSV file with commas between columns. Keep the item name, plus the quantity and barcode columns if you use them. If a column name differs from Countstead’s sample CSV, match it by hand when you import.

  3. Import into Countstead

    Choose Import CSV, match the columns, and check the preview before you confirm. On the free plan, the preview shows how many rows fit within 30 active items and lets you import just those.

  4. Check a few counts

    Open some imported items and compare their balances with the stock on the shelf. Then record the next delivery or sale in Countstead rather than in BoxHero.

Which one to choose

Choose BoxHero if several people need their own logins, you work on Android or a computer, you need restock and sales orders or a developer API, or you want a free plan for up to 100 items. Choose Countstead if your business records stock on an iPhone or iPad, you would rather start without an account and keep your records on the device, or you want the full stock history and a low-stock list without paying. Both have a free plan, so you can try each with a few real items before you move your list.

If you are also looking at other apps like BoxHero, the Sortly comparison covers another cloud inventory app in the same way, with its sources.

Sources and trademark

Each BoxHero fact on this page comes from one of these BoxHero pages, checked on 18 October 2026. BoxHero updates its app often: it added Russian and Vietnamese in April 2026 and Thai in June 2026, and reworked its low-stock warnings in September 2026. Check a fact against its source before relying on it.

BoxHero is a trademark of BGPworks. Countstead is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by BGPworks. If something here about BoxHero is out of date, email [email protected] and I’ll correct it.

Common questions

What is BoxHero?
BoxHero is cloud inventory software for small and growing businesses, made by BGPworks Co., Ltd., a company headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. It runs on iPhone, iPad, Android, Windows, and Mac, and in a web browser, and as a cloud service it syncs your data across all your devices. It has a free Personal Plan for 100 items and a paid Business Plan for several users.
Is there a free version of BoxHero?
Yes. BoxHero’s Personal Plan is free, and its help center calls it “Free forever” (checked 18 October 2026). It holds up to 100 items, one user, and one location, and items are counted as unique SKUs, not quantities. New accounts start with a 30-day trial of the paid Business Plan, then move to the free Personal Plan unless you subscribe. The free plan includes barcode scanning, Excel import and export, and 30 days of activity history. The low-stock list and warnings, label printing inside the app, more locations, and restock and sales orders need the Business Plan.
Does BoxHero work offline?
BoxHero’s website says its mobile app lets you control your inventory from anywhere, “even when you’re offline”. Its help center does not describe which actions work without a connection. If you count stock where there is no signal, try the actions you need in Airplane Mode during BoxHero’s 30-day trial. In Countstead, every core action works offline, including adding items, scanning, and counting.
Do you need an account to use BoxHero?
Yes. BoxHero’s App Store listing starts with downloading the app and creating an account, and you can sign up with Google, Apple, Kakao, or an email address. Countstead needs no account for local use: your inventory stays on the iPhone or iPad unless you turn on cloud sync, which is part of Countstead Pro and uses Sign in with Apple.
Where is BoxHero located?
BoxHero is made by BGPworks Co., Ltd., a company incorporated in South Korea and headquartered in Seoul, according to BoxHero’s terms of service and privacy policy. Its help center says BoxHero data is hosted on Amazon Web Services in the us-east-1 region, in the United States.
How is BoxHero different from Sortly?
Both are cloud inventory apps that need an account, and both have a free plan for 100 items and one user. BoxHero has phone apps, a web app, and desktop apps for Windows and Mac; Sortly has phone apps and a web app. BoxHero’s app languages include Russian, Thai, Vietnamese, and Chinese; Sortly’s app is in English. Sortly’s help center describes an offline mode in its phone apps that syncs when you reconnect; BoxHero’s help center does not describe one.
Is BoxHero a good inventory app?
It depends on how your business works. BoxHero fits a business where several people share one inventory across phones, computers, and the web, and where restock and sales orders, a developer API, or a Slack connection matter. It needs an account, its free plan shows 30 days of activity, and its low-stock list and warnings start on the Business Plan. If your business records stock on an iPhone or iPad and you would rather not create an account, Countstead is an alternative to compare.
Can I move my inventory from BoxHero to Countstead?
Yes. Export your items from BoxHero to Excel, save a CSV copy, and import it into Countstead. Check the preview before you confirm. Past movements do not carry over, so each item starts with its imported quantity.
Is Countstead free?
Yes, for up to 30 active items at one location. The free app includes scanning, the full stock history, the Low Stock view, and CSV import and export. Countstead Pro, an optional in-app subscription, removes the item limit and adds more locations, cloud sync, low-stock alerts on this device, label sheets, a PDF inventory summary, and filtered CSV reports.
Does Countstead work on Android or a computer?
No, only on iPhone and iPad. If you need Android, Windows, Mac, or a browser, choose BoxHero or another app that runs there.

Try the inventory demo

Add an item and record stock movements in the browser. The demo is a working example; camera scanning is simulated.

Try the inventory demo

About this guide

Written by Imdad Ismail, an independent developer in Sri Lanka who makes Countstead. Where a guide gives steps in Countstead, they match the version on the App Store. To report a mistake, email [email protected].

About Countstead and how these guides are written