How Do You Track Your Collection?

[Iron Fist]

Rather niche question I guess, but I'm just finishing putting every comic I've bought into a spreadsheet so I know how many I've got, how much I've spent, how much it's worth by RRP etc.

I was sort of wondering how other collectors keep track, spreadsheets, log books etc.

And any examples of your tracking? I'm undecided if the way I've done my spreadsheet is the most practical.

[Bri]

Keep track of my collection? Huh. Never thought of that. What I do is I buy every single gn/tpb I can reasonably afford, read 'em and shove 'em on a shelf (or in a stack on a pile in a box) is a somewhat alpha-numeric order. Then when I buy new books and I can't remember if I have it or not I look over the shelves/stacks/piles/boxes. If I don't have it, I buy it. Repeat process.

I would like to note that despite having about 1500 gn's/tpb's (totally a guess. I will never count them) in my collection I have almost never bought duplicate books. My memory seems to be about 99% accurate when it comes to comics entertainment. I have only one significant other, and my accuracy rate is the exact opposite in remembering birthday's, our anniversary, airport pick-up times etc. A fact I have been reminded of 17.985 million times today alone!

[marvelmaniac6169]

All issues are written down by Title and Genre but only for Insurance purposes.
If/When I purchase a new book(Marvel/Atlas, Silver/Gold but new to me)I save it on my computer and at the end of the year a new list is submitted to the insurance company and I store pics and lists on Flashdrives at my home and one is stored at my Daughters home.

This is an example of my lists...

[Iron Fist]

I suddenly feel like the odd one out because my list/spreadsheet is like:

[SJNeal]

You sir, are far too organized!

I've tried many times to get my collection under control, and after a lot of work most of it is. Unfortunately the organized stuff is all locked away in a cold, dark, storage unit that I only see a few times a year. My apartment on the other hand, is full of miscellaneous stacks in various stages of read/unread, dating back about 3 yrs.

[canadianaidan64]

Goodreads. It's pretty easy because I only buy collected editions. For other things I collect such as trading cards I use Microsoft Excel doccuments.

[Flight]

i keep a note on my iphone of books on my wishlist, but ive nearly completed it and only need 3 more books until im done

[Canucked]

I have only one significant other, and my accuracy rate is the exact opposite in remembering birthday's, our anniversary, airport pick-up times etc. A fact I have been reminded of 17.985 million times today alone!

I hear you and feel your pain.


I don't keep track of my collection because it was never meant to be a collection. It just happened. It's also not all in one place let alone a spreadsheet. I have some nice organizd shelves up but then I have my absolutes at my parents place from when we moved and my partner has to begrudgingly share our closet with some boxes.

[Bri]

I hear you and feel your pain.


I don't keep track of my collection because it was never meant to be a collection. It just happened. It's also not all in one place let alone a spreadsheet. I have some nice organizd shelves up but then I have my absolutes at my parents place from when we moved and my partner has to begrudgingly share our closet with some boxes.

At least all my stuff is in 1 Building! of course I may need to add on...
Well let us both celebrate the fact that we have found someone who will but up with our space & time consuming hobbies/obsessions.

[Mighty Roman]

Keep track of my collection? Huh. Never thought of that. What I do is I buy every single gn/tpb I can reasonably afford, read 'em and shove 'em on a shelf (or in a stack on a pile in a box) is a somewhat alpha-numeric order. Then when I buy new books and I can't remember if I have it or not I look over the shelves/stacks/piles/boxes. If I don't have it, I buy it. Repeat process.

This is what I do. The only order I use is numeric order, so I know what to read in which order.

[zaboraviti]

what a sweet thread, it should be called Organization porn) i for one love organizing and can't help but admire your spreadsheets. however, i don't so much keep track of my collection as i keep track of shipments. i mean, always being an international buyer, i'm more interested to know how long it takes my parcels to arrive from different places with different carriers. also, i'm afraid if i keep record of the prices, i'll be terrified and end up either hating myself or giving up purchasing (riiight that will happen)
so i have a modest MS Word file with tables looking like this:

[Dayle88]

I don't know if these spreadsheets are insane or genius. Like Flight, I've got a list on a notepad app on my phone. When I see things I'm interested in they get added and when I buy them they get deleted. That's as far as I go.

I'm so careful with my books and how I handle them that I already feel too tied to them as possessions and any kind of record would make me uncomfortable. If I'm honest, taking them off the shelf and opening them is a necessary evil I have to tolerate to enjoy them...

[MRP]

I use the website Stash My Comics http://www.stashmycomics.com/

but also keep a word doc of my stuff organized by cover date (which is how I store it). I have a separate want list for back issues that I take a printout of when I go comic hunting or to cons.

-M

[Rory426]

I have a spreadsheet of my comics (Title, Date, Publisher, Writer(s), Artist(s)) and my Hardcovers/Trades but certainly don't track the prices and how much I've spent. Don't want to know!!

[Iron Fist]

what a sweet thread, it should be called Organization porn) i for one love organizing and can't help but admire your spreadsheets. however, i don't so much keep track of my collection as i keep track of shipments. i mean, always being an international buyer, i'm more interested to know how long it takes my parcels to arrive from different places with different carriers. also, i'm afraid if i keep record of the prices, i'll be terrified and end up either hating myself or giving up purchasing (riiight that will happen)
so i have a modest MS Word file with tables looking like this:

I have a tab on my spreadsheet for something similar, but I only track shipments that come from the US so I have a rough idea for the future which sellers on amazon are worth avoiding due to long shipping times.