Getting Started with Shelf Companion for iPhone

Shelf Companion is the free iOS app for your Shelf workspace. It puts the field-side workflows of Shelf — scanning, audits, custody, bookings — directly on your iPhone. The web platform stays your source of truth for workspace setup, configuration, billing, reporting, and admin work.

This guide walks through downloading the app, signing in, and using each of the core flows.

What You Need First

Before installing Shelf Companion:

An existing Shelf account. The app does not create a separate account or workspace — it connects to your current Shelf workspace using the same login. If you do not have one yet, sign up free at app.shelf.nu/join.
iPhone running iOS 16 or later.
Optional: assets in your workspace already labelled with Shelf QR codes (or registered Code 128, Code 39, EAN-13, DataMatrix, or external QR codes). If you do not have labels yet, you can still browse and act on assets manually — see Printing QR labels.

The app is free with any Shelf plan, including the free Personal tier. Nothing is sold through the app. If your workspace does not have an add-on enabled (for example, the Audits add-on), the app shows an informational message rather than a paywall.

1. Download the App

Search the App Store for "Shelf Companion" or open the direct link:

Download Shelf Companion on the App Store

The app is published by Shelf Asset Management, Inc., in the Productivity / Business category, age rating 4+. Global App Store propagation can take up to about a day after a release — the direct link works immediately.

Open the app and tap Sign in. Use the same email and password you use at app.shelf.nu — same workspace, same data, same permissions.

If your team uses SSO, the app supports the same SSO flow you use on the web. If you have not configured SSO yet, see User roles and their permissions and the SSO setup guide in your workspace settings.

After sign-in, your session is held securely on the device using iOS Keychain. Signing out clears the token.

3. Switch Workspaces (if you have more than one)

If you belong to multiple Shelf workspaces, tap Settings in the app and choose the workspace you want to act in. You can switch at any time. The app respects each workspace's role-based access — base user, self-service member, admin, owner — so you only see and do what you are entitled to do.

4. Scan a QR Code or Barcode

Tap the Scan action from the home tab. Point the phone camera at a Shelf QR label or any registered barcode (Code 128, Code 39, EAN-13, DataMatrix, external QR).

If the code is linked to an asset in your workspace, the app jumps straight to the asset detail screen.
If the code exists but is not yet linked (for example, a printed sticker that has not been assigned, or a code from a deleted asset), the app shows an informational message. Linking a code to an asset (or creating a new asset for an unlinked code) happens in the web app today.

5. View Asset Detail

The asset detail screen shows the asset image, current status, category, location, who currently has custody, and recent activity history. From here you can:

Update the asset's location — useful when you move an asset between rooms, buildings, vehicles, or job sites.
Assign or release custody — hand the asset to a teammate, or release custody when it comes back.
Open the asset's full activity history — a permanent, timestamped record of every check-out, return, and transfer.

Workspace permissions apply: what you can edit depends on your role.

6. Run a Live Audit From the Floor

If your workspace has the Audits add-on enabled and you have been assigned an audit, you can run it from the app:

Open the audit from the audits list.
Walk to the location and start scanning assets.
Watch the Found / Expected / Unexpected / Pending counts update in real time as you scan. Urgency surfaces in the UI as you go.
When the audit is complete, tap Complete audit. The audit creator receives a summary email.

Important: Adding photos or notes to an individual audit scan from the iPhone app is not yet available — that capability is web-only today and is on the iOS roadmap for a future release. You can still run, complete, and review audits from the app; capture per-scan evidence from the web in the meantime.

If your workspace does not have the Audits add-on enabled, the app shows an informational "Contact your admin" message rather than a paywall or upgrade link.

7. Booking Check-In and Check-Out

For workspaces using Bookings:

Open a booking from the bookings list.
Use the in-app scanner to check items out at the start of the booking (the equipment leaves the gear room) and check them back in at the end (when items return).
Roles apply: self-service members can check out their own bookings; admins and owners can check out on behalf of others.

Creating, editing, and configuring bookings still happens in the web app today.

8. Custody Handoffs

For day-to-day custody handovers outside a formal booking flow:

Open the asset (scan or search), tap Assign custody, pick the teammate.
When the equipment comes back, open the asset again and Release custody.

The full custody chain is logged with timestamps. The web app's audit log shows every step.

Workspace Add-Ons — What the App Shows

The app respects whether your workspace has an add-on enabled:

Audits add-on enabled — Audits tab is active. You can run and complete audits.
Audits add-on not enabled — Audits tab shows an informational "Contact your admin" message. No upgrade link or paywall — those live on the web side, where billing happens.
Barcodes add-on — Multiple registered barcodes per asset are honoured on the asset detail screen as the feature matures. Full multi-code parity on mobile is a 1.x item.

What the App Does Not Do Yet

For clarity — these are real, intentional 1.0 gaps. They are on our radar, but they are not in the app today:

Adding notes or photos to an audit scan from iPhone. Web only today; on the iOS roadmap.
GPS / last-known-location capture on scan. Deliberate 1.1 item.
Universal Links / iOS Camera deep-linking into Shelf Companion. A 1.x fast-follow.
Linking an unlinked QR code to an asset (or creating an asset from one) inside the app. Today the app shows an informational message; do the linking in the web app for now. On the 1.0.1 patch list.
Android. Android is in development. We do not have a release date yet — sign up to be notified at shelf.nu/mobile-app.

Where to Go Next

Shelf Companion overview — product page with screenshots, features, and the App Store link.
Getting started with Shelf — if you are still setting up your workspace, start here first.
Printing QR labels — you'll want labels on your assets before scanning at scale.
Bookings overview and Audits overview — read up on the workflows you'll be running from the floor.

Questions or Issues?

If something is not behaving the way this guide describes, contact us — we want to know. The app is new and we are watching it closely.