Audits
Run physical inventory audits with structured scan workflows, automatic found/missing/unexpected detection, and exportable reports.
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Audits
Audits let you verify that your physical inventory matches your records. Define which assets should be in a location, hand someone a phone, and let them scan. Shelf flags what was found, what is missing, and what showed up unexpectedly. When the audit is complete, export a PDF or CSV report.
Audits is a paid add-on available on any Shelf plan, with a 7-day free trial to test it on your own inventory.
Why Physical Audits Matter
Digital records drift. Equipment moves, gets misplaced, or is retired without updating the system. Without periodic physical verification, your asset database becomes a fiction:
- Ghost assets: Records show items that no longer exist, inflating counts and distorting budgets.
- Untracked equipment: New items enter the field without being logged, creating blind spots.
- Location mismatches: Assets are recorded in one building but physically sitting in another.
- Compliance gaps: Insurance audits, regulatory reviews, and internal controls all require proof that equipment exists where records say it does.
- Shrinkage blind spots: Without verification, missing items go unnoticed for months.
Regular audits close the gap between what your system says and what actually exists.
How Shelf Audits Work
1. Define the Scope
Create an audit session and select which assets to include. You can scope by location, category, team, or any combination. Shelf builds the expected asset list automatically from your existing records.
2. Assign and Scan
Assign the audit to a team member. They open a dedicated scan page on any phone or tablet and start scanning QR labels. Each scan registers the asset as Found. No app download required.
The scan page is purpose-built for audits — separate from regular check-in/check-out — so there is no confusion about what workflow is active.
3. Review Results
As scanning progresses, Shelf tracks four statuses in real time:
- Found: The asset was scanned and matches the expected list.
- Missing: The asset was expected but never scanned.
- Unexpected: An asset was scanned that was not part of the expected list — flagging items that have moved or were never recorded.
- Pending: Not yet scanned.
Auditors can add notes and photos to any asset during the audit — documenting damage, wrong labels, or condition issues.
4. Complete and Report
When scanning is finished, complete the audit. Shelf sends a summary email to the audit creator with counts of found, missing, and unexpected assets. Export the full results as a PDF report or CSV file for compliance documentation, insurance records, or internal review.
Key Capabilities
- Structured verification: Define expected assets up front so scanning confirms presence rather than just listing what was found.
- Found / Missing / Unexpected detection: Three-way reconciliation that catches both losses and untracked items.
- Dedicated scan page: Purpose-built audit scanning interface, separate from check-in/check-out workflows.
- Notes and photos: Document conditions, discrepancies, or issues during the audit itself.
- Real-time progress: Live counts of found, missing, unexpected, and pending assets update as scanning happens.
- PDF and CSV export: Generate reports for compliance, insurance, or management review.
- Completion notifications: Email summaries sent automatically when an audit is completed.
- Works on any device: Runs in the browser — phone, tablet, or laptop. No app to install.
Common Use Cases
- Annual inventory reconciliation: Verify every asset in your system against what physically exists. Identify ghost assets, untracked items, and location mismatches in a single pass.
- Location-based spot checks: Audit a specific room, warehouse, or vehicle to confirm its contents match records — useful after moves, events, or shift changes.
- Compliance and insurance audits: Generate documented proof that equipment exists where records say it does. Export PDF reports with timestamps for audit trails.
- Post-event equipment verification: After a conference, production shoot, or field deployment, scan everything that comes back to confirm nothing was left behind.
- Onboarding new locations: When taking over a new facility or inheriting equipment from another department, audit to establish a verified baseline in Shelf.
- Shrinkage detection: Run periodic audits to identify patterns of loss before they become expensive.
Pricing
Audits is a paid add-on, available on any Shelf plan. Pricing is managed through your Shelf account with monthly or yearly billing options. A 7-day free trial is included so you can test the feature on your own inventory before committing.
Visit the Audits section in your Shelf workspace to activate the trial.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Audits included in my Shelf plan?
No. Audits is a paid add-on, separate from your Shelf subscription tier. It is available on every plan — Free, Plus, Team, and Enterprise. You can activate a 7-day free trial from within your Shelf workspace.
Do I need a special app to run audits?
No. Audits uses the same browser-based QR scanning as the rest of Shelf. Open the dedicated audit scan page on any phone, tablet, or laptop and start scanning. No app download required.
Can I scope an audit to a specific location or category?
Yes. When creating an audit session, you select which assets to include. You can filter by location, category, or other criteria to focus the audit on exactly what you need to verify.
What happens to assets marked as missing?
Missing assets are flagged in the audit report but are not automatically changed in your Shelf database. You decide what action to take — follow up with the last known custodian, mark the asset as lost, or investigate further.
Can multiple people scan during the same audit?
Currently, each audit session supports a single assigned scanner. For large-scale audits, you can create multiple audit sessions scoped to different areas and assign each to a different team member.
How do I export audit results?
Completed audits can be exported as PDF reports or CSV files. The PDF includes a summary with found, missing, and unexpected counts. The CSV provides detailed line-item data for further analysis.
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