Canning apps compared: What each one records

Updated October 17, 2026

The best canning app for you depends on the records you want to keep and how you use them. This comparison shows what five apps’ public store listings said about batch logs, inventory, jars used, supplies and export on the dates shown, alongside The Cantry and paper.

Before choosing a canning app, it helps to decide what you want to keep in it. A batch log may be enough, or you may want to check the jars remaining, keep supply counts, and look back at what you used last season.

We’re building The Cantry to connect those records, so we have a preference here. The table makes that visible: our row sits alongside five other apps and a paper notebook, with the same questions asked of each.

What the comparison covers

These entries come from saved public store listings, read on the dates shown. We haven’t tested the apps for this comparison, and a listing may have changed since it was saved.

The columns cover:

• Batch records. Keeping a record of what you canned.
• Inventory count. Tracking the jars still on hand.
• Used. Marking jars as used, given away, or removed.
• Jar and supply stock. Tracking empty jars, lids, or other supplies.
• Export. Taking records out as a file or backup.
• Suggests processing details. Providing or suggesting processing information, as described by the listing.

A Yes means the listing explicitly describes the feature. A No means it explicitly says the app doesn’t do it. Not stated means we didn’t find an answer there; the app may have the feature, and its maker can clarify.

The Cantry has no store listing yet. Its row follows the same Yes, No and Not stated rules using statements on our website, and the date is when that row was written.

The paper row represents an unbranded notebook or printed sheet. By hand means it can hold the information if you write it down and keep the counts yourself. It has no store listing or digital export.

Questions worth checking before you choose

Will a batch update the inventory?

If you want both a canning log and a canning inventory, ask whether the jars from a logged batch appear in the count automatically. Otherwise, you may be entering the same jars twice.

Check how the app handles jar sizes and storage places while you’re there. Your cantry may be spread across several rooms, and you’ll want to know where the jars are as well as how many remain.

How do you record jars leaving?

Try finding a batch and reducing its count as you would when opening a jar for dinner. If you give jars away, look for a way to record that reason without losing track of what’s on hand.

Those records can also help with planning what to make next season, especially when you can distinguish gifts from what your household ate.

Can you keep a copy of the records?

Check what an export includes and which format you receive. A listing that mentions a backup may not tell you whether you can open the file in a spreadsheet. Ask about the records you care about before entering several seasons of history.

If you also want to track empty jars and supplies, look for that separately from the food inventory. Our jar and equipment log guide shows the kinds of stock details you might want to keep.

What the listings say about advice

Four of the five saved app listings describe providing or suggesting processing details. The table records that statement without reviewing the instructions themselves.

The Cantry keeps what you enter and doesn’t supply processing directions. An app that records a method and an app that tells you how to carry it out are doing different jobs; the table helps you see what each listing claims.

Where The Cantry fits

Logging a batch in The Cantry adds its jars to your inventory. Marking a jar used updates the count, with gifted or discarded as an optional reason. That leaves you a batch history and a record of what’s still on hand.