Lab Inventory Management Software

Nest Egg is lab inventory management software for teaching labs, research groups, and testing labs. Track reagents, chemicals, samples, consumables, and equipment by scanning barcodes and QR codes with your phone. Record lot numbers and expiry dates when stock arrives, and get alerts before anything expires or runs low.

  • ✓ Barcode and QR scanning on any phone
  • ✓ Lot numbers and expiry alerts
  • ✓ Free plan and simple monthly plans

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No charge during the trial · No setup fees · Cancel any time

10,000+

teams

142

countries

303

software releases

32

languages

Where lab inventory goes wrong

Reagents expire on a back shelf, two people order the same kit, and nobody can find the last box of tips. Small gaps cost budget and bench time.

Stock expires unseen

A reagent sits behind newer bottles until it expires, and the experiment that needed it has to wait.

Orders double up

Nobody can see what’s already in the freezer, so the same item gets ordered twice.

Items get lost

Samples and kits sit in a freezer, rack, or box that only one person remembers.

From delivery to the bench

Nest Egg follows each item from the day it arrives until it’s used up, and keeps a record at every step.

1. Receive

Scan the barcode and record the delivery with its lot or batch number, expiry date, and supplier. Attach the safety data sheet.

2. Store and label

Give every item a place, from the building down to the freezer box, and print QR labels for boxes and doors.

3. Use and check out

Scan a box to see what’s inside, record what you use, and check out equipment to a person with a due date.

4. Reorder in time

Get alerts before items expire or drop below the quantity you want on hand.

Lab Inventory Tracking

Lot Numbers

Record lot, batch, and serial numbers with each delivery, and trace every bottle to its order.

Expiry Alerts

Enter expiry dates on arrival, and get alerts as many days ahead as you choose.

Locations

Map rooms, freezers, racks, shelves, and boxes in as much detail as your lab needs.

QR Labels

Customize and print labels from the phone or web app. Scan a box’s label to see what’s inside.

Safety Sheets

Attach safety data sheets, certificates of analysis, and manuals to each item.

Stock Alerts

Set the quantity you want on hand, and get an alert when stock drops below it.

Usage

Record stock used in experiments, so counts stay right and each use is on record.

Check-Out

Check out instruments to lab members with a due date, and get an alert before it’s due.

Write-Offs

Log expired, damaged, or spilled stock with a reason, so losses don’t hide in the count.

Custom Fields

Add fields for CAS numbers, hazard class, storage temperature, or concentration.

Reports

Run PDF reports on stock levels, expirations, purchases, and check-outs, by location or category.

Scanners

Scan with any phone camera, or use a Bluetooth scanner at the receiving bench.

Permissions

Choose who can view, edit, or lend inventory, with a full audit trail of every change.

Purchases

Record orders from suppliers with order numbers, costs, and receipts attached.

Transfers

Move stock between rooms, freezers, and labs, with a reason for every move.

Import

Bring your spreadsheet in with CSV import, and export your data any time.

Built for labs

Teaching and university labs

Keep stockrooms, prep rooms, and shared equipment in order from one term to the next.

  • Stockroom and prep room counts by scan
  • Equipment checked out to students and staff, with due dates
  • Students can borrow equipment without a Nest Egg login
  • Low-stock alerts before the next practical

Research and biotech labs

Know what’s in every freezer box, which lot you used, and what expires next month.

  • Lot and batch numbers on every delivery
  • Freezer, rack, and box locations
  • Expiry alerts for reagents and kits
  • Safety data sheets and certificates on each item

Testing and quality-control labs

Keep standards, reference materials, and consumables in date, with a record of every receipt and use.

  • Expiry dates and alerts on standards
  • Write-offs with a reason for each loss
  • PDF reports of stock and expirations
  • A history of every change, ready when someone asks

Lab equipment management

Track shared instruments as closely as your reagents, across rooms, buildings, and sites.

Every instrument on record

Keep the serial number, manufacturer, manual, and service documents with each instrument, along with its purchase cost and replacement cost.

Check-out with due dates

Check out instruments to lab members or other labs with a due date, and get an alert before they’re due back. You choose which users can lend.

Calibration and maintenance dates

Add custom fields such as Last calibrated and Next calibration due, then sort or filter to see which instruments are due.

Status and reservations

Tag instruments as Reserved, Out for repair, or Awaiting calibration, and filter by tag to see what’s available.

What labs track

From a single antibody vial to a pallet of pipette tips, if you stock it, you can label it, scan it, and track it.

Reagents

Chemicals

Kits and antibodies

Samples

Tips and plasticware

Glassware

Instruments

PPE

Nest Egg vs. spread­sheets and LIMS

Lab information systems (LIMS) and electronic lab notebooks link samples to experiments and run regulated workflows. If you mainly need to know what you have, where it is, and when it expires, Nest Egg is lighter: no implementation project, no training course, and a lower cost.

Nest EggSpreadsheetLIMS
Scan barcodes and QR codes with a phone✓NoVaries
Expiry and low-stock alerts✓No✓
Lot and batch numbers✓Typed by hand✓
Storage down to the freezer box✓Typed by hand✓
Link samples to experiments and protocolsNoNo✓
Free plan, no setup project✓✓Rarely

Getting started

A lab technician scans QR-labeled sample boxes in a lab freezer with a phone
1

Add your stock

Import a spreadsheet, or scan items as you go. Only a name is required, so add details later.

2

Label and organize

Set up rooms, freezers, and boxes, and print QR labels.

3

Scan, use, reorder

Record what’s used, check out equipment, and reorder before you run out.

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Why Nest Egg

iOS, Android, web

Synced across every device.

Works alongside LIMS

Keep your LIMS or lab notebook. Move data with CSV.

Fits your budget

Monthly plans, no setup fees, cancel any time.

Fast support

Real people, often within an hour.

What customers say

In their own words, from App Store reviews of Nest Egg.

★★★★★

“Wow! The customer service for this app is amazing.”

Jrichter5781 · App Store review

★★★★★

“I switched from another app to this one and boy, what a difference it made.”

MindyParis · App Store review

Lab inventory FAQs

It is software that tracks a lab’s reagents, chemicals, samples, consumables, and equipment: how much is on hand, where it is stored, which lot it came from, and when it expires. Lab members scan barcodes or QR codes with a phone to find items and record what they use, so counts stay current without updating a spreadsheet by hand.
Yes. Paid Web plans include several accounts, and everyone works from the same inventory on the web and in the iPhone, iPad, and Android apps. Each person signs in with their own email address, and changes sync between devices. The pricing page shows how many accounts each plan includes.
Yes. When you record a delivery, enter its lot number, batch number, or serial number and its expiry date. Nest Egg alerts you before items expire, 7 days ahead by default, and you can change how many days in settings. An Expirations report lists what’s coming up.
Yes. Attach up to 5 files to each item, such as its safety data sheet, a certificate of analysis, or a manual, each up to 10 MB. Each purchase can also carry its own receipts.
As detailed as your lab. For example: Biology Building › Room 214 › −80 °C Freezer 2 › Rack C › Shelf 3 › Box 12. Print a QR label for each box or freezer door, and scan it to see what’s inside.
Scan the item or its box, then record the amount used as an internal consumption. The count goes down, and the use stays in the item’s history.
Yes. Lend equipment to a lab member or another lab with a quantity, notes, and a due date. Nest Egg alerts you 3 days before it’s due back, and you can change that in settings. With role-based access, you choose which users can lend items out. Borrowers are kept as contacts, separate from user accounts, so a lab member can borrow equipment whether or not they have a Nest Egg login.
Yes, with custom fields. Add fields such as Last calibrated and Next calibration due to your instruments, then sort or filter by them to see which ones are due. Tags such as Out for repair or Awaiting calibration show each instrument’s status at a glance.
There’s no booking calendar, but you can tag an instrument as Reserved so everyone sees it in the app, then check it out to the person when they collect it.
Nest Egg Cloud creates PDF reports on stock levels, low-stock, and out-of-stock items by location or category; expirations; purchases by location, category, or seller; items lent and borrowed, by date or due date; and every transaction for a single item, so you can see its full history.
No. Any iPhone or Android phone scans barcodes and QR codes with its camera. Nest Egg also works with Bluetooth scanners. Labels print on label printers or on label sheets with a laser printer.
Yes. Save your sheet from Excel, Google Sheets, or Numbers as a CSV file and import it. Columns with matching names map to Nest Egg fields automatically, and you can map the rest yourself, such as “CAS” to a custom field. Columns you leave unmapped are skipped, and a name is the only field every item requires.
No. Nest Egg is inventory software. It doesn’t link samples to experiments or manage protocols. Many small labs use it on its own because they mainly need to know what they have and when it expires. Labs with a LIMS or a notebook can use Nest Egg for stockrooms and equipment, and move data with CSV import and export.
Yes. Lab members scan with the phone they already carry, and an item needs only a name to get started, so you can begin with a few shelves and add lot numbers, locations, and documents as you go. There’s no implementation project or training course as with a full LIMS, the apps work in 32 languages, and our support team answers questions quickly.
Yes. Start on the free plan in any browser, with no card needed. Paid Web plans are billed monthly with no setup fees, include the iPhone, iPad, and Android apps, and can be cancelled any time. Our US dollar prices haven’t changed since 2019. Much lab software is quoted after a demo; Nest Egg’s prices are listed on the pricing page.
A paid Web plan. Paid Web plans work in the browser and in the iPhone, iPad, and Android apps, so everyone in the lab uses the same plan. The free plan works in a web browser only.
Every Web plan starts with a free 2-week trial that includes the iPhone, iPad, and Android apps. A card is needed to start the trial, but you are only charged if you continue after it ends. There is also a free plan for use in a web browser, with no card needed. See the pricing page for current plans.

Lab inventory guides

How to Use QR Codes for Inventory

How to Use QR Codes for Inventory

Label boxes and shelves so a scan shows what’s there.

Read the guide ›

Equipment Inventory Management

Equipment Inventory Management

Keep track of shared instruments and who has them.

Read the guide ›

What Is Safety Stock?

What Is Safety Stock?

How much to keep on hand so experiments don’t wait.

Read the guide ›

QR Codes vs. Barcodes

QR Codes vs. Barcodes

Which label works best on tubes, bottles, and boxes.

Read the guide ›

See all inventory guides ›

Try Nest Egg free

Know what’s in every freezer box before the next experiment. Label your first rack today.

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