Compared honestly · published prices as of July 2026
ItemTally vs Sortly
Sortly is the best-known name in small-business inventory, and it earned that. The honest summary: similar job, opposite pricing structure - Sortly meters your items per tier; ItemTally never meters items at all.
What Sortly does well
- A mature, polished product. Photo-first folders and years of refinement - a comfortable tool to live in.
- A serious mobile app. Thousands of App Store ratings; the phone experience is a first-class citizen.
- Breadth on the upper tiers. Purchase orders and integrations, if you grow into wanting them. We deliberately never build those - a scope difference, not a gap.
The structural difference
Sortly caps items, seats, and custom fields per tier - as your register grows, you move up the ladder. Offline mode is tier-gated; API access is Enterprise-only. None of that is hidden.
ItemTally’s only meter is people who can write. Items are unlimited on every plan, offline and CSV export are never premium, and read-only API keys are free everywhere.
The numbers, side by side
| Aspect | Sortly | ItemTally |
|---|---|---|
| Entry paid plan | $49/mo regular ($24 promo) | €19/mo flat |
| Free tier | 100 items · 1 user | Unlimited items · 1 writer, free viewers |
| Items metered? | Yes - item caps per tier | Never - pledged, on every plan |
| Offline mode | Tier-gated | Every plan, including free |
| API access | Enterprise only | Read-only keys free everywhere; write keys count as crew |
| Custom fields | Capped per tier | Included, every room |
| Custom reports | Capped at 3 saved reports | Uncapped - saved views, saved reports, CSV on everything |
| Ask your AI assistant | No MCP / assistant access | MCP server on every plan - Claude or ChatGPT can answer “what’s low?” from your register |
| Price changes | 2024 forced migration, ~2 weeks’ notice | Your joining price is locked - the pledge |
Sortly figures from sortly.com pricing and public reviews as of July 2026; promotional prices change - check their page for today’s numbers.
Switching is an afternoon, not a project
Whatever you're coming from, the move is the same three steps - and nothing is written to your new register until you've seen the preview.
- Export a CSV from Sortly. Any export works - the importer maps your columns to fields, and Sortly/BoxHero exports have one-click presets that keep folders, custom fields and quantities.
- Preview the dry run. ItemTally shows exactly what will be created - items, folders, fields, photos fetched from your export's image links - before a single row is written. Fix mappings, run it again, no harm done.
- Print fresh labels, or don't. Old QR labels can re-attach as codes so existing stickers keep scanning. New QR identities are generated automatically either way - the full walkthrough is here.
Questions every switcher asks
How do I move my data from Sortly to ItemTally?
Export a CSV from your current tool and import it - the importer maps columns, previews everything as a dry run, and writes nothing until you confirm. Sortly and BoxHero exports have one-click presets (folders, custom fields, quantities, and photos fetched automatically). A typical register moves in an afternoon.
Is there really a free plan, or is it a trial?
Free forever, for one writer, with unlimited items, offline, exports and API read keys - no card, no trial clock. Paid plans exist for crews: €19/month flat for up to five writers, €49/month flat for unlimited.
What happens to my data if I leave ItemTally?
Full CSV export on every plan, any day, no questions. Data freedom is mechanical, not a promise - ItemTally's own export re-imports cleanly, and that round-trip is tested.
Will the price rise on me later?
Not on you: your joining price is locked, and items are never metered on any plan. Both are part of a signed, dated public pledge - written after watching other tools ambush their customers with re-pricing.
Try the flat-priced way
Import your CSV in minutes. One writer is free forever - unlimited items, every feature, no card, no trial clock. And your CSV exports back out any day you like.