Grocy — Self-Hosted Household ERP and Inventory Manager

Introduction

Grocy brings ERP concepts to household management. It tracks what you have in stock, when it expires, what recipes need, and what to buy — all in a self-hosted web app that runs on anything from a Raspberry Pi to a NAS.

What Grocy Does

• Tracks grocery inventory with quantities, locations, and expiration dates
• Generates shopping lists based on stock levels and planned recipes
• Manages recipes with ingredient scaling and nutritional information
• Schedules and tracks recurring household chores and tasks
• Supports barcode scanning for fast stock intake and consumption

Architecture Overview

Grocy is a PHP application using the Slim framework with a SQLite database. The frontend uses jQuery and Bootstrap for a responsive web UI. The barcode scanning feature works via the device camera or external USB scanners. A comprehensive REST API enables integration with home automation systems like Home Assistant, and community mobile apps provide on-the-go access.

Self-Hosting & Configuration

• Deploy with Docker using the LinuxServer.io image for a one-command setup
• Runs natively on any PHP-capable server (Apache/Nginx + PHP 8.x)
• Uses SQLite by default — no database server required
• Configure language, currency, and locale via the web settings UI
• Integrates with Home Assistant via the Grocy add-on or REST API

Key Features

• Product tracking with best-before dates and location-aware inventory
• Meal planning with recipe management and automatic shopping list generation
• Chore scheduling with assignment rotation for multi-person households
• Barcode scanning via camera or external scanner for rapid data entry
• REST API and community mobile apps (Android and iOS) for mobile access

Comparison with Similar Tools

• Tandoor Recipes — recipe-focused manager; Grocy adds inventory, chores, and shopping lists
• Mealie — recipe and meal planning; lacks inventory tracking and chore management
• Home Assistant — home automation hub that can integrate Grocy but does not replace its inventory features
• KitchenOwl — grocery and recipe app with a mobile-first approach but a smaller feature set
• Paprika — commercial recipe manager without self-hosting or inventory tracking

FAQ

Q: Can I scan barcodes to add products? A: Yes, use the built-in camera scanner in the web UI or connect a USB barcode scanner.

Q: Does Grocy support multiple users? A: Yes, you can create multiple user accounts with separate permissions and chore assignments.

Q: How do I back up my Grocy data? A: Back up the SQLite database file and the data directory. Grocy also offers a built-in database export.

Q: Can I access Grocy from my phone? A: Yes, through the responsive web UI or community mobile apps like Grocy for Android.

Sources

• https://github.com/grocy/grocy
• https://grocy.info