What it is
PrepNow is a free website for keeping track of the food you keep at home, from the kitchen cupboard to the garage shelf. It shows what to use first, so less ends up in the bin, and it helps you keep enough in for a power cut or an emergency.
Why it exists
Food gets forgotten at the back of the cupboard and thrown away. And UK advice is to keep enough food and water for at least three days in an emergency, but working out how much your household needs is fiddly. PrepNow does both jobs in one place, shared by everyone you live with.
How it works
- Make a household. Invite the people you live with. Everyone gets their own login and sees the same stock.
- Add what you have. Scan a barcode or type a name, and add its use-by or best-before date. Tins of the same thing with different dates are kept apart.
- Use what's next to go. Red means this week, amber this month. Mark things as used as you go.
- Shop for what's run out. When the last of something is used or thrown away, it goes on the shopping list. The list can sync to Home Assistant or Apple Reminders.
- Build a prep box. Tell PrepNow who's in your household and how many days to plan for. It works out the food, water and basics you need, checks what you already have, and adds the rest to the list.
- Get a nudge. A morning alert on your phone or by email, only if you turn it on and only when something needs using.
Try it first
On the sign-in page, "Try it without an account" opens a household filled with example data. No email needed.
Where the prep box advice comes from
Amounts are based on the UK Government's Prepare campaign, the British Red Cross emergency kit advice, and the NHS Eatwell Guide. They're general guidance, not medical or dietary advice. PrepNow isn't connected to or endorsed by any of these organisations.
Product information
Product names and photos come from Open Food Facts, a free database built by volunteers. Product data © Open Food Facts contributors, under the Open Database Licence. Photos are under Creative Commons BY-SA. It can be incomplete or wrong, allergens included, so always check the pack.
Works with
Home Assistant, Apple Reminders and Shortcuts belong to their owners. PrepNow works with them but isn't affiliated with them.
Accessibility
PrepNow aims to meet the WCAG 2.2 AA standard: it works with screen readers, keyboards, large text and reduced motion. If something is hard to use, email hello@prepnow.co.uk and we'll fix it or help another way.
Credits
Barlow typeface by Jeremy Tribby (SIL Open Font Licence). Barcode reading by ZXing (Apache Licence 2.0).
Contact
Help with PrepNow: hello@prepnow.co.uk. For your data: privacy@prepnow.co.uk. We usually reply within a few days.