Comparison
Store inspections in Excel or an app?
Excel works, until you have more than a few stores or want to know what happened to the faults. A comparison without the sales pitch.
Short answer
For one store and one person, paper or Excel is often enough. An app pays off as soon as several people carry out inspections, you want photos attached to the answers, or you want to follow up on what wasn't in order: the app then does the typing up, the report and the reminders for you.
Side by side
Swipe sideways to see everything.
| What | App such as Stipt | Excel | Paper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free for one store, then from €29 a month | Free or already in your subscription | Free |
| Filling in at the store | Yes, on phone or tablet | Awkward on a phone | Yes, with a pen |
| Photo of a fault | Attached to the question itself | Separate, pasted in later | Separate, on your phone |
| Creating the report | Ready once you finish | Format it yourself | Type it up |
| Following up on faults | Action item with deadline and reminder | A separate list | From memory |
| Comparing stores | Grid per question across all stores | With formulas | No |
| Works without signal | From the Pro plan | If the file is on your device | Yes |
When Excel is enough
Do you have one store, inspect it yourself, and rarely look back at old inspections? Then a well set-up spreadsheet does the job. Do start with a fixed list, so every inspection measures the same things.
When an app makes the difference
- You have several stores and want to inspect them all the same way.
- More than one person carries out inspections, and you want to see who did what.
- You want a photo as proof of what wasn't in order.
- Faults have to be followed up until they are fixed.
- Head office wants a report, without someone spending an evening typing it up.
No need to throw away your Excel list: paste the questions into Stipt and every line becomes a question.
Frequently asked
Can I move my Excel checklist across?
Yes. Copy the column of questions and paste it into a new checklist; every line becomes a question, and a line ending in a colon becomes a section.
Can I get my data back out of Stipt?
From the Basic plan you can download every completed inspection as a PDF. Want everything in one go? Email us.