Questions
A few that come up.
What is Crown Vinyl?
It's an iOS app for cataloging vinyl. You take a picture of a record and it ends up in your collection with all the right details. Artist, title, year, label, catalog number, condition, what it's worth.
That's pretty much it. There's nothing to buy on it, nothing to sell on it. It's a place for your records to live.
Does it actually work on weird pressings?
Yes, and that is most of what we built it for. The release database leans hard into first-press jazz, private-press soul, old hip-hop, regional punk, audiophile reissues, color variants, and promos. The records that get misfiled or ignored on the big sites.
If it does not recognize something the first time, you can correct it and it remembers.
What if my record doesn't have a barcode?
Skip the barcode step. The app will identify the record from photos of the sleeve instead. Older pressings (mostly pre-1980) and a lot of audiophile reissues do not have barcodes.
The pricing still uses the same Goldmine grading from your photos, so the only thing you lose is the one-second barcode shortcut.
Why are your prices more accurate than the big sites?
The big sites average across every pressing of a title, so a 1973 first press and a 2017 repress can end up at the same number. That is fine for ballpark, but it falls apart on the records collectors actually care about.
Crown Vinyl uses the barcode to lock the pressing and the photos to grade the condition against the Goldmine 8-point scale. The sale comps it pulls are filtered to that exact pressing in that exact condition. The number reflects what your specific copy is actually worth.
Is it free?
Yes. You can use it for free for as long as you want. Most people never hit the paywall.
If you're cataloging hundreds of records or you want richer value tracking, there is an in-app upgrade. Otherwise just download it and go.
What happens to my collection if I lose my phone?
You log back in and there it is. Your records are saved to the cloud the moment you scan them, so the phone is incidental. New iPhone, new iPad, dead device, none of it matters.
Can it actually tell me what my records are worth?
Each record gets an estimated value based on what copies have recently sold for. The collection page shows a running total that moves as the market moves.
People use it for insurance, for estate planning, for downsizing, or just because it's satisfying to watch the number go up.
Will anyone else see what I collect?
Not unless you decide they should. Your collection is private by default. You choose whether anything ever shows up on a public profile or in the community feed.
Where can I get Crown Vinyl?
On the App Store. iPhone and iPad. Search Crown Vinyl, or use the link below. Android is on the list but not out yet.