Quickstart

This guide gets you up and running with Mottainai in just a few minutes. If you haven't yet, we highly recommend reading the brief Core Concepts page first to understand how Mottainai organizes everything into "Containers" and "Items".

1. Create an account and log in

Use the hosted app:

• Login: mottainai.app/login
• Dashboard: mottainai.app/dashboard

2. Create your first storage

Create a storage, for example:

• Food
• Medication
• Cleaning & Supplies

A storage is your main container for items and its shopping list.

3. Add your first items

Fast options:

• Manual entry
• AI text input (for example: "2x milk, 1x rice")
• Upload a receipt or photo

4. Use the shopping list

Each storage has its own built-in shopping list. When you are out at the store and mark an item as purchased, Mottainai updates your storage quantity automatically.

Want to learn more about this workflow? Read the Household & Groceries Guide.

5. Explore other features

Once you have your first storage set up, try creating other types of containers:

• Create a Board to organize your tasks.
• Create a SharedPay container to split costs with a roommate.
• Add an interesting Recipe from the web.

6. Optional: Go technical

If you want automation:

• CLI for scripts and terminal workflows
• MCP for AI assistants and agents