Best Software/Way To Keep Track Of Your Coins

https://en.numista.com/ is my preferred method of tracking my collection. It allows me to download customized Excel spreadsheets, which I then run through a series of homemade Excel Macros to obtain my desired finished products.

Once my Macros were created and saved I could update my entire collection in about 1/2 hour.

I will always recommend spreadsheets, whether is Microsoft Excel or a variant of Calc (LibreOffice, Apache OpenOffice, etc.). I agree that they are not for everyone, but if you are fond of spreadsheets they can be quite versatile.

I use MS Access database. I have over 3000 records, each with a unique serial number.

Have about 2,500 coins in my collection

All of my coins of significant value are in 2x2's, fully written up and attributed
-price and when bought
-full description and cat reference where appropriate.

Occasionally I reorganize my collection.
All of the information relating to the coin moves with the coin.
No need for supporting software.

Some store / display their coins in descriptive date / mm album sets..
No need for supporting software in this case, either.

If you have a really big collection,
best to emulate what museums do.

I use CoinManage and have a 5k - 6k piece collection I inventory and track through its use. Allows you to add what I consider the most pertinent information as to purchase/sale data without having to build your own database.

Whatever you use, the key is to stay on top of the entry side of the equation. If you end up with a large collection, it's best to get the inventory entered as you purchase otherwise it becomes a monumental task to remember the details and enter the data after the fact.

Another thing I do is save to a 'receipt' directory all my purchases - each directory is broken down to the source of the purchase. (eBay, US Mint, etc.) then I print them out onto paper and filed away in my safe.

For those who care,

CoinManage maintains a the full database of US coinage and expands on this database as you go as long as you're diligent about entering the information.

It then allows you to sort by entry data classification should you want to ... that said I really don't use it for that. The nicer piece of the system is it allows you to put together (print) buy lists for those items missing from individual sets, allows you to enter bullion pieces and automatically downloads daily spot prices to revalue all items identified as bullion, revalues all coins within the database as part of the annual software upgrade, etc.

My wife bought it for me one Christmas many, many years ago and it's been worth every penny too include the annual cost of the upgrades. That said as I mentioned previously, you do need to make sure to stay on top of the entry or it can get out of hand (this given what I tend to enter into the system).

And one final nice feature is that you can produce labels for your flips using an Avery file folder template and the adhesive label sheets. No more labeling 2x2s with a marker and looks so much more professional, has saved me untold hours fooling with such, and satisfies my retired engineer OCD personality.