Frequently asked questions

Short, straight answers about what Binderlyst is and how it works.

What is Binderlyst?

Binderlyst is a free MTG card scanner and collection tracker for Android. You scan Magic: The Gathering cards with your phone's camera, and it builds a searchable collection with folders, prices, decks, want lists, and reports. It's on Google Play.

Is Binderlyst free?

Yes. Scanning, your collection, prices, decks, want lists, reports, CSV import and export, Google Drive backup and the themes are all free, with no ad banners and no limits on how much you can scan or export. The only paid thing is an optional supporter subscription that unlocks three painted visual styles, which are cosmetic.

What does the supporter subscription include?

Three painted looks, Enchanted Grove, Arcane Sanctum and Neon Horizon, that repaint the app's border and the scanner screen. They change how Binderlyst looks and nothing else, so no feature is locked behind them. You can preview each style in the app before you decide, and it's £2.99 a month or £23.99 a year.

I was using one of these styles before they became a supporter feature. Do I lose it?

No. If one of the three was the style you had switched on when you updated to 1.0.35, all three stay yours for free, permanently, and you never need to subscribe. Switching to a free look afterwards doesn't lose it. The check only ran once, on that update, and it looked at the style you had selected at the time, so if you had tried one earlier and were back on a free look by then, it doesn't apply.

What platforms is Binderlyst on? Is there an iPhone version?

Binderlyst is Android only, available on Google Play. There's no iOS, web, or desktop version. It's a one-person project, so Android is where all the effort goes.

Do I need an account to use Binderlyst?

No, Binderlyst works without any account or sign-up, and your collection is stored on your device. The only time it asks you to sign in with Google is if you choose to back up to your own Google Drive, and that's entirely optional.

How fast is scanning? Can I scan a whole box of cards?

Binderlyst is built for scanning in batches: you move from card to card without stopping, matches the app is confident about are added automatically, and the rest wait in a review tray for a quick confirm. Actual speed depends on your phone and connection, so there's no headline number, but working through a box is exactly what it's designed for.

Does Binderlyst scan foreign-language cards?

Yes. Binderlyst detects a card's language automatically while scanning, so Japanese, German, and other non-English cards are recognised without any extra steps. Price data for non-English printings is patchy, so they use their English printing's price by default, with an optional per-language percentage if you want to adjust that.

Can Binderlyst detect foils and special treatments?

Special art treatments, such as extended art and full art, are detected reliably while you scan. Promos are more of a best guess: the app looks for the holographic promo stamp, which depends on how the light catches the card, so it gets promos wrong more often than treatments. When a scan picks the wrong printing, open the card and choose the right one from Other Versions. Foils aren't auto-detected; you mark a copy as foil with a tap, and foils are tracked and priced separately from regular copies.

Where do Binderlyst's prices come from?

Prices in Binderlyst come from Scryfall's price data and are shown in USD or EUR, whichever you prefer. Foils have their own prices, and an optional setting scales a price to the copy's condition grade. They're market estimates rather than quotes, and they refresh over time.

Can Binderlyst track my collection's value?

Yes. Binderlyst shows your collection's total value on the dashboard, based on Scryfall prices in USD or EUR, and every card shows its own price. Reports let you slice that value up in more detail if you want it.

Can Binderlyst build decks?

Yes. Binderlyst has a format-aware deck builder: pick a format such as Commander or Standard and it checks card legality as you build. Decks are built around your collection, so it knows which cards you own and which you'd still need to get.

How is my collection backed up?

Binderlyst stores your collection on your device, and you can back it up to your own Google Drive and restore it on a new phone. The backup goes to your Drive, not to a server run by the developer. There's also CSV export if you'd rather keep your own copies.

Can I import an existing collection into Binderlyst?

Yes, Binderlyst can import a collection from a CSV file, and export back to CSV too. If you've been tracking cards in a spreadsheet or another app that can export CSV, you can bring that across instead of rescanning everything.

Does Binderlyst work offline?

Partly. Your collection lives on your device, so browsing, searching, and organising all work offline. Scanning needs an internet connection, because identifying a card and fetching its price and image rely on online card data.

Is my data shared with anyone?

By default, no; your Binderlyst collection stays on your device. If you opt in to community stats, an anonymised snapshot of which cards you own is contributed, with no name, email, or account attached. Google Drive backups go to your own Drive. The app also asks at first run whether anonymous crash and usage reporting is okay; you can say no there, or turn it off any time in Settings. The full details are in the privacy policy.

How does Binderlyst make money?

Two ways, and neither is required to use the app. Some prices and buy buttons link to TCGplayer, so you can go straight from a card in the app to somewhere that sells it, and Binderlyst may earn a small commission on purchases (the app labels these with "Affiliate links, we may earn a commission."). And there's an optional supporter subscription for the painted visual styles. No ad banners, no ad network, and no feature is paywalled.

How do I get help or report a bug?

Email binderlyst@gmail.com. Binderlyst is a one-person project, so replies come from the developer directly. If you're reporting a bug, a quick note about which card or screen was involved makes it much easier to fix.