Out of Milk Synchronization Troubleshooting Guide

Out of Milk's "sync" feature is one of the app's most helpful and important functions - it backs up the last version of your lists to our database in case you lose or damage your mobile device; it lets you see the same data on an unlimited number of devices, and of course, it lets you share your lists in nearly-real-time with your family, friends, and any other people who help you shop. When sync doesn't work properly, it can really ruin your Out of Milk experience - and, more importantly, your shopping. If you are here reading this, we're sorry that Out of Milk's synch feature is not working properly for you. We have worked intensively to develop this troubleshooting guide to help with sync problems: it is a bit long, but it's really important to do each step in the order that they are listed here, in order to make your troubleshooting session maximally effective. Also: if you are reading this on a mobile device, please note that we really recommend doing this with a computer and your mobile device - it's much easier.

1) Log into the website at www.outofmilk.com and see what's there - if it is different than what is on your devices, you are definitely having a sync problem. Before proceeding, it might be a good idea to back up any data that would be difficult to reconstruct. To manually transfer your data before troubleshooting, you have to (unfortunately) enter it all into the website - some users prefer to share it to their clipboard (copy/paste) and then email it to themselves. You can even get very fancy and then enter the text into an exported .csv file - and then import it back into the website, to save a little time on data entry. If you decide to go this route and need help, let us know! You can also check out our help page at

https://support.outofmilk.com/hc/en-us/articles/208200803-Import-a-CSV-file.

If you have Android, there is also a shortcut within the app: when you are in a shopping list, you should have a (new) function called "Export list". You can choose an email application, fill in the email you'd to which you'd like to send the list (your own, in this case) and the list will be sent to your email in the .csv format accepted by Out of Milk - you can then log into our website and upload it. You will also receive instructions in the email. Pantry and To Do lists must unfortunately still be copied manually - though you can send them to yourself as texts, emails, or simply copy and paste through your clipboard, if that works better for you. Then you can move forward with the troubleshooting steps on the affected device without losing your data.

2) Log out and then log in again on (all of) your device(s). (FYI, for users experiencing sync problems, we do recommend an email/password login as opposed to a Facebook or Google one click login. For a few users, this has been a solution. You can enter an email and password at www.outofmilk.com under "My Account" at any time - hit Save Changes and then log out and log in again on any devices).

3) Log into the www.outofmilk.com website, and enter a unique item on each device. For instance, if you are using a tablet and a phone, on the tablet enter "rice" and on the phone enter "broccoli" - and so on. Look to see if all entries appear on the website.

4) If one or more of the entries do not appear on the website, reinstall the app on the affected device - be aware that in this case, you will lose any data that is saved only on that device.

Have a great day, and please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions (or if you need help with any of the above). We are here for you at support@outofmilk.com.