Turn on inventory tracking for a product in Shopify
Shopify only counts stock for a product once inventory tracking is turned on for it. This tutorial turns on Track quantity for the Trail Crew Tee, so every sale lowers the count and the Inventory page shows a real number instead of a blank.
Written · Shopify admin, desktop steps · 5 minutes read
The worked example
| Product | Trail Crew Tee |
| Setting | Track quantity |
| Before | Off, count not tracked |
| After | On, count tracked |
| Continue selling | Off: sales stop at zero |
Download the record: trail-crew-tee-tracking-record.csv (161 bytes).
A tracking record for the Trail Crew Tee: the switch turned on, the opening count at each location, and the 20 unit tracked total.
1Open the product
From your Shopify admin, go to Products and click Trail Crew Tee. The tracking switch sits in the Inventory section.
2Turn on Track quantity
Check Track quantity. With tracking on, Shopify records each sale, adjustment, and transfer against the product, and the adjustment history starts to fill.
3Decide about selling past zero
Leave Continue selling when out of stock unchecked. With it off, customers cannot buy the shirt once its available count reaches zero, which is the safe choice for a shirt you cannot make more of overnight.
4Set the opening quantity
Enter the opening quantity for the product at its locations: 12 at the Warehouse and 8 at the Main Street store. Without tracking, the default quantity is zero, and each order would drive the count below zero.
5Save the product
Click Save. The product now has a tracked count of 20 units across its two locations, and the Inventory page will show it.
6Check the Inventory page
Go to Products, then Inventory, and find the Trail Crew Tee. The quantity shows, and each sale from now on lowers it by the number of units sold.
The arithmetic
The tracked total is a straight addition:
| Figure | Units |
|---|---|
| Warehouse | 12 |
| Main Street store | 8 |
| Tracked total | 20 |
| Oversold example: start 5, sell 8, ending | -3 |
12 plus 8 is a tracked total of 20 units. The help page example shows the same arithmetic the other way: start with 5, fulfil 8 orders, and the ending quantity is negative 3, because the product was oversold by 3 units.
Held at the counter
Tracking off means no history. If Track quantity is off, Shopify does not record stock changes for the product, so there is no adjustment history to audit later. Turn tracking on before the first sale, not after a dispute.
Continue selling can drive the count negative. With Continue selling when out of stock turned on, customers can keep buying past zero and the available count goes negative. That is a choice for made to order goods, not a default to leave on.
Tracking is per variant, not per product. When a product has variants, each variant has its own tracking switch. Turning it on for the product page alone does not turn it on for every size and colour.
Sources
- Inventory reports — Shopify's help pages: the oversold example, starting at 5 and ending at negative 3, and that untracked products start at zero.
- Using CSV files to import and export products — Shopify's help pages: the Inventory tracker column, and the Continue selling when out of stock values deny and continue.