Stock counts in Shopify POS: counting inventory on the sales floor without Excel
Since September 28, 2026 stock can be counted directly in the Shopify POS app: staff scan products on the sales floor, while planning, review and approval stay in the Shopify admin. It requires POS Pro and Shopify POS 11.16 or later.
That removes the intermediate spreadsheet and the manual re-typing of quantities - the numbers go straight into the same system that handles your sales.
What are stock counts in Shopify POS?
Stock counts in Shopify POS are inventory counts, available since September 28, 2026, that staff carry out in the POS app while a manager plans and approves them in the Shopify admin. Both cycle counts and full counts are supported.
"Shopify POS now lets store staff run cycle and full stock counts directly in POS, making it easier to count inventory on the sales floor while keeping planning, review, and approval in Shopify Admin." - Shopify changelog, 2026-09-28
The key property of this model is the separation of duties. One person counts, another approves, and the system records both actions.
What is the difference between a cycle count and a full count?
A cycle count covers a selected portion of products and is done regularly while the store is open. A full count covers all the inventory at a given location and is usually done less often - before closing the year or after a big season.
In practice a workable schedule looks like this: fast-moving categories get a cycle count every month, and the whole store is counted once or twice a year. A cycle count does not close the store, so it can be done on a working day.
How do you plan a stock count in the Shopify admin?
A Shopify POS stock count is planned in the admin: you create the count, choose the location and the products to include. The scheduled count then appears under Products > Stock counts in POS at that location.
- In the Shopify admin, create a new count and set its date.
- Choose the location whose inventory you are counting.
- Choose the products - the full range, or a specific part for a cycle count.
- Save. The count appears in your staff's POS app.
Only a user with the required permissions can plan and approve a count, so a cashier in the store cannot change inventory levels on their own.
How do staff count stock in POS?
A staff member with the inventory permission opens the scheduled count in the POS app and records quantities on hand - by scanning barcodes or entering them manually. A finished count is submitted for review in the Shopify admin.
Scanning is the decisive detail here: if product barcodes are missing or incomplete in Shopify, the count happens by hand and takes several times longer. Shopify lets you assign multiple barcodes to one variant, which we covered in our article on multiple barcodes per variant - worth sorting out before a count.
When do inventory levels actually change?
A submitted count does not change inventory yet. Quantities in Shopify update only once a user with the required permissions reviews the count and its discrepancies and approves it.
Shopify also records what was counted, when the count was completed and who completed it. That gives you an audit trail a spreadsheet never had: if a quantity is off a month later, you can see which count and whose shift it came from.
The most common reasons quantities do not match
When you approve a count, Shopify shows the discrepancies between the system and the actual quantity. It is worth understanding where they come from before approving - otherwise the same gap will reappear after the next count.
- Unprocessed returns. The item physically came back to the shelf, but the order was never closed in the system.
- Theft and damaged goods. These do not disappear from the system on their own - the quantity has to be written off separately.
- Deliveries received without a transfer. If stock arrived at the store without a registered transfer, the system simply does not have it.
- The same variant in two locations. The most common cause in multi-location stores: the item was counted, but assigned to the wrong location.
If the same category keeps coming up across several counts, the problem is almost never the count itself - it is the process before it.
What to prepare before your first count
- Check your POS plan and version. You need POS Pro and Shopify POS 11.16 or later - an older app will not show the feature.
- Sort out your barcodes. Products without a barcode are counted manually, so fill in the empty barcode fields first.
- Assign permissions. Decide who plans and approves and who counts - that split is the main value of this tool.
- Start with a cycle count. One category will show you how long the process really takes, without the risk of getting stuck on the whole range.
Frequently asked questions
Do stock counts in POS work with POS Lite?
No. Shopify states that running stock counts in the POS app requires POS Pro and Shopify POS 11.16 or later.
Do you need a dedicated barcode scanner?
Not necessarily - quantities can be entered manually and barcodes scanned with the phone camera. For a large range a scanner saves the most time.
Does the store have to close during a count?
Not for a cycle count, which is done while the store is open. For a full count it is easier to pick a time without shoppers, since every sale during the count changes a quantity.
What does Shopify record about a completed count?
Shopify records what was counted, when it was completed and which staff member did it, so a later discrepancy can be traced back to its source.
If you run a physical store and want POS and online inventory to match without manual work - we will set up your POS and inventory configuration. Get in touch.
