Zoho Inventory: A Practical Guide to Stock and Order Management
Know what you have, where it is and when to reorder, across every channel.
Zoho Inventory is Zoho's stock and order management app for product businesses. It tracks stock across warehouses, manages sales and purchase orders, handles picking, packing and shipping, and syncs orders and stock levels with sales channels such as Shopify and Amazon. Every transaction flows to Zoho Books, so stock and accounting stay in agreement without manual entries.
This guide covers what Zoho Inventory does, what each plan costs, how it connects to the rest of Zoho and the setup decisions that matter most. It sits in the Finance & Operations section of our Zoho One ecosystem guide.
Zoho Inventory manages items, stock levels, warehouses, sales and purchase orders, shipping and multichannel selling, with native connections to Zoho Books, Zoho CRM and marketplaces such as Shopify, Amazon, eBay and Etsy. A free plan covers 50 orders a month, and US paid plans run from $29 to $249 per month billed annually, based on order volume.
What Zoho Inventory Does
Items, variants and kits
Manage products with variants such as size and color, group items, and build composite items or kits from components that are tracked individually.
Multiple warehouses
Track stock by location, transfer between warehouses and see availability across the business at a glance.
Serial and batch tracking
Follow individual units or batches from purchase to sale, with expiry dates where relevant, which matters for regulated and high-value goods.
Reorder points and purchasing
Set reorder levels, get alerts when stock runs low and raise purchase orders to vendors, including backorders and dropship orders.
Order fulfilment and shipping
Create sales orders, pick lists, packages and shipments, connect shipping carriers and share tracking details with customers.
Multichannel selling
Sync orders and stock with sales channels such as Shopify, Amazon, eBay, Etsy and WooCommerce, so a sale on one channel updates stock everywhere.
How Zoho Inventory Connects to Books, CRM and Commerce
- Zoho Books: invoices, bills and stock values post to accounting automatically.
- Zoho CRM: create sales orders and invoices in Inventory from CRM deals, and see order status on the account.
- Zoho Commerce: run an online store on the same items and stock.
- Zoho Analytics: deeper reports on sales, stock turnover and margins.
Zoho Inventory is included in Zoho One. For businesses that sell products through a sales team, our guide to Zoho CRM for inventory businesses covers the sales side.
Zoho Inventory Pricing (US)
Zoho Inventory is priced per organization, with plans based mainly on monthly order volume.
| Plan | Annual billing (per month) | Monthly billing | Orders per month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | $0 | 50 |
| Standard | $29 | $39 | 500 |
| Professional | $79 | $99 | 3,000 |
| Premium | $129 | $159 | 7,500 |
| Enterprise | $249 | $299 | 15,000 |
Higher plans also add users, warehouses and connected stores. Check the current Zoho Inventory site for the full limits, and remember that Zoho One includes Inventory.
Who Gets the Most Value from Zoho Inventory
- Online sellers running several channels who need stock to stay in sync.
- Wholesalers and distributors managing purchase orders, backorders and multiple warehouses.
- Businesses selling kits or bundles built from tracked components.
- Product companies already using Zoho Books or Zoho CRM.
Setting Up Zoho Inventory: The Decisions That Matter Most
Clean your item list: one SKU per product, consistent names and units of measure.
Decide your warehouse structure before entering stock.
Count stock and enter opening quantities and values as of a go-live date, agreed with your accountant.
Set reorder points for your fast-moving items first.
Connect Zoho Books, then your sales channels, testing one channel before adding the next.
Connect shipping carriers and agree the pick, pack and ship process with the warehouse team.
Zoho Inventory for Different Businesses
| Business | Key features | Typical plan |
|---|---|---|
| Small online store on one channel | Items, stock sync, shipping labels | Free or Standard |
| Multichannel seller | Channel sync, reorder points, multiple warehouses | Professional |
| Wholesaler or distributor | Purchase orders, backorders, price lists, multiple warehouses | Professional or Premium |
| Kits and assembled products | Composite items, serial or batch tracking | Professional or higher |
Zoho Inventory vs Spreadsheets
Many product businesses start with a stock spreadsheet. It breaks down as soon as orders arrive from more than one channel or more than one person updates it: stock levels lag behind sales, overselling happens and purchase decisions are guesses. Zoho Inventory updates stock with every order, receipt and adjustment, so the numbers are current and everyone works from the same figures.
How Long Setup Takes
A single-warehouse business with a clean item list can usually be live within one to two weeks, including a stock count and the Books connection. Multiple warehouses, several sales channels or kits add time, mostly for cleaning SKUs and testing channel sync before switching over.
Measuring Inventory Performance
- Stock-outs and backorders on top-selling items.
- Inventory turnover: how quickly stock sells and is replaced.
- Dead stock: items with no sales in months.
- Order fulfilment time from order to shipment.
- Gross margin by item and channel.
Running out of best-sellers costs more than most businesses expect; see our article on how Zoho Inventory protects your margins and the Lodestone Pacific case study for stock forecasting in practice.
Zoho Inventory or Inventory Tracking in Books?
Zoho Books includes basic inventory tracking, which is enough for a business with a small product range in one location. Move to Zoho Inventory when you need multiple warehouses, sales channel sync, serial or batch tracking, composite items, picking and packing, or shipping integrations. Because both apps share items and transactions, you can start in Books and add Inventory later without starting over.
Inventory and Accounting: Who Owns What
Once Zoho Inventory is connected, record stock movements, adjustments and transfers in Inventory, and let the accounting entries flow to Books. Avoid adjusting stock directly in Books, which puts the two apps out of agreement. Agree a monthly stock reconciliation between the warehouse and finance so physical counts, Inventory and Books all match.
Common Zoho Inventory Mistakes
- Importing messy item lists with duplicate SKUs.
- Connecting every sales channel at once without testing stock sync.
- Opening quantities that do not match a physical count.
- Entering stock adjustments in Books instead of Inventory, so the two disagree.
- No reorder points, so stock-outs are only noticed when customers complain.
A Typical Week in Zoho Inventory
- Orders arrive from your channels and sales team, and stock is reserved automatically.
- The warehouse picks, packs and ships, with tracking sent to customers.
- Low-stock alerts trigger purchase orders to vendors.
- Received goods update stock, and bills flow to Zoho Books.
- Reports show what sold, what is running low and what is not moving.
Zoho Inventory Guides
How Zoho Inventory Protects Your Margins
Why stock-outs and overstock cost more than you think.
Read the guideLodestone Pacific: Stock Forecasting with Zoho Inventory
How a client improved stock forecasting.
Read the guideZoho CRM for Inventory Businesses
Connecting sales and stock for product companies.
Read the guideSee Zoho Inventory in Action
These short videos show Zoho Inventory features covered in this guide. Screens may look slightly different in the current version.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Zoho Inventory used for?
Zoho Inventory is used to manage stock, warehouses, sales and purchase orders, shipping and multichannel selling, with transactions flowing to Zoho Books.
Is Zoho Inventory free?
Zoho Inventory has a free plan for up to 50 orders a month. US paid plans cost $29, $79, $129 or $249 per month billed annually, based mainly on order volume.
Does Zoho Inventory integrate with Shopify and Amazon?
Yes. Zoho Inventory syncs orders and stock with sales channels including Shopify, Amazon, eBay, Etsy and WooCommerce.
Does Zoho Inventory work with Zoho Books?
Yes. Invoices, bills and stock values from Zoho Inventory post to Zoho Books automatically, so stock and accounting stay in agreement.
Is Zoho Inventory included in Zoho One?
Yes. Zoho Inventory is one of the apps included in a Zoho One subscription.
Can Zoho Inventory track serial numbers and batches?
Yes. Zoho Inventory supports serial number and batch tracking, including expiry dates, so you can follow individual units or batches from purchase to sale.
Can Zoho Inventory handle multiple warehouses?
Yes. Zoho Inventory tracks stock by warehouse, supports transfers between locations and shows total availability. The number of warehouses depends on your plan.
How does Zoho Inventory price its plans?
Zoho Inventory is priced per organization, mainly by monthly order volume, from a free plan with 50 orders a month to Enterprise with 15,000 orders a month. Higher plans also add users, warehouses and connected stores.
Want stock, orders and accounting in sync?
A careful setup of items, warehouses and channels prevents stock-outs and keeps your books accurate. ABR is a Zoho Premium Partner that sets up Zoho Inventory as part of wider Zoho One implementations.
What you get with ABR
- A Zoho Premium Partner team
- Items, warehouses and reorder points set up properly
- Sales channels, Books and CRM connected
- Stock counts reconciled before go-live