Inventory and variants
Define product options, variant prices, and stock at the store's saved location.
Use variants and inventory to represent the choices customers can buy and the quantity the store can sell.
Why and when to use variants and inventory
Add variants when one product has customer choices such as size or color. Enter inventory when Runner should track how many units are available at the store’s stock location.
Availability and prerequisites
If setup cards appear instead of the admin menu, complete store setup first, then select Open Store Operations.
- Save a Stock Location in Store Operations → General before entering tracked inventory.
- Save the appropriate Market and currency before setting prices.
- Open a manual product. Booking and dropshipping products can use different availability rules and show a dash in the list instead of normal inventory totals.
- Plan option names and values before editing a live product because changing them can change the set of purchasable variants.
Open variants and inventory
Entry path: Workspace → choose a store → Store Operations → Products → Add, or select an existing product row, then find Variation and the inline price and stock fields.
English callouts highlight the controls. Select the image to enlarge it.
Inspect each variation price and stock value before saving. No inventory or price update was saved for this screenshot.
Main controls
| Control | Why you use it | What happens when selected |
|---|---|---|
| Add-option control in Variation | Add the first customer choice | Creates fields for an option name and its values. |
| Add-value control | Add another choice within an option | Adds another value that can be combined into variants. |
| Another option | Add a second dimension such as color | Creates another option group and expands the variant combinations. |
| Remove | Remove an option or value | Removes that choice from the form and can change the generated combinations. |
| Group by | Organize a long variant list | On desktop, changes how the current variants are grouped for editing. |
| Variant Price | Set the selling price for a choice | Associates the entered amount and currency with that variant. |
| Set Sale Price | Add a lower promotional price | Opens sale-price and optional schedule fields for the selected item or variant. |
| Available quantity | Set tracked stock for a variant | Updates the unsaved inventory quantity shown for that variant and Stock Location. |
| Save | Apply the full product configuration | Saves valid option, variant, price, and inventory changes together. |
Video: Where variants and markets sit on a saved product
The recording opens a saved product from the catalogue list and scrolls through Variation, the Variants list beneath it, and Markets. The product has only its default variant, so it shows where these sections live rather than a multi-option product; it does not add an option, enter inventory, or save a change.
Create product variants
- Open Add Product or the intended existing product.
- In Variation, select the option-add control.
- Enter a customer-friendly option name, then add each valid option value.
- Add another option only when the product has a second independent choice.
- Review every generated variant. Remove accidental values before entering prices or stock.
- Set the correct price and available quantity for each variant.
- Select Save, then reopen the row and confirm the variant count.
Example: two candle sizes
Use one option named Size with values Small and Large. Expect two variants. Set each variant’s price and available stock, then Save and reopen the product.
| Options you enter | Variants to check |
|---|---|
| Size: Small, Large | Small; Large — 2 variants |
| Size: Small, Large plus Scent: Cedar, Citrus | Small/Cedar; Small/Citrus; Large/Cedar; Large/Citrus — 4 variants |
Only add the second option if you sell all four combinations. Confirm stock per variant rather than copying the total into every row.
Enter inventory
- Confirm the product is a manually stocked item and a Stock Location is saved.
- Open the product and find Stock.
- Enter the available quantity for each relevant variant.
- Review the Total inventory at Shop location value.
- Select Save.
- Return to Products and confirm the Inventory column reflects the saved total.
States and limits
- Without a saved stock location, Runner shows Inventory not saved and keeps the product from claiming that stock was stored.
- Option values create combinations. Adding many values across several options can produce a large variant list that must be checked individually.
- A Sale Price must be lower than the regular Price. Supplier products can enforce an additional minimum retail price.
- A product currency outside the store’s saved regions produces a mismatch warning and prevents prices from displaying correctly on the storefront.
- Removing an option or value changes the customer’s choices. Inspect the resulting variants before saving.
- Booking and supplier products can manage availability outside the normal Stock fields.
Troubleshooting
- Inventory not saved: Add and save a Stock Location in General, then re-enter the product quantity.
- The variant count is unexpected: Check for duplicate or blank values and review every option combination.
- A sale price is rejected: Enter a value below the regular price and within any supplier minimum.
- Prices do not appear to customers: Align the product currency with a saved Market, then verify product and store visibility.
- Inventory shows a dash in Products: Check whether the item is a booking or dropshipping product; those types do not use the standard inventory total in this list.