Keep your stock right — counter and online

What the stock sheet shows

Stock works like an Excel sheet. Every piece you sell is one row. A product with sizes or colours gets one row per size or colour, so a kurta in S, M and L is three rows.

There is one quantity column for each of your locations. The first one is usually called Shop. If you add a godown in Locations, it gets its own column next to Shop. Total adds up all the columns.

Changes save by themselves. You don't need a Save button. Watch the note at the top of the sheet: it says "Saving…" and then "All changes saved".

• To open the sheet you need the "View products" permission.
• To change name, price, barcode, Status or Online you need "Edit products".
• To change quantities you need "Adjust stock" as well as "Edit products".
• The Cost column shows only to staff with "See cost prices". Others never see it.
• Use the filters in the toolbar to narrow the list: a category, Out of stock, Low stock, Counter only (items hidden online) and No barcode.

Type your quantities

1. 1

   Click the cell under Shop for the item

   Stock sheet

   ↑↓←→

   Click the cell, or move to it with the arrow keys. Just start typing the number, for example 12. You don't need to double-click first.

   Type how many pieces you have now, not how many you are adding. If you had 8 and 12 more came in, type 20.

2. 2

   Press Enter to save and go to the next row

   Enter

   Enter saves the number and moves down one row, so you can type a whole column quickly. Tab saves and moves right. Esc cancels what you typed.

   To change a number that is already there, press F2 or double-click the cell.

3. 3

   Add a reason when it helps (optional)

   The "Reason: none" button in the toolbar

   Click the Reason button and type why the stock changed, for example "new stock from supplier". Every quantity you change while the reason is filled in is saved in the stock history with that reason.

4. 4

   Check that it saved

   The note at the top says "All changes saved". If a row could not save, the sheet says "Some changes didn't save. Tap Retry on the row." and that row shows a Retry button.

   Quantities must be whole numbers, 0 or more. 2.5 or -3 is refused with "Enter a whole number, 0 or more."

Paste from Excel or Google Sheets

Copy cells in Excel or Google Sheets, click the first cell where they should go, and press Ctrl+V (⌘+V on a Mac). The cells fill to the right and down from the cell you clicked, in the same order as you copied them. A pasted block saves in one go.

To copy one value down a column, select the cells and press Ctrl+D. It copies the top cell into the rest.

Made a mistake? Press Ctrl+Z straight away. One Ctrl+Z undoes the whole paste.

• Bad values are skipped, not saved. Text in a number column is skipped and the sheet tells you, for example "3 cell(s) skipped".
• Columns you can't change are skipped too: Total, SKU, Size / colour, Category, and a Status that follows the count.
• Paste adds no new rows. If you paste more rows than the sheet has below that cell, the extra rows are left out and the sheet says so.
• For the Online column you can paste yes / no, y / n, 1 / 0 or on / off.
• To add new items from Excel, use "Add pieces" → "Paste from Excel" instead. Columns: Name, Size, Colour, Qty, Price. Rows with the same name become one product with sizes. Up to 200 rows at a time.

Full screen and phone

Click "Full screen" in the sheet's toolbar, or press Ctrl+Shift+F (⌘+Shift+F on a Mac). The sheet fills the whole window and keeps the same toolbar. Press Esc or the same keys again to come out.

The address ends in ?view=sheet while full screen is on, so a reload keeps it open. You can bookmark that link.

On a phone, every row shows as a card you can edit by tapping a field. To see the real sheet, tap "Open as sheet". It scrolls sideways and the Name column stays in place.

Sheet keys

Why Status changes by itself

It depends on one setting: "Track stock quantities". It is in Settings → Shipping & delivery, under Checkout & stock. It also shows in Settings → Counter billing. When it is off, the sheet shows a yellow note with a "Turn on stock tracking" button (only for staff who can change settings).

When tracking is on, a row that has a count follows that count. 0 pieces means Out of stock. 5 or fewer means Low. More than that means In stock. The 5 comes from "Low-stock alert level" in the same settings section; change it to suit your shop.

You can't pick the Status of a counted row by hand. Its cell shows a lock and the note "This status follows the count in Shop. Type 0 in Shop to mark it out of stock." The note has a "Mark out of stock" button: it sets every location that has pieces for that row to 0 in one step.

A row that has never had a count (its quantity cells are empty) keeps a Status you set by hand. Turning tracking on doesn't change those rows.

When tracking is off, typing a quantity still updates that row's Status, but you can also change the Status by hand. Online orders don't take pieces off stock while it is off.

• Status counts the pieces in locations that sell online. A location with "Sells online" switched off still shows in Total, but its pieces don't count for the Status.

What each column means

The quantity columns take the names of your locations. Most shops start with just one, Shop.

Name

The product name. You can rename a simple product here. Rows for sizes or colours take their name from the product, so rename those in the product editor.e.g. Red woollen kurta

Size / colour

Which size or colour this row is. Empty for a product without sizes. You can't change it here.e.g. Red / M

Shop

How many pieces you have at this location right now. Type the full count, not the change. Empty means this item has never been counted here.e.g. Type 12 in Shop when 12 pieces are on the shelf.

Total

All your location columns added up. You can't type in it.e.g. Shop 12 + Godown 30 = Total 42

Status

In stock, Low or Out of stock, as buyers see it on your website. With "Track stock quantities" on, a counted row follows its count and is locked.e.g. 3 pieces with the alert level at 5 → Low

Online

Whether this item shows on your website. Off hides it online, but you can still sell it at the counter. Click the switch or press Space.e.g. Turn off Online for a piece you keep only for walk-in customers.

Price

The selling price for this row, in rupees.e.g. Type 450 for ₹450.

Cost

What one piece cost you. Only staff with "See cost prices" see this column. Saving a supplier bill in Purchases can update it for you.e.g. 280

Barcode

The code printed on the piece (EAN / UPC) or your own code. The counter and Count stock find the item when you scan it. One barcode belongs to one item only.e.g. 8901234567890

SKU

Your item code. It comes from the product and you can't change it here.e.g. KUR-RED-M

Category

The product's category. Use the category picker in the toolbar to see one category at a time.e.g. Kurtas

Reason

The optional note behind the "Reason" button in the toolbar. Every quantity you change while it is filled in is saved in the stock history with this reason.e.g. new stock from supplier

First time: enter your opening stock

Opening stock is simply what you have today. Until at least one item has a count, the sheet shows a tip: "Set your opening stock: Type how many pieces you have in the Shop column, or walk the shop with Count stock." You can hide the tip with its ✕; this device remembers that.

No items yet? Click "Add pieces". Type a name, price and sizes, then press Enter. Write sizes as "S, M, L", or with quantities as "S:2, M:3". Choose a category first; if you have none, create one in Categories. You can also click "Import" to bring in a whole Excel file.

Two easy ways to enter the counts: type them in the Shop column at your desk, or walk the shop with a phone and use Count stock (below).

When the counts are in, turn on "Track stock quantities". From then on counter bills and online orders take pieces off, and Status follows the count.

Count first, then turn on tracking With tracking on, a counted item showing 0 is out of stock online straight away. Enter your real counts before you turn it on, so nothing that is on your shelf shows as sold out.

Count your stock (stock-take)

1. 1

   Open Count stock and pick the location

   Stock → Count stock

   It works best on a phone. Pick the location you are counting, for example Shop. To count another location later, first apply or clear this count.

   Count stock needs the "Adjust stock" permission.

2. 2

   Scan or search each piece

   Enter

   A USB barcode scanner types the code and presses Enter for you. On a phone, tap "Scan with camera". You can also type a barcode, SKU or name. For a product with sizes, pick the size.

   Each scan adds one. Tap the number to type a count instead, for example 24 for a full box. The + and − buttons add or remove one.

3. 3

   Review the differences

   Tap "Review". For every item you see Counted, In system and Difference. Items you didn't scan are left as they are.

4. 4

   Apply

   Tap "Apply N changes". Only items whose count differs are changed. Each change is saved in the stock history with the reason "stock count".

Your count is safe, and every change is recorded

Your count is kept on this phone while you work. If the page reloads or the phone locks, it comes back with "Your unfinished count was restored." An unfinished count is kept for 14 days. "Clear count" removes the numbers you counted; it doesn't change your stock.

If a sale happens while you count, Apply stops and says "Stock changed while you were counting." The In system numbers refresh. Check them and apply again.

Slaby keeps a stock history. Every quantity change is saved there: what you type in the sheet (with your reason), counts, counter bills, online orders, purchases and transfers.

Move stock between locations (transfers)

Use a transfer when goods go from your godown to the shop, or from one shop to another. The Transfers button appears on Stock once you have two active locations and the "Adjust stock" permission. Add the second place in Locations first.

Click Transfers → New transfer. Choose From and To (they must be different). Scan or search the items and type how many to send. You can't send more than From holds; the quantity is lowered to what is there. Add a note if you like, for example the vehicle or who is carrying it.

Then pick one: "Save draft" (nothing moves yet), "Send" (the stock leaves From and the transfer shows In transit), or "Send and receive now" (both places are yours and the goods are already there, so it moves in one step). On the form, Enter goes to the next box, F2 sends and Esc goes back.

When the goods arrive, open the transfer and click Receive. Tap "All arrived", or type how many arrived of each item. If pieces are short, choose why: Damaged on the way, Missing from the bundle, or Counted wrong when sent. Short pieces are written off.

Click "Print transfer note" to print a challan on 80 mm or A4 paper, with "Sent by" and "Received by" signature lines. It shows items and quantities, never costs.

• Draft: saved, nothing has moved.
• In transit: the stock has left From and is on its way.
• Received: the stock is at To. The counter and website see it.
• Cancelled: a cancelled draft moves nothing. A cancelled in-transit transfer puts the pieces back at From.

Enter supplier bills (purchases)

When new stock (naya maal) comes with a supplier bill, enter the bill in Purchases. Saving it adds the stock for you, so you don't type it again in the sheet.

First add the supplier in Suppliers: name, and optionally phone, GSTIN (the state is read from it), address, and what you already owed them when you started.

Then click Purchases → New purchase. Choose the supplier, type the supplier bill no. and bill date, and choose where the stock goes ("Stock goes to"). Scan or search each item and type Qty, Rate and GST %. Turn on "Rates include GST" if the rates on the bill already include GST. Add freight, other charges and round off (up to one rupee) if the bill has them. Press F2 or click "Save purchase".

You can also type a new selling price for any line; it changes the item's price when you save (this needs "Edit products").

Each item's cost price updates from the bill. By default it becomes the rate you just paid. To use an average instead, or leave cost prices alone, change "Cost price from purchases" in Settings → Counter billing.

The supplier's page shows what you owe them. "Record payment" (cash, UPI, bank, cheque or other) lowers it. "Return to supplier" on a bill sends goods back: the stock goes out and what you owe goes down.

• Purchases need the "Purchases & suppliers" permission and a paid plan. Amounts show only to staff with "See cost prices".
• The item must already exist in Products or Stock before you can add it to a bill.
• If tracking is off, a bill adds stock only to items that already have a count.
• Entered the same bill no. from the same supplier twice? Slaby warns you. Click "Save anyway" only if it really is a different bill.
• "Download purchase register" gives an Excel file of the bills for the dates shown.

Stock insights: what to clear and what to reorder

Click Insights on the Stock page. The cards at the top show how many items are in stock, your stock value at selling price, the value at cost (only with "See cost prices") and your dead stock.

Choose the selling speed period at the top: 7, 30 or 90 days. 30 days is the default.

Insights uses counted items only, and the numbers can be up to 5 minutes old.

• Dead stock: items with pieces left but no sale, at the counter or online, for 60 days (the default). Clear them with an offer or a discount.
• Fast movers: your best sellers in the period, shown separately for the counter and online.
• Reorder list: items that will run out within 14 days (the default) at their recent selling speed. Days left and a suggested Reorder quantity are shown.
• Online vs counter stock: items sold out online while the counter has them, and the other way round.
• To change 60 or 14 days, click "Change limits": "Dead stock after (days)" and "Reorder lead time (days)".

Locations: shop, godown, second shop

Slaby creates your first location, Shop, by itself. Add more in Locations: type a name like "Main godown", an optional code like GDN-1, and click "Add location". Each location gets its own column on the Stock sheet.

You need "Edit products" to manage locations. You can delete a location only when no stock sits there.

• Counts in stock: switch off to hide the location from the sheet and leave it out of Total.
• Sells online: switch off for a place whose stock you don't sell on the website. Its pieces still show in Total but don't count for online stock.
• Shop counter: the location your counter bills take stock from.

Fill in the reason before a big change Before you type a lot of new numbers, click "Reason" and write why, for example "Diwali stock from Surat". Every quantity you change while it is filled in goes into the stock history with that reason. Months later you can still tell why a count jumped.

Read next

• Counter billingBills at the counter take pieces off this same stock.
• Products and catalogueAdd photos, sizes, colours and categories.
• Barcode billingScan the barcodes you saved here when you bill.
• Team and rolesWho can adjust stock or see cost prices.

Common questions

Why can't I change the Status of an item?

"Track stock quantities" is on and the item has a count, so its Status follows the count. Change the quantity instead: type 0 in Shop, or click "Mark out of stock" in the note.

New stock arrived. How do I add it?

Enter the supplier bill in Purchases and the stock is added for you. Or type the new total in the Shop column: if you had 8 and 12 came, type 20, not 12.

Can stock go below zero?

The sheet only takes 0 or more, and online orders never sell more than you have counted. The counter won't bill a counted item at 0 unless the "Sell more than the stock shows" setting is on; then the count goes below zero until you correct it.

How do I hide an item online but keep selling it at the counter?

Switch off its Online cell. To do many at once, filter the list and use Online → "Hide these N online". Hidden items stay sellable at the counter.

Can I bring my stock in from Excel?

Yes. Click Import and use the Quantity, Barcode, Show online and Cost price columns; a blank cell leaves the value unchanged. For a godown add a column named qty:Godown. To update the sheet directly, copy the cells and press Ctrl+V.

I have a godown or a second shop. What do I do?

Add it in Locations. It gets its own quantity column on the sheet, and you can move stock between places with Transfers.

Do the counter and the website share one stock?

Yes, one stock. A counter bill takes pieces from your Shop counter location. With tracking on, an online order takes them from the locations that sell online.

How do I add a barcode to an item?

Click its Barcode cell and type the code, or scan it with a USB scanner. Use the "No barcode" filter to find items still missing one. The same barcode can't be on two items.

I typed a wrong quantity. How do I undo it?

Press Ctrl+Z straight away, or just type the right number. Both changes are saved in the stock history.

Why does an item with 5 pieces show Low?

The "Low-stock alert level" is 5 by default, so 5 or fewer shows Low. Change it in Settings → Shipping & delivery, under Checkout & stock.

Can I enter half a kilo or 2.5 metres?

Not yet. Quantities are whole pieces: 0, 1, 2 and so on.

Why can't I see the Cost column?

Cost shows only to staff with the "See cost prices" permission. Ask the store owner to add it to your role.