As we all know, the number of online shoppers is increasing day by day. According to Statista, global online retail sales reached approximately $5.8 trillion in 2023. As of December 2023, Shopify boasts over 4.8 million online stores.

With the increasing number of people joining the online shopping world, eCommerce store owners are increasingly interested in forecasting future demand. This allows them to remain competitive and optimize their profits. Predictive sales analysis aids in making informed decisions regarding production, inventory management, distribution, pricing strategies, customer relations, resource allocation, and other aspects of business operations. So, they of course need a tool to make inventory forecasting properly. That's why we are going to talk about the best demand forecasting Shopify apps today. ✍️

What is Inventory Forecasting?

Inventory forecasting, also known as demand forecasting or sales forecasting, is a predictive analysis of future customer demand based on historical sales data and real-time inventory trends. It involves using advanced statistical techniques and algorithms to anticipate how much product a retail brand will likely sell in the upcoming periods.

In Shopify, sales forecasting revolves entirely around predicting online sales. To make this prediction, eCommerce companies analyze sales records, customer orders, inventory levels, pricing, promotions, seasonality, and other external factors. If you have a Shopify store, you should also have an efficient inventory forecasting app. Why? Let’s discuss it together.

Why You Should Forecast Inventory?

Forecasting demand is crucial for online businesses. 🔮 It helps them prepare for how much of their products customers will want to buy. Knowing whether demand will increase, decrease, or stay the same helps businesses plan ahead. Having too little stock can upset customers and result in lost revenue, while having too much can be costly in terms of storage and might not get sold, leading to financial losses. With inventory forecasting, they can adjust their inventory levels accordingly, supply more products if needed, or maintain their current operations.

For small online businesses that are growing, accurate demand forecasting is especially important. Unlike more stable companies, they face uncertainty and risks more often. That’s why mistakes in forecasting can lead to problems like being unable to fulfill orders or growing too quickly without enough resources. In short, not leveraging demand forecasting can lead to financial difficulties, causing a business to run out of money sooner than expected.

Using Excel for Inventory Forecasting 🤔

You can use Excel for demand forecasting, yes, but it may not be the most efficient or accurate tool for this task. While Excel offers basic forecasting capabilities, it may struggle to handle large datasets, complex forecasting models, and real-time data updates. Additionally, Excel lacks advanced statistical algorithms and automation features found in dedicated inventory management tools, which can limit its effectiveness for sophisticated demand forecasting tasks.

Excel is not the ideal solution for inventory forecasting, and also not suitable for managing your inventory, especially if you have a growing eCommerce store with a wide range of products.

📌 Learn more now: Transform Your Inventory eCommerce Management & Excel Limitations in Inventory Management.

Well, if not Excel, what can you use to make the most accurate and comprehensive demand forecasting while considering all these aspects? 🤔 You can use a functional inventory management tool! But, how do you choose the most suitable tool among so many options?

Factors You Should Consider When Choosing Shopify Inventory Forecasting Software

Choosing the right sales forecasting software for your Shopify store is crucial for efficient inventory management and customer satisfaction. Here are some factors to consider when making your decision:

🔍 Usage of Right Forecasting Methods

The accuracy and efficiency of forecasting methods are crucial when selecting an inventory management tool. Look for software that uses advanced statistical methods, machine learning, or AI to provide insightful predictions based on historical data, seasonality, trends, and external factors.

🔗 Integration with Shopify

Since you are a Shopify user, the inventory software you use should be seamlessly integrated with your store. It should be able to pull data such as sales history, current inventory levels, and product information directly from your store’s database.

🤔 Ease of Use

The software should have a user-friendly interface that is easy to navigate and understand. It should provide clear insights and actionable recommendations without requiring extensive training or technical expertise. But for the time you'll need support, look for companies that offer responsive customer support, detailed documentation, video tutorials, and training sessions to help you get the most out of the software.

📈 Scalability

Choose a solution that can scale with your business as it grows. Ensure that it can handle large volumes of data and support multiple sales channels, warehouses, and product lines.

📦 Inventory Optimization

Beyond sales forecasting, the software should help you optimize your inventory levels to minimize stockouts, overstocking, and carrying costs. Look for features such as backorders, freight planning, purchase orders, and automatic replenishment recommendations.

📊 Reporting and Analytics

Comprehensive reporting and analytics capabilities are essential for monitoring performance, identifying trends, and making informed decisions. The software should provide customizable reports, dashboards, and alerts to keep you updated on key metrics and KPIs.

💰Cost

Finally, consider the cost of the software and whether it fits within your budget. Some solutions offer tiered pricing based on the number of SKUs, sales volume, or additional features. Calculate the return on investment (ROI) based on the savings achieved through better inventory management and forecasting accuracy.

By evaluating these factors and choosing the right inventory forecasting software for your Shopify store, you can streamline your operations, reduce costs, and improve customer satisfaction. Since you know what factors you should consider, here is the Best Inventory Forecasting Shopify Apps list.

Best Inventory Forecasting Shopify Apps

📌 Fabrikatör Inventory Assistant

This 5/5-rated Shopify app, Fabrikatör provides advanced demand forecasting capabilities powered by AI algorithms, enabling accurate prediction of future demand based on historical sales data and seasonal patterns. This allows businesses to make informed decisions regarding inventory purchasing and replenishment. By seamlessly integrating marketing events into inventory planning, Fabrikatör ensures that inventory levels are aligned with marketing efforts, optimizing stock availability and minimizing the risk of stockouts. Additionally, Fabrikatör's customizable supply planning features, informed by advanced demand forecasting, empower users to adjust purchasing plans based on data-driven insights. This proactive approach allows businesses to effectively manage inventory levels in anticipation of future demand fluctuations. Fabrikatör has 3 different plans and pricing ranges from $99 to $350 per month. You can get a free demo session for onboarding.

Best for the Shopify businesses that are growing and have a wide range of products, Fabrikatör would be the right call. Why? Book a demo & we would like to give you more information.

📌 Inventory Planner

Inventory Planner is a Shopify app that focuses on accurate forecasting and analysis for smarter replenishment decisions. It predicts future sales by analyzing past sales and vendor delivery times. With customizable alerts and reports, it streamlines inventory management and simplifies purchase order creation. Additionally, it offers features like custom forecasting models, automated adjustments to market trends, and optimization of safety stock levels. It also aligns marketing efforts with forecasting and predicts sales for new products based on similar items. Setting up Inventory Planner's forecasting model for your business needs expert consultation to optimize its capabilities. While it offers advanced forecasting features, this process may require time and expertise. Therefore, ease of use should be considered alongside its powerful forecasting capabilities. Its Shopify rating is 4,3, and the price starts at $249.99 per month. Learn more now.

• If you want to make a detailed comparison, you can read Compare: Fabrikatör and Inventory Planner.

📌 Stock Sync: Inventory Sync

With Stock Sync, you can seamlessly synchronize inventory and suppliers, ensuring real-time accuracy to optimize your forecasting process. By automating updates and managing products from multiple sources, you can set quantity rules to prevent overestimation, improving forecast accuracy. Additionally, you can export stock data for accurate inventory tracking, enhancing your ability to predict future inventory needs. However, it’s also worth noting that some merchants have encountered difficulties reaching customer support and experienced synchronization issues, as highlighted in the app's reviews. This app, with a Shopify rating of 4.7, offers pricing ranging from $5 to $25 per month. It's particularly suitable for newcomers to eCommerce with limited product variety or inventory.  Learn more now.

📌 Katana Cloud Inventory

Katana is a manufacturing-focused real-time inventory app that offers robust inventory planning and forecasting tools. It helps businesses predict customer demand and avoid delays by proactively preventing stockouts and overstock. With features like demand planning, flexible inventory control, and smart replenishment planning, Katana ensures timely and functional order fulfillment. The platform also integrates seamlessly with accounting software like QuickBooks Online and Xero for enhanced financial management efficiency. Katana, which has a rating of 4,2, offers four different plans with prices ranging from $199 to $1999 per month. For more information, visit the Shopify App Store.

📌 Bee Low Stock Alert & Forecast

Bee Low Stock Alert & Forecast employs a forecasting module that calculates thresholds based on the sales velocity of each product and updates them daily. This forecasting mechanism leverages historical sales data, current inventory levels, and sales trends to predict future demand accurately. By analyzing this information, Bee Low Stock Alert & Forecast helps users set dynamic thresholds for inventory replenishment, ensuring optimal stock levels and minimizing stockouts. This Shopify app has a 5/5 rating and offers pricing plans from $5.99 to $39.99 per month. Learn more now.

Choose the Best Shopify Inventory Forecasting App for Your Store!

With Fabrikatör, you will see its not that complicated to forecast, automatize, and manage inventory efficiently. You can efficiently perform accurate inventory forecasting and automate the management of all inventory.

With Fabrikatör’s inventory forecasting, you can:

🔵 Make informed purchasing decisions,

🔵 See real-time inventory,

🔵 Reduce out of stock and overstock,

🔵 lan reorders at a perfect time with ease,

🔵 Improve margins.

📌 It's crucial to find an app that seamlessly integrates and effectively operates all essential features. Fabrikatör has numerous features that support and complement forecasting such as purchase orders, analytics, replenishment, backorders, freight planners, and more. Did you know Fabrikatör is 5/5-rated on the Shopify app store? Give Fabrikatör a try and book a demo for delving into every detail together!