What is Inventory?
Written by Alex CY WongLast updated 5 October 2026
Inventory is where you keep count of stock: things you track by quantity rather than one by one, such as cables, gloves, batteries, spare parts or cleaning supplies.
An item in itemit is one physical thing, with its own record, tag and history. A product in Inventory is a type of thing, and itemit counts how many of it you have at each location.
#How Inventory is organised
Products are the things you stock, for example "HDMI cable". Each product has a unit it's counted in, such as Each, Pairs or Metres.
Variants are versions of a product that you count separately, for example 1 m and 2 m cables. Most products don't need them.
Locations are your existing itemit locations. A product can be held at as many locations as you like, and itemit keeps a separate count at each one.
Movements record every change to stock: a delivery arriving, stock being used up, stock moving between locations, or a count being corrected. Because every change is recorded, you can always see why a figure changed.
#The figures you'll see
Every product shows four figures: On hand, Reserved, Loaned and Available. On hand is everything you own. Available is what's left once reserved and loaned stock is taken off, so it's what you can still use or book. See "What do On hand, Reserved, Loaned and Available mean?" for the details.
#Where to find it
The Inventory tab in the top menu of the web app, between Items and Collections
Inventory in the itemit mobile app
The Inventory card on each location's profile
Reports › Product Inventories
The Inventory section of the booking form, where you can book stock alongside items
#Should I use Items or Inventory?
Use Items when | Use Inventory when |
|---|---|
Each one has its own serial number or tag | You care how many you have, not which one |
You need the history of one particular thing | The things are interchangeable, such as a box of gloves |
You check each one out and back in | Some of it gets used up and never comes back |
Inventory replaces the old quantity field on items. If your workspace used it, see "How do I move my existing item quantities into Inventory?"