Guides › Do you need an app?
Do you actually need a low stock alert app?
We sell one of these apps, so the useful thing we can offer is a clear account of when you do not need one. Plenty of stores are sold an app to solve something Shopify already handles.
Last reviewed 16 August 2026
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When you do not need an app
All of these together mean stay where you are:
- Under roughly 30 SKUs you genuinely care about.
- One location.
- One person responsible for ordering.
- Short lead times, days rather than weeks.
- You reliably check inventory weekly. Reliably, not intend to.
In that situation the admin inventory view sorted by quantity, with a standing weekly slot in the calendar and a named owner, is genuinely enough. Spend the money on something else.
When Shopify Flow is enough
The middle tier, free on the Basic, Grow, Advanced and Plus plans. Flow covers you when:
- One threshold across the catalogue is close enough to right.
- You have one location, or one that really matters.
- One or two people need the email.
- You are comfortable building and maintaining a workflow.
Build this before you buy anything. Even if you outgrow it, you will know precisely which limit you hit, which makes choosing an app far easier. Setup steps are in the Shopify Flow guide.
When an app is worth it
Any one of these is sufficient on its own:
| Situation | Why native falls short |
|---|---|
| Thresholds differ a lot by product | Flow bakes the number into the workflow, so each threshold means another workflow to maintain |
| Stock in several locations | Per location logic in Flow gets complicated quickly and grows worse with each site |
| Several people need alerts | Manageable in Flow, but every routing change means editing workflows |
| You want a daily digest | Flow is event driven, so a summary of everything currently low is not its shape |
| You have already had an avoidable stockout | The clearest signal there is. The app usually costs less than the incident did |
When you need more than an alerts app
If you also raise purchase orders, track suppliers and lead times, run demand forecasts, do stocktakes with a scanner or sync inventory across several sales channels, you need a full inventory system rather than an alerts app.
Do not buy both hoping they combine neatly. The suites include alerting, so if you genuinely need the suite, its alerting is likely sufficient.
A sizing question worth answering honestly
Take your best selling product. Work out its margin per unit and how many you sell a day. Multiply. That is roughly what one day out of stock costs you in direct margin alone, before ad waste and lost customers.
Compare that to the monthly cost of an app. For most stores selling anything at reasonable volume, one prevented stockout day pays for several months. That is the actual calculation. It also tells you when the honest answer is that you do not need one yet.
If you landed on yes
Stockwell covers per SKU thresholds, every location separately and alerts to your whole team. Start free with 50 SKUs and no card, then move up only if you outgrow it.
Get Stockwell on the Shopify App Store Free plan covers 50 SKUs with a daily summary. Paid plans add instant alerts and more recipients. No card needed to start.Common questions
Do I need an app for low stock alerts on Shopify?
Not necessarily. With a small catalogue, one location, one person ordering and a reliable weekly check, the native inventory view is enough. Shopify Flow covers the next tier free on paid plans. An app earns its cost when thresholds differ per product, stock sits in several locations or several people need to know.
Is it worth paying for low stock alerts?
Compare the monthly cost against the margin your best seller generates in one day. For most stores at reasonable volume, preventing a single stockout day covers several months of the app.
Should I get an alerts app or a full inventory system?
If you raise purchase orders, track suppliers or run forecasts, get the full system, since its alerting is likely sufficient too. If you only need to know when stock is running down, an alerts app does that job for a fraction of the cost.