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Commerce marketingReviewed September 7, 2026

What is Stockout?

A stockout is the state in which available inventory cannot satisfy current demand for a product.

Who this applies to#

  • Treat a product as stocked out when tracked available quantity has reached the store's unavailable state

What Stockout requires#

  • Separate the inventory state from the selling policy that decides whether checkout remains open
OnVoard

Back In Stock can collect alert requests for unavailable products, but it does not turn the item into a preorder or backorder

What this does not require#

  • A stockout does not automatically mean the store accepts backorders or preorders

Common mistakes#

  1. Using stockout and backorder interchangeably
  2. Leaving an unavailable product live without explaining the next action

Stockout checklist#

  • Confirm available quantity
  • Choose the selling policy
  • Offer an alert where appropriate
  • Track replenishment

Commonly confused with#

Official sources#