Inventory planning
Available Inventory
By the Supply Chain Manager team · Updated October 16, 2026
Available inventory is on-hand stock minus units already allocated to orders or held, so it is the quantity you can actually sell or ship now.
It is the honest figure for days of supply and stock-out checks. Two warehouses with the same on-hand count can be in very different positions if one has most of its stock committed to a large order.
Holds are the part most often forgotten. Stock waiting for quality inspection, damaged units waiting for a credit from the supplier, and returns not yet checked all sit on the shelf but cannot be sold. Giving each of these its own status or location keeps available inventory honest without losing track of the units.
How to calculate available inventory
Available = Quantity on Hand − Allocated − On Hold
Available inventory example
Illustrative numbers: 500 on hand, 320 allocated to a contractor's order, 0 on hold. Available = 180. At 30 units a day that is 6 days of supply, not the 16 days the on-hand figure suggests.
Why available inventory matters for distributors
Using available rather than on-hand stock is what keeps a distributor from promising the same units to two customers.
Common available inventory mistakes
- Calculating days of supply from on-hand stock.
- Leaving stale allocations from cancelled orders in place.
Available inventory in Supply Chain Manager
Supply Chain Manager calculates days of stock and stock-out risk from available quantity, not on-hand quantity.
Open the live demoExamples on this page use made-up round numbers to show the calculation. They are not benchmarks or results from real businesses.