Restoc vs StockAlert: thresholds you set, or a reorder point Restoc calculates
If you are weighing StockAlert for low-stock alerts and want to know what a different app would change, the short answer is one thing: where the trigger number comes from. StockAlert's App Store listing is built around thresholds set per variant, with a Smart Mode on its higher tiers, while Restoc is built to calculate a reorder point per SKU from your sales velocity and the lead time you enter.
Two ways to pick the number that fires the alert
Both apps answer the same question: tell me before this SKU runs out. Both answer it in the same two places, your inbox and a Slack channel. The difference sits one step earlier, in how the alert level gets decided.
StockAlert's listing describes a lightweight alerting utility. The capabilities recorded in our research are global or per-variant thresholds, instant or digest cadence, alerts tracked across store locations, inventory checked automatically every 15 minutes, and a Smart Mode, listed from its Growth tier, described as forecasting demand and setting automatic reorder points per variant. On its lower tiers, the number is one you choose and maintain.
Restoc has no field for a unit threshold. It computes a reorder point per SKU from two inputs you control: a sales velocity window of 7, 14 or 30 days, and the supplier lead time you enter for that SKU. The alert fires when stock crosses that computed line. The same calculation drives the days-of-inventory-remaining figure on the dashboard, so you can see how close a SKU is getting before anything fires.
That is the whole trade. A threshold is faster to set. It never surprises you, and it never moves. A calculated reorder point moves with demand and with how long your supplier actually takes. It also means 400 SKUs do not need 400 decisions from you.
Side by side on what differs
| Dimension | Restoc | StockAlert, from its App Store listing, retrieved 9 October |
|---|---|---|
| Where the alert level comes from | Calculated per SKU from a sales velocity window of 7, 14 or 30 days and the lead time you enter for that SKU | Listing describes global or per-variant thresholds. Smart Mode, listed from the Growth plan, is described as forecasting demand and setting automatic reorder points per variant |
| Alert channels | Email, and Slack through an incoming webhook on Growth and above, fired when a SKU crosses its reorder point | Listing: "Low stock and out-of-stock alerts by email or Slack, tracked across all your store locations." |
| Cadence and recipients | An alert per crossing, to one alert email address and a Slack webhook if you set one, plus a weekly reorder report | Instant or digest cadence, with daily and weekly options; 1 recipient on Free, 3 on Growth |
| What else you look at | Dashboard with current stock, days of inventory remaining and reorder status per active SKU, plus a weekly reorder report with suggested order quantities, exportable as CSV | Listing describes alerting and multi-location tracking |
| Stock checking | Crossings are evaluated by a background job built so one crossing does not fire twice | Listing states inventory is checked automatically every 15 minutes |
| Locations | 1 location on every plan | Free 1 location, Starter 2, Growth up to 3, Unlimited up to 20 |
| Catalogue size per tier | Starter 200 tracked SKUs, Growth 1,000, Pro 2,000, enforced at sync time | Free up to 50 variants, Starter 200, Growth 1,000, Unlimited stated as unlimited variants |
| Price | Starter $29 a month or $290 a year, Growth $59 or $590, Pro $99 or $990, each with a 60-day free trial, billed by Shopify on your Shopify invoice | Free $0, Starter $7.99 a month, Growth $14.99, Unlimited $24.99 |
How Restoc gets to the number
The calculation is plain on purpose. A merchant has to be able to argue with it.
Average daily sales over your chosen window, times that SKU's lead time. That is the reorder point. One tested function does it, the same way for every row. A Shopify community thread that merchants have been passing around does the same arithmetic by hand in a spreadsheet, with safety stock added on top.
Two things follow from that.
The window is a real decision
Seven days tracks a trend fast. It also reacts hard to one busy weekend. Thirty days is steady. It is slow to notice a SKU taking off. Fourteen sits between them. The window is set store-wide. Pro adds a per-SKU override, which is what you want for items that sell in bursts rather than evenly.
Lead time is yours, not an average
Restoc does not guess at your supplier. You enter lead time per SKU, as a whole number of days, checked on the server before it is saved. So the SKU that takes six weeks from overseas and the one your local supplier ships in three days get different reorder points off the same velocity. If you pad your reorder numbers by hand today, that padding goes into the lead-time figure.
What Restoc is built to do
A reorder point you can check by hand
Velocity over 7, 14 or 30 days times your lead time per SKU, computed by one tested function. Nothing hidden, so you can sanity-check a row against your own arithmetic.
Days of inventory remaining, per SKU
The dashboard shows current stock, days of inventory remaining and reorder status for every active SKU. Urgency is visible before an alert fires.
Email and Slack on the crossing
An alert goes out when a SKU crosses its reorder point, delivered by a background job built so one crossing does not produce three messages. Slack webhooks are included from Growth.
A weekly list you can send to a supplier
The weekly reorder report lists the SKUs below their reorder point with a suggested order quantity, in the app and as a CSV export.
60 days before the first charge
Every plan carries a 60-day free trial, long enough for at least one full weekly reorder cycle to complete first. The subscription is billed by Shopify on your Shopify invoice, not by a separate card payment.
The price gap, said plainly
StockAlert's listed paid tiers run from $7.99 to $24.99 a month. Its free tier covers up to 50 variants. Restoc starts at $29 a month for 200 tracked SKUs. That is a real gap, and we are not going to dress it up.
What the difference buys is the calculation and the view around it. A reorder point derived per SKU instead of typed in. Days of inventory remaining on a dashboard. A weekly reorder report with suggested quantities, in the app or as a CSV you can open in a spreadsheet.
If all you need is a message when a variant drops under ten units, say so and act on it. A cheaper threshold app will do that. So will Shopify Flow, free, with a workflow that emails you once stock drops below a level you choose. Spend the money elsewhere.
Where the gap narrows is maintenance. A threshold is one decision per variant. It is also a standing commitment to revisit that number when demand or lead times move. On a 50-SKU store that is an afternoon. On an 800-SKU store, by our reasoning, it is the job nobody gets round to, and a threshold set last spring fires later than it should. Our comparison against Merchbees Low Stock Alert runs the same trade-off against an app with a 250-SKU free tier.
When to choose which
Reasons to stay with StockAlert
Its listing covers ground Restoc does not. Multi-location alerting is the clearest. The listing names 2 locations on Starter and up to 20 on Unlimited, while every Restoc plan is limited to 1 location. If you hold stock in more than one warehouse, or run retail alongside online, that decides it on its own.
The listing also names 3 recipients on Growth, where Restoc sends to one alert email address plus a Slack webhook if you configure one. It states inventory is checked automatically every 15 minutes. And if your catalogue is under 50 variants, its free tier means the comparison is against zero.
Reasons to look at Restoc
One Shopify store, somewhere between 50 and 2,000 SKUs, and a reorder decision you currently make in a spreadsheet. You want the app to tell you when, and roughly how much, rather than remind you of a number you picked months ago. You want lead time held per SKU, because your suppliers are not interchangeable. You want one weekly list you can hand to a supplier instead of a stream of single messages. You want days of inventory remaining on screen before anything fires.
How to settle it in five minutes
Count your locations first. More than one, and this page is answered. Then count your variants. Under 50, start free somewhere and come back when you outgrow it. Then ask whether you can honestly keep a hand-set number current across your whole catalogue. If the answer is no, a calculated reorder point is what you are paying for.
Questions
Can I set a fixed low-stock threshold in Restoc?
No. Restoc has no unit-threshold field. It calculates a reorder point per SKU from your sales velocity window of 7, 14 or 30 days and the lead time you enter for that SKU, and the alert fires when stock crosses that line. The two inputs are yours, so the output is still yours to argue with.
Does Restoc alert on Slack as well as email?
Email alerts are on every plan. Slack alerts, through an incoming webhook you configure, are included from Growth at $59 a month and on Pro. Both fire on the same event, a SKU crossing its reorder point.
Does Restoc handle more than one location?
No. Every Restoc plan, Starter, Growth and Pro, covers 1 location. StockAlert's App Store listing names 2 locations on its Starter plan and up to 20 on Unlimited, so if your stock sits in more than one place that difference matters more than anything else on this page.
What does Restoc cost against StockAlert's prices?
Restoc is Starter $29 a month or $290 a year, Growth $59 or $590, Pro $99 or $990, each with a 60-day free trial and billed by Shopify on your Shopify invoice. StockAlert's listing, retrieved 9 October 2026, shows Free at $0, Starter $7.99 a month, Growth $14.99 and Unlimited $24.99.
How many SKUs does each Restoc plan track?
Starter tracks up to 200, Growth up to 1,000 and Pro up to 2,000, and the cap is enforced at sync time rather than quietly ignored. Our page on passing the tracked-SKU limit explains what you see when a store gets close.
Can I change the sales velocity window per SKU?
The window of 7, 14 or 30 days is set store-wide on every plan. Pro adds a per-SKU override, which is the one to use for items that sell in bursts rather than evenly.
Is Restoc a free alternative?
No. There is no free tier. There is a 60-day free trial on every plan, long enough for at least one full weekly reorder cycle to complete before the first charge, and no separate card payment: Shopify bills the subscription on your Shopify invoice.