Inventory glossary
What is Minimum order quantity?
Minimum order quantity (MOQ) is the smallest amount of a product a supplier will sell you in one order.
MOQs decide how much cash you tie up every time you reorder, even if you do not need that much stock yet. A supplier might sell candles only in boxes of 200, so you cannot order 50 even if that matches your sales pace.
When you plan purchase orders, check the MOQ against your actual demand. If the MOQ is far above what you sell in a normal cycle, you either hold excess stock longer or need to find a different supplier for that SKU.
Example
A candle supplier sets an MOQ of 300 units per scent. You sell 40 units of lavender candles a month. Ordering the minimum means you are holding about 7.5 months of stock after one order, so you plan your cash and shelf space around that instead of ordering more often.
Common mistakes
- Ignoring MOQ when setting reorder quantities, then being surprised the supplier rejects a small order.
- Treating MOQ as the ideal order size instead of the minimum allowed.
- Not renegotiating MOQ as sales volume grows, leaving stock levels stuck at outdated minimums.
Minimum order quantity and SteadyShelf
SteadyShelf rounds suggested order quantities to case packs and can factor supplier minimums when drafting purchase orders, so you do not place an order below what the supplier accepts.
SteadyShelf is launching on the Shopify App Store. Join early access to get the install link first.
Related terms
Case pack · Purchase order · Reorder quantity · Economic order quantity · Supplier
FAQ
What happens if I order less than the MOQ?
The supplier will usually reject the order or ask you to increase it to meet their minimum.
Can MOQ change over time?
Yes, suppliers can raise or lower it based on their own production costs or your order history with them.
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