In the fast-paced world of e-commerce, maintaining accurate inventory levels and efficient order tracking are essential for avoiding stockouts, ensuring customer satisfaction, and keeping operations running smoothly. Fortunately, several intuitive spreadsheet-based apps have emerged that merge simplicity with automation, helping e-commerce sellers streamline inventory and order management without investing in expensive enterprise solutions.
TLDR: Too Long, Didn’t Read
If you’re an e-commerce seller aiming to avoid stockouts and boost order accuracy, these six spreadsheet-based inventory and order-tracking apps can help. From Airtable’s flexible templates to Sheetgo’s automation, and Glide’s no-code interfaces, these tools offer scalable solutions that integrate well into your workflow. Apps like Zoho Inventory Sync and AppSheet can also automate alerts and stock syncs. Most importantly, they minimize manual work, reduce errors, and save valuable time.
1. Airtable + Inventory Templates
Airtable is a hybrid between a spreadsheet and a database, offering a more visual and flexible way to manage inventory compared to traditional spreadsheets. For e-commerce sellers, it’s a powerful tool due to its low learning curve and variety of pre-built inventory templates to get started fast.
- Template-Driven: Airtable provides inventory and order tracking templates tailored for small businesses and e-commerce shops.
- Automation Features: Set up triggers for low-stock alerts, order status updates, or even auto-email notifications.
- Integration Ready: Connects with Shopify, WooCommerce, and Zapier for syncing orders and product info in real-time.
Visual dashboards make it easy to see what’s low in stock and what needs reordering. For those without technical backgrounds, Airtable’s drag-and-drop UI and simple formula functions make managing thousands of SKUs more approachable.
2. Sheetgo
Sheetgo extends the capabilities of Google Sheets through its automation platform that links multiple spreadsheets in dynamic workflows. It adds real-time syncing between various sheets, making it an ideal choice for growing e-commerce teams spread across different locations.
- Workflow Automation: Automate inventory logging, supplier updates, and delivery tracking between sheets.
- Easy Integration: Compatible with Gmail, Google Drive, and cloud services to send alerts and update stakeholders in real time.
- Control and Permissions: Lock access and control viewing rights when working with teams or vendors.
Inventory data from multiple warehouses or suppliers can be consolidated into one analytics dashboard with Sheetgo, reducing the risk of stockouts due to miscommunication or spreadsheet mismatches.
3. Glide Inventory Packs
For sellers who want more than sheets—but less than full-blown custom development—Glide is an ideal no-code option. It turns spreadsheets into user-friendly mobile and web apps instantly. The major draw for inventory management? Glide’s Inventory Packs, which include pre-built workflows and inventory fields.
- Mobile-Friendly: Instantly create inventory apps for mobile use, perfect for use in warehouses or remote access.
- No-Code Necessary: Use drag-and-drop tools to adjust forms, buttons, filters, and stock status displays.
- Live Sheets Integration: Changes to your app reflect in real-time on Google Sheets or Excel files.
Glide is particularly efficient for sellers operating in both online and brick-and-mortar environments. Their inventory packs include reorder workflows, stock level categories, and detailed product entry screens.
4. Zoho Inventory Sync
Zoho Inventory is a feature-rich platform on its own, but what many e-commerce businesses love is its capability to sync inventory data with spreadsheets like Google Sheets or Excel using Zoho Flow or Deluge scripts.
- Multi-Channel Support: Sync orders and stock with Amazon, eBay, and Shopify in real-time.
- Spreadsheet Exports: Automate spreadsheet updates for sales, inventory, and shipping statuses.
- Low Stock Notifications: Automated alerts help prevent stock from running out by flagging critical SKUs.
If you’re comfortable using some coding tools (like Deluge), you can customize exact triggers and conditions. For more casual users, Zoho Flow provides a visual rule builder for set-and-forget automation.
5. AppSheet
Backed by Google, AppSheet allows businesses to turn spreadsheets into fully functional apps using no-code development. For e-commerce users, it’s invaluable as it enables mobile scanning, multi-device inventory controls, and syncing between devices.
- Barcode Scanning: Use device cameras to scan products and update inventory sheets instantly.
- Real-Time Stock Updates: Changes made in the app reflect directly in your spreadsheet.
- Custom Access Levels: Define roles for warehouse workers, managers, and suppliers with different permissions.
AppSheet is highly effective when paired with Google Sheets, and with powerful integration support, it works well in environments that require in-field inventory management or courier-level delivery tracking.
6. Rows
Rows reimagines the spreadsheet UI with focus on real-time integrations and streamlined dashboards. It’s a good choice for e-commerce shops focused on analytics and auto-importing data from outside sources.
- Built-in Integrations: Connect directly to Stripe, Shopify, Google Analytics, and more.
- Easy Formulas: Use simplified functions to pull inventory quantities, sales data, or supplier updates.
- Dashboard-Centric: Visualize slow-moving and fast-selling products at a glance without leaving your sheet.
Whereas tools like Airtable focus on data entry and views, Rows is ideal for sellers with a data-driven mindset. Its interface appeals to analytics-focused shops wanting high visibility of real-time performance.
Final Thoughts
Each of these six spreadsheet-based inventory apps has its strengths, and the ideal choice will depend on the seller’s specific needs, technical comfort, and sales channels. But they all serve one primary goal: avoiding stockouts by giving sellers better tools to monitor inventory levels, automate workflows, and keep better track of incoming and outgoing orders. With the right combination of automation and visibility, e-commerce sellers can protect their sales cycles and delight customers consistently.
FAQ
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Which app is best for beginners?
Airtable and Glide are highly recommended for beginners due to their clean UI and pre-built templates that require no technical background. -
Can these tools integrate with Shopify?
Yes. Tools like Zoho Inventory Sync, Rows, and Sheetgo offer integrations with Shopify either directly or through third-party connectors like Zapier or Integromat. -
Do these apps support barcode scanning?
AppSheet offers support for barcode scanning, which is useful for managing high-volume inventory using mobile devices. -
Are these spreadsheets secure for handling sensitive data?
Each platform offers varying degrees of access control. Sheetgo and AppSheet, for example, allow you to set user-level permissions, while others rely on cloud platform security from Google or Microsoft. -
What automation features help prevent stockouts?
Tools like Sheetgo and Airtable offer stock-level alert automation, reorder triggers, and integration with supplier systems to automate replenishment.
