How to Bulk Update Stock levels in Ply

Bulk updating stock levels lets you make large inventory changes quickly and accurately without editing items one by one.

With this feature, you can download your current stock data, update it in a spreadsheet, and upload it back to Ply to apply changes in bulk.

What you can update in bulk

Using the stock level bulk update, you can modify the following:

Feature	Description
📦 On-hand quantity	Correct counts after a physical audit or cycle count
📉 Minimum quantity	Set reorder thresholds for all materials at once
📈 Maximum quantity	Define target stock levels in a single upload
🏷️ Barcode numbers	Add or update barcodes fleet-wide without scanning
📍 Location position	Update Aisle, Bay, Level, Bin for reorganized shelves

This is per location. Each download/upload cycle works on one location (warehouse or truck). To update multiple locations, repeat the process for each.

When should you use this?

This feature is especially useful when you need to:

Use Case	Description
🔵 After an inventory audit	Push corrected counts back into Ply quickly after a physical count
🟡 Set up min/max across the catalog	Set thresholds for 200 items in one upload instead of editing one by one
🟠 Add barcodes in bulk	Import barcode values for an entire location from your label system
🟤 Warehouse reorganization	Update shelf positions after a physical rearrangement
🔴 Initial setup / data migration	Populate a brand-new location with counts from another system
🔧 Data cleanup	Fix inconsistent or incorrect stock data across many materials at once

If you're working with inventory quantities or physical placement, this is the right tool.

How to bulk update stock levels

1. Go to the Stock page

Navigate to Stock and select the location (warehouse or truck) you want to update

Click on the 3 dots (...) and select the Bulk Update Inventory option.

2. Download your current stock file

Click Export and download the stock file. This file contains all current values for that location.

3. Update the file

Open the file and edit only the columns you want to change. You can update:

On Hand
Min
Max
Barcode
Location Position

Column	Editable?	What to Enter
Material Name	🔒 Locked	Used to match rows, do not edit. Ply uses this to find the right material.
On Hand	✏️ Editable	Whole number (e.g., `12`). Enter the actual current quantity at this location. Leave blank to keep existing value unchanged.
Min	✏️ Editable	Whole number (e.g., `5`). The minimum stock level — items at or below this appear on the Critical Items List.
Max	✏️ Editable	Whole number (e.g., `20`). The target stock level when restocking. Must be greater than Min.
Barcode	✏️ Editable	Any alphanumeric string (e.g., `PLY-00141` or `012345678905`). Leave blank to keep existing. Must be unique per material.
Position	✏️ Editable	Free text (e.g., `A3-B2-L1` or `Shelf 4`). This is the physical location label shown in the stock view.

🚫 Never do these! They will break the import:

Delete or rename column headers
Delete the Material Name column or change material names
Add new materials via the bulk file (use Catalog Import for that)
Change the file format (e.g., save as .xlsx if it was .csv

4. Upload the updated file

Once your changes are ready, upload the file back into Ply. The system will validate the data and apply updates in bulk.

⚠️ File limits: Imports are limited to 7,500 items per file. Files exceeding this limit will not be processed, make sure your file meets this requirement before importing. Only Excel files (.xlsx, .xls) are accepted, up to 10 MB.

What happens after upload?

Inventory quantities update immediately
Min/Max levels are applied
Barcodes and positions are updated for that location
No duplicate materials are created

This only updates stock-level data, not catalog fields like material names, item numbers, or categories.

✅ What it updates Quantities, min/max, barcodes, and positions all applied immediately

❌ What it doesn't change Material names, item numbers, categories, descriptions. Use Catalog Bulk Update for those

Stock Level Bulk Update vs. Catalog Bulk Update

What You Want to Change	📦 Stock Level Bulk Update	📋 Catalog Bulk Update
On-hand quantity	Yes	No
Min / Max thresholds	Yes	No
Barcode at a specific location	Yes	No
Shelf / bin position	Yes	No
Material name / description	No	Yes
Item number / SKU	No	Yes
Category assignment	No	Yes
Add new materials	No	Yes (via bulk add)

Tips for a smooth bulk update

Always download a fresh file before editing. Don't reuse a file from last week stock values may have changed. A fresh export is the source of truth.

Test with a small batch first. Update 5–10 rows, upload, and verify the results before processing 500 rows. Mistakes on a small file are easy to fix.

Keep a backup copy of the original file. Before editing, save a copy with a date stamp (e.g., warehouse_a_backup_may9.csv). Easy to refer back to if something goes wrong.

For multiple locations, repeat per location. Download, edit, and upload separately for each warehouse or truck. Don't mix rows from different locations in one file.

Review the preview before confirming. Always check the changes preview after uploading. The red "Errors" count tells you what Ply couldn't apply — fix those rows and re-upload.

Bulk updates are one of the fastest ways to keep your inventory clean, accurate, and scalable as you grow.

Still need help? Contact Support!

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