Whether you’re opening a new thrift store or managing multiple retail locations, one thing’s for certain: it’s difficult to manage inventory. You have donations coming in at random points throughout the week, and with only one unit available for each item, it’s tricky to know exactly what you’ve got in-store.
Thrift store inventory management software lightens the load. It stores all of your inventory-related data—like product quantities, prices, and sell-through rates—so you don’t have to spend hours combing through products on the shop floor.
However, not all thrift shop inventory management tools are created equal. There are some essential features that consignment stores need that other retailers don’t, making it tough to find the right one. We’ve done the hard work for you and ranked six of the best options for thrift stores of all sizes.
Best thrift store inventory management software
| Thrift Store IMS | G2 Rating | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Shopify POS | 4.4 out of 5 | From $5 per month |
| Lightspeed Retail | 4.0 out of 5 | From $89 per month |
| ThriftCart | Not available | No data available |
| KORONA POS | 4.8 out of 5 | From $59 per month |
| Loyverse POS | 4.7 out of 5 | From $25 per month |
| POS Nation | 4.7 out of 5 | From $69 per month |
1. Shopify POS
Shopify POS has everything you need to manage and operate a thrift store business. At its core is a point of sale (POS) system that allows you to ring up orders, apply discounts, and take payment from your customers in-store.
Shopify POS also has inventory management tools to manage stock across multiple sales channels, including your online store. If you’re selling vintage clothing in your thrift store, for example, you can show real-time product data—including its availability, price, and product description—on your online store and cater to the omnichannel shoppers who make purchases 70% more often.
“We had a clunky online experience and inventory management was a nightmare,” says Mandalyn Renicker, owner of Offbeat Bikes. “I was manually checking and updating inventory numbers all the time, which was really tedious and time-consuming. We needed to move everything to one integrated platform, and Shopify felt like the logical solution.”
Best features include:
- Multi-store inventory tracking
- Stocky, an inventory management app that can support with stock takes and reporting
- Stockout alerts to get notified when items are no longer available
- Collections and variants to organize inventory
- Ecommerce platform to sync inventory across your physical and online stores
- Mobile hardware, including POS Go, to pull up inventory data anywhere in-store
- Email carts to in-store shoppers who’d rather checkout online
- Detailed real-time inventory reports to identify bestsellers (so you can stock more)
- Integrations with 100+ apps, including team staffing, marketing tools, and accounting software, from the Shopify App Store
Pros:
- Free trial available
- Lite plan is very inexpensive
- Rated 4.4 out of 5 stars on G2
- Online store, point of sale, and inventory management all in one
- User-friendly interface that’s easy to train retail staff on
- 24/7 customer support available
Cons:
- POS system requires a stable internet connection
- The sheer volume of features may be overwhelming for smaller thrift store owners
Pricing: Shopify POS Lite costs $5/month and gives you one POS login, which is ideal for smaller stores. For unlimited logins and discounted payment processing rates, Shopify POS Retail starts at $89/month.
2. Lightspeed Retail
Lightspeed’s POS system offers inventory management, reporting, and payment processing within one. It offers 24/7 customer support if you have any questions, plus unified commerce features to combine inventory from all of your sales channels.
That said, some of Lightspeed’s best features aren’t applicable to thrift store owners—like the ability to connect with suppliers and manage purchase orders from the retail software. Your inventory will be coming from donations.
Best features include:
- Stock alerts to prevent stockouts
- Inventory counting tools to improve accuracy when totaling stock
- One-click price updates to change an item’s resale price across all sales channels
- Multi-channel inventory management tools
- SKU and serial number support to easily locate inventory
Pros:
- Customizable
- Comprehensive inventory management features in a POS system
- 24/7 customer support available
Cons:
- Not all features are useful to thrift store owners
- It can be expensive for smaller consignment stores
- G2 rating is the lowest of all thrift store IMSes on this list (besides ThriftCart—its score is unavailable)
Pricing: Lightspeed Retail’s basic plan starts at $89/month.
3. ThriftCart
ThriftCart is a thrift store POS system that includes the features you’ll need to operate an efficient consignment store, like the ability to process donations, pick-up scheduling, and roundup donations.
Best features include:
- Roundup donations to maximize profits
- Pick-up scheduling to arrange a convenient time to collect donated inventory
- Real-time inventory reporting
- Integrations with POS hardware like receipt printers and card terminals
Pros:
- Very easy to use
- Built specifically for thrift stores
- Speed up the time you spend processing donations
- Integrates with POS hardware like receipt printers and card terminals
- Helpful customer support
Cons:
- No G2 rating available
- Ecommerce support and website builder is very limited
- Pricing isn’t publicly available
Pricing: ThriftCart doesn’t share its pricing publicly. You’ll need to contact its sales team for a custom quote.
4. KORONA POS
KORONA’s inventory management system comes as part of its POS software. It promises flat rates without locking you into a contract and a 60-day money-back guarantee, making it a good option for newer thrift shops that want to test out different systems before committing to an IMS.
Best features include:
- Organize donations into pricing categories
- CRM integrations to track customer data
- Mobile app to document incoming inventory on-the-go
- Self-service kiosks using RFID technology
- Integrates with all major payment processors
Pros:
- Free trial available
- 60-day money-back guarantee
- Rated 4.8 out of 5 stars on G2
- Support for multiple store locations
Cons:
- No native payment processing service
- Only integrates with Woocommerce for ecommerce inventory tracking
- Basic plan doesn’t include critical inventory management features
Pricing: KORONA’s Core plan starts at $59/month. For inventory counts and real-time tracking, you’d need its Retail plan, which starts at $69/month.
5. Loyverse POS
Loyverse is a POS system that’s best known for being free. If you’re considering this option to manage thrift store inventory, however, it won’t be free of charge. Advanced inventory management features come at an additional cost.
Best features include:
- Label printing
- Easy stock level adjustments
- Detailed stock counts to see lost or surplus inventory
- Inventory history to see who donated a product and when
- Valuation reports to give a total retail value and potential profit on inventory
Pros:
- Low monthly subscription
- Rated 4.7 out of 5 stars on G2
- Help center has videos and guides in 17 different languages
- Turn your mobile phone into a POS system—no extra hardware required
Cons:
- Free plan doesn’t include inventory tools
- Lack of professional hardware could make your thrift store look less professional
Pricing: Free plan available, but to use its advanced inventory management features, you’ll need to pay. This starts at $25/month.
6. POS Nation
POS Nation offers both POS software and hardware to operate your thrift store business. Its POS solution includes inventory management features like mix and match pricing, inventory alerts, and real-time counts. There’s no limit on how many items you can add.
Best features include:
- Unlimited SKU tracking
- Hardware, including touch PCs, receipt printers, and barcode scanners
- Mix and match pricing to incentivize customers to spend more
- Inventory alerts when your safety stock falls below a certain threshold
- Real-time inventory counts and metrics
Pros:
- Customizable
- Multi-store support
- Rated 4.7 out of 5 on G2
- Hardware, software, and payment processing combined
- 30-day money-back guarantee
Cons:
- Expensive for smaller thrift stores
- Dependent on a strong internet connection
- Interface can be difficult to navigate at first
Pricing: POS Nation’s Starter plan costs $69/month. For extra tools and the ability to manage inventory across multiple stores, you’ll need to use its pricing calculator for a custom quote.
Unique challenges in thrift store inventory management
High inventory turnover
It’s rare for thrift stores to sell multiple quantities of the same product. Items often come from donations, which means inventory turnover is high. Items get sold as quickly as they’re donated.
High turnover requires you to spend time restocking inventory, pricing new goods, and organizing receiving inventory, which can be labor-intensive and time-consuming. Quality control becomes an issue too if you don’t have systems and processes in place to approve inventory before it gets listed for sale.
Low profit margins
Despite thrift shops securing inventory for free, it’s not always profitable. Some shoppers treat thrifting as a low cost hobby—something to do when they have spare time—or a way to get new clothes for less than their recommended retail price. Others thrift as a way to buy cheap inventory that they can repurpose or resell themselves. Either way, people are looking for bargains.
Remember: the money left over after selling an item isn’t purely profit. You have other business expenses to cover when running a store, such as rent, utilities, and staff salaries. Make sure that the sale price for your thrift store inventory covers a portion of these fixed costs to remain profitable.
Donations and sourcing
Thrift stores rely on donations as a way to source cheap inventory. But the usefulness of donated goods can vary dramatically. People might drop off unwanted summer items at the end of the season, leaving you with the burden of storing summer goods for six months until people are ready to buy the following year.
Quality control can also become an issue when managing thrift store inventory. You might receive items that are dirty or damaged, which either need cleaning or disposing—two tasks you won’t turn a profit on.
Features to look for in your thrift store inventory software
If you’re not sure which inventory management system to use for your thrift store, here’s a handy checklist that will make sure your shortlisted software is future-proof:
- User-friendly interface. How easy is it to find a specific item, change inventory quantities, and ring up orders? User-friendly interfaces are more efficient. You can complete basic tasks in a fraction of the time it’d take on a more complex system.
- Real-time inventory tracking. Keep your inventory data up to date with real-time tracking across all sales channels. If someone looks at a product online and later heads to buy it in-store, you don’t want to make it a wasted trip because the item was sold the day before.
- Donation tracking capabilities. Streamline how you bring in and approve inventory with donation tracking features. You’ll be able to see who donated each product when, the member of staff that approved it, and whether it meets your quality control criteria before listing the product for sale.
- Inventory categorization. Categories make it easier for customers to buy items they’re looking for, and for sales teams to ring up items on your point of sale system. Look for inventory management software that allows you to create custom categories and assign products to them.
- Barcode scanning and tagging. Thrift shops rarely have two of the same item, so it can be difficult to know how you’ve tagged the product in your IMS. Look for software that supports barcodes, including scanning hardware and tag printing, to easily locate items in your inventory management and POS system.
- Sales and inventory reporting. Sales reports tell you what stock is and isn’t selling so you can make smarter decisions when accepting donations. Inventory reports also show turnover rate, stock valuations, and shrinkage reports to see the bigger picture on how efficient your store is.
- Multi-channel integration. If you’re also selling an item across Instagram, Facebook, occasional pop-up shops, and your online store, look for tools that can pool thrift store inventory data from all sales channels.
- Mobile accessibility. Shoppers might ask whether you’ve got a particular product in-stock without visiting the checkout desk. An inventory management system that integrates with mobile hardware, such as POS Go, can give them an instant answer.
- Scalability. The last thing you want to do is move all of your inventory data into a new system if you’ve outgrown the old one. Pick an IMS that offers all of the features you might need in the future—even if you don’t need them right now.
How to manage thrift store inventory
Perform regular inventory audits
An inventory audit verifies that the data stored in your thrift store IMS is accurate and up to date. It can help identify discrepancies and spot whether items are missing, which could point to bigger issues like retail theft.
There are several ways to conduct an inventory audit. The most popular methods are:
- Full cycle count. Physically count every item in your thrift store, including inventory on the shop floor and in your stockroom. Barcode scanners, particularly those that integrate with your IMS, help to improve accuracy.
- Partial count. If you don’t have time to count all of your inventory, or you’d rather do it in more manageable chunks, segment your thrift store inventory (such as t-shirts or accessories) and record the products available for sale.
Once you’ve counted your inventory using either of these methods, add the data to your thrift shop inventory management system. Investigate any differences between the recorded and actual quantities. This might mean recounting the stock or evaluating potential theft, which can stop you from advertising out-of-stock items and minimize inventory shrinkage.
Use dynamic pricing models
As a thrift store owner, it can be difficult to determine what an item is worth. This is why fixed pricing, where the item has the same retail price until it’s sold, isn’t always the best choice.
Dynamic pricing, however, means the sale price can fluctuate depending on:
- The season
- Customer demand
- Changes in supply
- Stock levels
- How long it’s been left on the shelf
- Market conditions
Say you had a vintage t-shirt that was originally listed for $58. The item has been on the shelf for two months despite heavy promotion. People who’ve looked at it saw the tag and walked away, so you can safely assume that the price is too high.
You do some research and find that comparable items are selling for around $40 on eBay. Your inventory management system also shows that people rarely spend more than $30 on a single item in your thrift store. Dynamic pricing allows you to bring down the cost to around $34—slightly more than the average shopper spends, but still a better deal than they’d find on eBay.
Host promotions and sales
The beauty of thrift store inventory is that your break-even point is low. You likely got the product for free through a donation, which gives you plenty of room to experiment with sales and promotions. These offers give people a strong incentive to buy your products and spend more in-store.
Examples of popular sales you could run in your thrift store include:
- Buy one, get one free
- $5 off purchases for first-time customers
- Time-sensitive discounts, such as “25% off this weekend only!”
- Conditional offers, like $5 off every order over $50
- A percentage discount for repeat customers which increases as they spend more
- Bundled discounts, such as a t-shirt and purse for $50 (instead of $65 bought separately)
Just bear in mind that you’ll have other expenses associated with your thrift store like staff wages, rent, utilities, and the cost of your POS system. Make sure you’re still able to pay a portion of these fixed costs when you’re considering discounting.
Organize thrift store inventory in your stockroom
If you’re operating a small thrift store, limited storage space can become a problem. It’s not uncommon for stockrooms to become an unorganized mess, with approved items sitting beside donated inventory that have to undergo quality control. It only takes one mistake to put this faulty product on the shelves.
Implement strict stockroom organization rules to prevent clutter from impacting the shopping experience for your customers. That might mean:
- A clear, labeled section for incoming inventory that hasn’t yet been approved
- Quality control instructions taped to the wall next to a workspace for easy referencing
- Shelving units that categorize approved inventory
- Colored price tags to separate expensive stock from lower priced items
- A designated section for dead stock—away from your approved inventory
- Assigning weekly tasks to each team member, like conducting shelving checks and inventory counts
Rotate and refresh thrift store inventory
Stagnant inventory can lead to boredom among customers and a decline in sales. The experience should be fun and exciting every time someone visits your thrift store, so regularly rotate stock to show off new items and encourage shoppers to come back.
Inventory rotation also allows you to showcase specific items when they’re in high demand. It’s rare for people to shop for winter clothes in the summer, for example, so move coats and scarves back into your stockroom to make space for summer dresses and t-shirts in your visual merchandising displays.
Engage with the local community for inventory sourcing
Thrift stores are heavily reliant on their local community. The stock you’re selling is only as good as the inventory that’s being donated.
If you’re running short on stock or need higher quality goods, you could:
- Place drop-off points in schools, grocery stores, or parking lots
- Host a fundraiser with other retail stores in your local area
- Do a donation drive by getting press coverage in your local newspaper
- Ask local retailers to donate unsold or returned inventory to your thrift store
- Plan community events, such as technology workshops for kids, that requires customers to donate old products in order to attend
Use technology for inventory management
Inventory management is time consuming and tedious. When you use technology to complete inventory-related tasks, however, you’ll reduce the chance of human error from wreaking havoc with your data. It’ll also save you time—technology can complete tasks much faster than we can.
That might mean:
- POS systems to track sales and process payments
- Analytics apps to gain valuable insights on how your thrift store is performing and make informed decisions on which items to prioritize
- Inventory alerts and safety stock thresholds to prevent stock outs (through Stocky)
- Barcode systems to quickly find product data and ring up items at the checkout desk
Manage your thrift store inventory like a pro
Inventory is a difficult thing to master when you’re the owner of a thrift store that has stock quickly coming in without a guaranteed replacement. Master it, though, and inventory management will feel like a breeze. You’ll free up time you’d otherwise spend conducting stock takes and processing donations, leaving you with more headspace to tackle bigger projects that grow your thrift store.
Thrift store inventory management FAQ
What is the best POS system for thrift stores?
- Shopify POS
- Lightspeed Retail
- ThriftCart
- Korona POS
- Loyverse POS
- POS Nation
How can thrift stores efficiently process and organize donations?
- Use donation tracking software
- Set a timeslot to accept donations
- Have a designated drop-off area for donated items
- Create quality control criteria
- Categorize donations
- Set-up pricing and tagging stations
- Add approved items to your inventory management system
What are some effective pricing strategies for thrift store items?
Effective pricing strategies for a thrift store include categorized pricing, dynamic pricing, and discounting. With categorized, all t-shirts might resale for $15. Dynamic pricing considers the market and consumer demand, valuing the t-shirt at $19. Discounts can be applied to either pricing strategy to entice customers to buy.
How often should thrift stores conduct inventory audits?
The regularity of inventory audits depends on the volume of inventory you’re managing. Smaller stores might only need to audit stock every month, whereas larger stores with more inventory might require weekly counts.
