Inventory Now

Getting Started

Step 1: Create an API Key

Sign in to the web app as the account owner (subusers cannot manage API keys).
Click Manage API Keys below (or navigate to the API Keys page).
Enter a descriptive title (e.g. "Zapier Integration") and click Generate Key.
Copy the full key immediately. It is shown only once.

Your key will look like: inv_api_a1b2c3d4e5f67890_aBcDeFgHiJkLmNoPqRsTuVwXyZ...

Step 2: Make Requests

Include your key in the Authorization header as a Bearer token. JSON responses are automatic when using an API key — no need to set Content-Type or Accept headers.

curl -X GET "https://www.inventorynow.app/items" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"

Step 3: Handle Responses

All successful responses return JSON. Errors return a JSON object with an error or success: false field and an appropriate HTTP status code.

Status Code	Meaning
`200`	Success
`400`	Bad request / validation error
`403`	Unauthorized / invalid or revoked API key
`404`	Resource not found
`500`	Server error

Items

`GET /items`

Returns a paginated list of your inventory items.

Query Parameters

Param	Type	Description
`page`	Integer	Page number (default: 1)
`per_page`	Integer	Items per page (default: 50)
`search`	String	Search across name, category, subcategory, location, notes, barcode, SKU
`category`	String	Filter by exact category (case-insensitive)
`subcategory`	String	Filter by exact subcategory (case-insensitive)
`location`	String	Filter by exact location (case-insensitive)
`from_date`	Date	Filter items with date on or after this value
`to_date`	Date	Filter items with date on or before this value
`sort`	String	Sort field: `name`, `category`, `subcategory`, `place`, `updated_at`, `created_at`, `bought`, `sold`, `cost`, `paid` (default: `updated_at`)
`dir`	String	`asc` or `desc` (default: `desc`)

Response

Array of item objects:

[
  {
    "id": 123,
    "name": "Widget A",
    "category": "Electronics",
    "subcategory": "Adapters",
    "place": "Warehouse 1",
    "notes": "Fragile, handle with care",
    "barcode": "1234567890",
    "sku": "WIDGET-A",
    "internal_id": "abc-def-123",
    "data_set": null,
    "date": "2025-06-01T00:00:00.000Z",
    "bought": 100.0,
    "sold": 25.0,
    "received": 100.0,
    "shipped": 25.0,
    "delivered": 25.0,
    "loss": 2.0,
    "cost": 500.0,
    "paid": 750.0,
    "unit_cost_buy": 5.0,
    "unit_cost_sell": 30.0,
    "low_stock_threshold": 10.0,
    "complete": false,
    "completed_at": null,
    "deleted": false,
    "image_name": "https://example.com/photo.jpg",
    "custom_one": "Color: Red",
    "custom_two": "Size: Large",
    "custom_three": null,
    "created_at": "2025-06-01T12:00:00.000Z",
    "updated_at": "2025-06-15T08:30:00.000Z"
  }
]

`GET /items/:id`

Returns a single item by ID, including its photos.

Response

{
  "id": 123,
  "name": "Widget A",
  ... (same fields as above),
  "item_photos": [
    {
      "id": 1,
      "item_id": 123,
      "external_image_url": "https://example.com/photo.jpg",
      "order_index": 0,
      "created_at": "2025-06-01T12:00:00.000Z",
      "updated_at": "2025-06-01T12:00:00.000Z"
    }
  ]
}

`POST /items`

Creates a new inventory item. If an item with the same internal_id already exists, it will be updated instead.

⚠️ Note: Avoid updating stock counts (bought, sold, cost, paid) directly through this endpoint. Changes made here do not create order records, which means your order history and reports will be inaccurate. Use the Buy & Sell Order endpoints below to modify stock properly.

Request Body

Field	Type	Required	Description
`name`	String	No*	Item name (*auto-generated if blank)
`category`	String	No	Category grouping
`subcategory`	String	No	Subcategory grouping
`place`	String	No	Storage location
`notes`	String	No	Free-text notes
`barcode`	String	No	Barcode / UPC value
`sku`	String	No	SKU identifier
`internal_id`	String	No	Your unique ID (used for upsert matching)
`data_set`	String	No	Dataset name (for multi-dataset accounts)
`date`	DateTime	No	Item date (e.g. purchase date)
`bought`	Decimal	No	Quantity purchased (default: 0)
`sold`	Decimal	No	Quantity sold (default: 0)
`received`	Decimal	No	Quantity received (default: 0)
`shipped`	Decimal	No	Quantity shipped (default: 0)
`delivered`	Decimal	No	Quantity delivered (default: 0)
`loss`	Decimal	No	Quantity lost / shrinkage (default: 0)
`cost`	Decimal	No	Total cost paid for stock (default: 0)
`paid`	Decimal	No	Total revenue received from sales (default: 0)
`unit_cost_buy`	Decimal	No	Default unit purchase cost
`unit_cost_sell`	Decimal	No	Default unit sale price
`low_stock_threshold`	Decimal	No	Per-item low-stock alert threshold
`complete`	Boolean	No	Whether item is marked complete
`image_name`	String	No	Primary image URL
`custom_one`	String	No	Custom field 1
`custom_two`	String	No	Custom field 2
`custom_three`	String	No	Custom field 3

Example

curl -X POST "https://www.inventorynow.app/items" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -d '{
    "item": {
      "name": "Widget A",
      "sku": "WIDGET-A",
      "category": "Electronics",
      "place": "Warehouse 1",
      "bought": 100,
      "cost": 500.00,
      "unit_cost_buy": 5.00,
      "unit_cost_sell": 30.00
    }
  }'

Response

Returns the created item object (same shape as GET /items/:id, without item_photos).

`PUT /items/:id`

Updates an existing item. Only the fields you include in the request body will be changed.

⚠️ Note: Avoid updating stock counts (bought, sold, cost, paid) directly through this endpoint. Changes made here do not create order records, which means your order history and reports will be inaccurate. Use the Buy & Sell Order endpoints below to modify stock properly.

Request Body

Same fields as POST /items (all optional). Wrap in an "item" key.

Example

curl -X PUT "https://www.inventorynow.app/items/123" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -d '{
    "item": {
      "sold": 30,
      "paid": 900.00,
      "notes": "Restocked on June 20"
    }
  }'

Response

Returns the updated item object.

`DELETE /items/:id`

Soft-deletes an item (sets deleted: true). The item will no longer appear in lists.

Response

{ "result": "success" }

`PUT /items/:id/move`

Moves a quantity of stock to a different location. If an item with the same name/category/subcategory exists at the target location, it merges. Otherwise, a new item is created.

Request Body

Field	Type	Required	Description
`location`	String	Yes	Target location name
`quantity`	Decimal	Yes	Quantity to move
`move_costs`	Boolean	No	Whether to move proportional costs

`GET /items/summary`

Returns a summary of your inventory metrics.

Response

{
  "sum": 1234
}

The sum value is a computed aggregate of (bought − sold − cost + paid + 1) across all non-deleted items.

Orders (Buy & Sell)

Orders represent purchase (buy) and sale (sell) transactions against your items.

`GET /orders`

Returns a paginated list of orders (excludes cancelled).

Query Parameters

Param	Type	Description
`page`	Integer	Page number (default: 1)
`order_type`	String	Filter by `buy` or `sell`
`item_id`	Integer	Filter orders containing this item
`assigned_user_id`	Integer	Filter by assigned fulfillment user
`search`	String	Search across item names, categories, locations, customer info

Response

[
  {
    "id": 456,
    "order_type": "sell",
    "notes": "Shipped via FedEx",
    "customer_info": "Jane Doe, 123 Main St",
    "tax_rate": 8.25,
    "discount_rate": 0.0,
    "fees": 5.0,
    "paid": true,
    "cancelled": false,
    "completed_at": "2025-06-15T14:00:00.000Z",
    "user_id": 1,
    "created_by_user_id": 1,
    "assigned_user_id": null,
    "created_at": "2025-06-15T12:00:00.000Z",
    "updated_at": "2025-06-15T14:00:00.000Z",
    "order_items": [
      {
        "id": 789,
        "order_id": 456,
        "item_id": 123,
        "quantity": 5.0,
        "cost": 150.0,
        "item_name": "Widget A",
        "item": { "id": 123, "name": "Widget A", ... }
      }
    ],
    "created_by_user": { "id": 1, "username": "owner", ... },
    "assigned_user": null
  }
]

`GET /orders/:id`

Returns a single order with its line items, related items, and assigned user.

Response

Same shape as a single element from the list above.

📦 Stock Adjustment

When using an API key, creating an order automatically updates item stock counts — incrementing bought/cost for buy orders, or sold/paid for sell orders. You can disable this by passing ?adjust_item=false.

To explicitly control: POST /orders?adjust_item=true or POST /orders?adjust_item=false

`POST /items/:item_id/orders` — Buy Order

Creates a buy (purchase) order for the specified item. This records that you are purchasing stock.

Request Body

Field	Type	Required	Description
`order[order_type]`	String	Yes	Must be `"buy"`
`order[notes]`	String	No	Order notes
`order[customer_info]`	String	No	Supplier / vendor info
`order[tax_rate]`	Decimal	No	Tax rate as percentage (e.g. 8.25)
`order[discount_rate]`	Decimal	No	Discount rate as percentage
`order[fees]`	Decimal	No	Additional fees
`order[order_items_attributes]`	Array	Yes	Line items (see below)

Order Item Fields

Field	Type	Required	Description
`item_id`	Integer	Yes	ID of the item being purchased
`quantity`	Decimal	Yes	Quantity to purchase (must be > 0)
`cost`	Decimal	No	Total cost for this line (defaults to quantity × item's `unit_cost_buy`)

Example

curl -X POST "https://www.inventorynow.app/items/123/orders" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -d '{
    "order": {
      "order_type": "buy",
      "notes": "Restocking from supplier",
      "order_items_attributes": [
        { "item_id": 123, "quantity": 50, "cost": 250.00 }
      ]
    }
  }'

Response

Returns the created order object (same shape as GET /orders/:id).

`POST /items/:item_id/orders` — Sell Order

Creates a sell (sale) order for the specified item. This records a sale of stock to a customer.

Request Body

Same structure as the buy order, but set order_type to "sell". The cost defaults to quantity × item's unit_cost_sell if omitted.

Example

curl -X POST "https://www.inventorynow.app/items/123/orders" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -d '{
    "order": {
      "order_type": "sell",
      "customer_info": "Jane Doe, jane@example.com",
      "tax_rate": 8.25,
      "order_items_attributes": [
        { "item_id": 123, "quantity": 10, "cost": 300.00 }
      ]
    }
  }'

`POST /orders` — Multi-Item Order

Create an order with multiple items in a single request. Works for both buy and sell orders.

Example

curl -X POST "https://www.inventorynow.app/orders" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -d '{
    "order": {
      "order_type": "sell",
      "customer_info": "Acme Corp",
      "tax_rate": 7.0,
      "discount_rate": 5.0,
      "fees": 10.00,
      "order_items_attributes": [
        { "item_id": 123, "quantity": 5, "cost": 150.00 },
        { "item_id": 456, "quantity": 3, "cost": 90.00 }
      ]
    }
  }'

`PUT /orders/:id/complete`

Marks an order as completed and paid. Updates lifecycle tracking fields if enabled in your settings (e.g. increments received for buy orders when "Track Received" is on, or shipped for sell orders when "Track Shipped" is on).

Response

Returns the updated order object.

`PUT /orders/:id/cancel`

Cancels an order and reverses any stock adjustments that were made.

Response

Returns the cancelled order object.

Order Items

Add or remove individual line items from an existing order. The order must not be completed or cancelled.

📦 Stock Adjustment

When using an API key, adding or removing order items automatically updates item stock counts by default. Pass ?adjust_item=false to disable.

`POST /order_items`

Adds a line item to an existing order.

Request Body

Field	Type	Required	Description
`order_id`	Integer	Yes	ID of the order to add the item to
`item_id`	Integer	Yes	ID of the item
`quantity`	Decimal	Yes	Quantity (must be > 0)
`cost`	Decimal	No	Total cost for this line (defaults to quantity × item's unit cost)

Query Parameters

Param	Type	Description
`adjust_item`	Boolean	Override stock adjustment (default: `true` for API key auth)

Example

curl -X POST "https://www.inventorynow.app/order_items" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -d '{
    "order_id": 456,
    "item_id": 123,
    "quantity": 5,
    "cost": 75.00
  }'

Response

{
  "id": 890,
  "order_id": 456,
  "item_id": 123,
  "quantity": 5.0,
  "cost": 75.0,
  "item_name": "Widget A",
  "item": { "id": 123, "name": "Widget A", ... }
}

`DELETE /order_items/:id`

Removes a line item from its order. If it was the last item, the order is also deleted.

Query Parameters

Param	Type	Description
`adjust_item`	Boolean	Override stock reversal (default: `true` for API key auth)

Example

curl -X DELETE "https://www.inventorynow.app/order_items/890" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"

Response

{
  "success": true
}

If the deleted item was the last on the order, the order is also destroyed and the response reflects that.

User Settings

`GET /user_settings`

Returns your account settings (currency, labels, lifecycle toggles, etc.).

Response

{
  "id": 1,
  "user_id": 1,
  "category_name": "Category",
  "subcategory_name": "Subcategory",
  "location_name": "Location",
  "currency_symbol": "$",
  "low_stock_threshold": 5.0,
  "received_status_enabled": true,
  "shipped_status_enabled": true,
  "delivered_status_enabled": false,
  "back_orders_enabled": false,
  "auto_complete_enabled": false,
  "check_in_status_enabled": false,
  "track_loss": true,
  "hide_complete": false,
  "custom_one_name": "Color",
  "custom_two_name": "Size",
  "custom_three_name": null,
  "company_name": "Acme Inc",
  "company_info": "123 Main St, Springfield",
  "invoice_info": "Thank you for your business!",
  "data_set": null,
  ...
}

`PUT /user_settings`

Updates your account settings. Only include the fields you want to change.

Request Body

{
  "user_setting": {
    "currency_symbol": "€",
    "low_stock_threshold": 10,
    "custom_one_name": "Material"
  }
}

Error Responses

All errors return a JSON object. The format varies slightly by endpoint but will always include an error indicator:

// Validation / bad request (400)
{ "success": false, "error": "Invalid Quantity Entered." }

// Unauthorized (403)
{ "result": "failure. invalid permissions" }

// Server error (500)
{ "error": "Something went wrong" }

JavaScript / Fetch Example

const API_KEY = "inv_api_your_key_here";
const BASE_URL = "https://www.inventorynow.app";

// List items
const items = await fetch(`${BASE_URL}/items?page=1`, {
  headers: { "Authorization": `Bearer ${API_KEY}` }
}).then(r => r.json());

// Create a sell order (stock adjustment is automatic with API keys)
const order = await fetch(`${BASE_URL}/orders`, {
  method: "POST",
  headers: {
    "Content-Type": "application/json",
    "Authorization": `Bearer ${API_KEY}`
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    order: {
      order_type: "sell",
      customer_info: "Jane Doe",
      order_items_attributes: [
        { item_id: items[0].id, quantity: 2, cost: 60.00 }
      ]
    }
  })
}).then(r => r.json());

Developer API Documentation

Getting Started

Step 1: Create an API Key

Step 2: Make Requests

Step 3: Handle Responses

Items

GET /items

Query Parameters

Response

GET /items/:id

Response

POST /items

Request Body

Example

Response

PUT /items/:id

Request Body

Example

Response

DELETE /items/:id

Response

PUT /items/:id/move

Request Body

GET /items/summary

Response

Orders (Buy & Sell)

GET /orders

Query Parameters

Response

GET /orders/:id

Response

📦 Stock Adjustment

POST /items/:item_id/orders — Buy Order

Request Body

Order Item Fields

Example

Response

POST /items/:item_id/orders — Sell Order

Request Body

Example

POST /orders — Multi-Item Order

Example

PUT /orders/:id/complete

Response

PUT /orders/:id/cancel

Response

Order Items

📦 Stock Adjustment

POST /order_items

Request Body

Query Parameters

Example

Response

DELETE /order_items/:id

Query Parameters

Example

Response

User Settings

GET /user_settings

Response

PUT /user_settings

Request Body

Error Responses

JavaScript / Fetch Example

`GET /items`

`GET /items/:id`

`POST /items`

`PUT /items/:id`

`DELETE /items/:id`

`PUT /items/:id/move`

`GET /items/summary`

`GET /orders`

`GET /orders/:id`

`POST /items/:item_id/orders` — Buy Order

`POST /items/:item_id/orders` — Sell Order

`POST /orders` — Multi-Item Order

`PUT /orders/:id/complete`

`PUT /orders/:id/cancel`

`POST /order_items`

`DELETE /order_items/:id`

`GET /user_settings`

`PUT /user_settings`