eCommerce Inventory Forecasting - The Right Approach for 2025

What is eCommerce Inventory Forecasting

eCommerce inventory forecasting is a strategic process used by online brands to predict the future demand for their products. By projecting inventory needs for the next five years, eCommerce companies aim to maintain readiness for both expansion and promotional activities.

By analyzing historical sales data, market trends, and consumer behavior, eCommerce businesses can easily estimate the optimal amount of stock to maintain. This process ensures that they meet customer demand without overstocking, thus minimizing holding costs and maximizing profitability.

The essence of forecasting lies in its ability to transform raw data into actionable insights, enabling eCommerce businesses to make data-driven decisions about stock levels, product assortments, and purchasing strategies.

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How to do eCommerce Forecasting for 2025?

eCommerce forecasting is similar to charting a course through the unpredictable seas of market demand. First of all, businesses have to start by gathering and analyzing relevant data, including past sales figures, seasonal trends, and market conditions.

Retailers should start collecting and leveraging both quantitative and qualitative data to form a comprehensive view of future demand. The approach combines statistical methods with market analysis, considering promotions, new product launches, major marketing campaigns such as Black Friday & Cyber Monday, and seasonality factors that could impact demand.

eCommerce Forecasting Excel Template

An excel template for eCommerce forecasting provides a structured framework to organize your data and predictions. Excel templates mostly include sections for historical sales data, growth projections, and seasonal adjustments. By inputting your data, you can leverage built-in formulas to forecast future demand at various intervals.
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It's high time for Shopify D2C brands to ditch spreadsheets and go for a cloud-based solution.

At Prediko, we offer a 14-day Free Trial so you can first try out the platform without ditching your spreadsheets or excel. Compare the ease of doing an accurate forecast in a software vs running it daily yourself in an excel.

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Here is a short case study on how Sync Protein, a popular 100% plant based nutrition brand, completely did away with their old way of forecasting through manual process and signed up for Prediko to forecast their sales and quantity.

They wanted to avoid constant data reconciliation, and that’s why they ditched Excel and signed up for Prediko.
See how our forecasting helped them avoid frequent out-of-stock and overstock situation👇

When to Invest in an Inventory Forecasting Tool?

Seeing following red flags in your inventory operations? It’s time to take control with the right inventory forecasting tool.

1. Frequent stockouts or overstocks

If your business struggles with running out of popular products or sitting on excess inventory, a forecasting tool can help balance supply and demand, reducing lost sales and storage costs.

2. High demand fluctuations

If your business experiences demand spikes during specific times of the year, such as holidays or sales events, forecasting helps predict inventory needs for these periods, preventing shortages or excess stock.

3. Manual forecasting is time-consuming and inaccurate

Spreadsheets and guesswork only go so far. If manual forecasting is leading to errors and inefficiencies, an inventory forecasting tool provides real-time, data-backed insights for educated decisions.

4. When expanding your product line or business

Expanding into new markets, launching multiple stores, or adding new sales channels increases inventory complexity. A forecasting tool ensures accurate stock planning across all locations.

5. High storage and holding costs

Excess inventory ties up capital and increases warehousing costs. A forecasting tool allows you to adjust stock levels, reducing unnecessary expenses.

6. Managing multiple suppliers 

Managing different suppliers with different lead times can be challenging. Forecasting tools help anticipate demand and adjust reorder points for each product/SKU for smooth restocking.

7. When customer satisfaction is declining

Delayed deliveries, canceled orders due to stockouts, or incorrect inventory levels can harm your customer experience. A forecasting tool ensures accurate stock levels, enabling faster order fulfillment and improving customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Investing in an inventory forecasting tool at the right time can help you save costs, improve cash flow, and make your overall supply chain efficient.

eCommerce Forecasting Tools & Software

We’ll share a couple of amazing tools out there but we wanted to first highlight why Prediko is best suited to solve inventory forecasting problem for brands of all sizes

1. Input sales for your next 6 or 12 months and get your forecasted inventory requirements
2. Buying Table that keeps you on top of your inventory count so you are aware which products are in stock out, which products do you need to reorder and which products are off the plan
3. As a business owner, you get the full picture about how many days of inventory is left.

We understand it takes time, effort and important fit to find the right inventory forecasting tool. That's why we have created this list on the best available inventory forecasting software in the market in 2025

Other apps and software that help with inventory forecasting are:

• Inventory Planner: Offers demand forecasting and inventory optimization for your sales.
• Cogsy: Focuses on inventory planning and replenishment to ensure you're stocked.
• Fabrikator: Combines inventory management with forecasting to optimize stock levels.
• DemandCaster: Provides supply chain planning, including demand forecasting and inventory optimization.

Each tool has its unique features and benefits, catering to different business sizes and needs. Evaluate them based on your specific needs and budget. For managing inventory for fashion brands, see this guide on apparel inventory management.

Role of AI in Enhancing eCommerce Forecasting

AI has changed the way eCommerce businesses operate. That’s why it was high time an app introduced the right AI model to predict demand and manage inventory.

It is one of the factors behind the start of Prediko’s AI inventory management for Shopify. By using the power of Prediko’s AI, retailers can analyse vast datasets more accurately and identify patterns and trends that human analysts might overlook.

Our algorithm has been trained on 25 million+ SKUs from 15+ industries. That's why we are able to forecast demand at a granular level, considering factors like promotional activities, mega marketing events such as Black Friday / Cyber Monday, seasonal variations, and even social media trends.

A popular UK-based healthy living and self care brand, Healf, saw a “strong correlation between using Prediko and their out of stock percentage going down. They signed up for and their goal was to keep their inventory ready for rest of the year. See how other brands have benefited from our AI inventory forecasting Shopify app.

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How is Prediko able to quickly generate a forecast for a Shopify store?

Prediko integrates in just 1-click with Shopify and takes into consideration historic sales data from your Shopify admin. Prediko also integrates with warehouse management solutions, and shipping apps such ShipHero and many more.

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What are the best tools or software for eCommerce inventory forecasting

Choosing the right inventory forecasting tool is crucial for maintaining optimal stock levels and ensuring smooth operations. The best tools offer real-time data insights, automated demand forecasting, and seamless integration with eCommerce platforms like Shopify. Here are some of the top inventory forecasting tools available in 2025:

• Prediko – A Shopify-first inventory forecasting platform that provides AI-driven demand predictions, automated replenishment recommendations, and real-time inventory tracking. Its one-click integration with Shopify makes it a powerful choice for D2C brands. See Prediko in action.
• Inventory Planner – Helps businesses optimize stock levels by predicting future sales trends based on historical data. Find the list of alternatives to Inventory Planner.
• Cogsy – A forecasting and inventory planning tool that helps brands manage stock and prevent sellouts by optimizing reorder timing. Compare Inventory Planner to Cogsy
• Fabrikator – Designed for fast-scaling eCommerce brands, Fabrikator combines AI-powered forecasting with inventory management to improve stock planning. See all the fabrikator alternatives.

What are the most effective methods or models for inventory forecasting?

The accuracy of inventory forecasting depends on the methods and models used to predict demand. Businesses can choose from various techniques based on their data availability, market dynamics, and operational complexity. Here are some of the most effective inventory forecasting models:

1. Time-Series Analysis – Uses historical sales data to identify patterns and trends, making it ideal for stable demand environments. Common techniques include moving averages, exponential smoothing, and ARIMA models.
2. Demand Sensing – Uses AI and real-time data from multiple sources (such as sales trends, weather patterns, and social media signals) to predict demand fluctuations more accurately.
3. Causal Models – These models analyze external factors such as economic trends, market conditions, and promotions to refine demand forecasts.
4. Machine Learning & AI Forecasting – Advanced AI algorithms, like those used by Prediko, process vast amounts of data to recognize patterns and deliver highly accurate demand predictions. AI models can continuously learn and improve based on real-time sales performance.
5. Qualitative Forecasting – Uses expert opinions, customer surveys, and industry insights to predict demand, especially for new product launches where historical data is limited.
6. Hybrid Forecasting – Combines multiple forecasting models to improve accuracy. For example, a business might use time-series analysis for steady products while leveraging AI-driven models for fast-moving items with fluctuating demand.

For growing eCommerce brands, integrating AI-powered forecasting tools like Prediko can significantly improve inventory planning, reduce stockouts, and optimize cash flow.

Start eCommerce Inventory forecasting today with Prediko

eCommerce inventory forecasting is not just about predicting numbers; it's about creating a roadmap for sustainable growth and efficiency. As brands and businesses grow, it’s important to align the inventory requirements with market demand, current and future sales numbers, and projections. If you are a D2C brand on Shopify and are looking for the right inventory forecast for your eCommerce business, then just feel free to drop us a message or book a free demo of Prediko.