What are min/max inventory levels?

Min/max is a restock rule with two thresholds per SKU. The min is the level at which you reorder, equal to your reorder point. The max is the level you restock up to, equal to the min plus your order quantity. When stock hits the min, you order enough to reach the max.

How do I set min and max inventory levels?

Set the min equal to your reorder point: daily sales velocity times total lead time, plus safety stock. Set the max to the min plus your order quantity, then cap it at what your storage limits and the product's shelf life allow. Both should be calculated per SKU on real data.

Are min/max levels the same as reorder point?

The min is the reorder point. Min/max adds a second number, the max, which defines how much to order: enough to bring stock from the min back up to the max. So min/max combines the when (reorder point) and the how much (order quantity) into one rule.

February 4, 20266 min readInventory Planning

Min/Max Inventory Levels for Amazon FBA: How to Set

Min/max inventory levels set the floor that triggers a reorder and the ceiling you restock to. How to set both on Amazon FBA, with a worked example.

T. Brian Jones

Co-founder & CTO, Inventory Hero

Frequently Asked Questions

What are min/max inventory levels?: Min/max is a restock rule with two thresholds per SKU. The min is the level at which you reorder, equal to your reorder point. The max is the level you restock up to, equal to the min plus your order quantity. When stock hits the min, you order enough to reach the max.
How do I set min and max inventory levels?: Set the min equal to your reorder point: daily sales velocity times total lead time, plus safety stock. Set the max to the min plus your order quantity, then cap it at what your storage limits and the product's shelf life allow. Both should be calculated per SKU on real data.
Are min/max levels the same as reorder point?

Written by

T. Brian Jones

Co-founder & CTO, Inventory Hero

T. Brian Jones is co-founder and CTO of Inventory Hero. He leads the engineering behind its Amazon data pipeline, demand forecasting, and the AI platform that lets sellers talk to their live inventory, sales, and supplier data in plain language.

Related reading

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How do you set the min?

The min is your reorder point, the level at which a new order has to go out:

Min = (daily sales velocity x total lead time) + safety stock

It covers everything you will sell during the lead time, plus a buffer. The moment available stock drops to the min, you order. This is the same trigger covered in when to reorder, just named as a threshold.

How do you set the max?

The max is how high you restock, equal to the min plus your order quantity:

Max = min + order quantity

Your order quantity is ideally the economic order quantity, adjusted for MOQ and cash, so the max is the level that order brings you to. Then cap the max at two real limits: your FBA storage or restock limits, and the product's shelf life if it is dated.¹ A max that exceeds either just creates stranded or aging stock.

When your restock or capacity limit is lower than the max you actually need, you are forced to order smaller and more often, and that has a cost: more frequent orders can fall below your supplier's MOQ or lose a price break, and they raise your per-order cost. If the cap is chronic, the real fix is upstream, lifting the IPI and sell-through that set your limit, or holding buffer stock in AWD or a 3PL that sits outside the FBA cap.

Worked example

A SKU sells 18 units a day, total lead time is 50 days, safety stock is 150 units, and the order quantity is 700 units:

Level	Calculation	Value
Min (reorder point)	(18 x 50) + 150	1,050 units
Max	1,050 + 700	1,750 units

Level

Calculation

Value

Min (reorder point)

(18 x 50) + 150

1,050 units

Max

1,050 + 700

1,750 units

When stock hits 1,050 you order 700, bringing you back to 1,750. If your storage limit only allows 1,400, you cap the max there and order a smaller, more frequent quantity. Set both numbers in the reorder point and EOQ calculators.

Why static levels fail

The most common min/max mistake is setting the numbers once and leaving them. Velocity climbs, lead times stretch, seasons turn, and a min/max that was right in March is wrong by November. A min set on old, slower velocity triggers too late; a max set before a price drop leaves you overstocked. Recalculate both on current velocity and lead time, the same cadence as the rest of your restock planning.

The bottom line

Min/max inventory levels combine the when and the how much into one rule: the min is your reorder point, the max is the min plus your order quantity, capped by storage and shelf life. Set both per SKU on real data and recalculate as that data changes, and you have a robust restock rule that adapts instead of drifting out of date.

Amazon FBA storage fees and restock/capacity limit policies, Amazon Seller Central, effective 2026. sell.amazon.com/pricing. ↩

Min/Max Inventory Levels for Amazon FBA: How to Set

Frequently Asked Questions

T. Brian Jones

Related reading

Chinese New Year Factory Closures: The 2027 FBA Guide

Amazon AWD Drops Oversize and Bulky Items July 2026

Amazon FBA Quarterly Planning With an AI Assistant

How do you set the min?

How do you set the max?

Worked example

Why static levels fail

The bottom line

Frequently Asked Questions

T. Brian Jones

Related reading

Chinese New Year Factory Closures: The 2027 FBA Guide

Amazon AWD Drops Oversize and Bulky Items July 2026

Amazon FBA Quarterly Planning With an AI Assistant

How do you set the min?

How do you set the max?

Worked example

Why static levels fail

The bottom line

Footnotes