A whole location is a lot of shelves for one person. This article covers the three ways your team can count the same stocktake together - in the app, on the POS tile, and through counting links for staff with no Shopify login.
Three ways to count
Any number of people can count the same stocktake at once, and every count is attributed - the session asks Who's counting? so exports show who counted what. There are three ways to count:
In the app - open the stocktake on any device with Shopify admin access.
On POS - add the Stockroom - Count stock tile to your POS smart grid. It lists open counts at the register's location, and Start a new stocktake here begins one on the spot. Choose Everything at this location or Only what I scan. Staff scan with a POS-connected scanner or the camera, or type a code into Enter a barcode or SKU; the item just scanned appears right under the box with its own - and +, and Remove 1 and Set exact count sit beside the scan box. Below it, Counted and Still to count list the whole session, and Find by name or SKU reaches the catalog for an item whose label will not scan. Tapping Done counting closes the session out on that device - the counts are already saved, and the review and apply steps stay in the app.
Counting links - for warehouse staff without Shopify logins. Click Counting links → New counting link, enter the worker's name, decide whether to tick Blind link, and share the link (it is shown once - copy it then). The link opens a counting page that works with a hardware scanner, typed codes, or camera scanning - see What the counting page shows below. Revoke a link anytime; all links stop working the moment counting ends. The name on the link is the name on its counts.
Whether a counter sees what Shopify expects is your choice. A counting link shows expected quantities unless you tick Blind link when you create it, and the POS tile shows them unless the stocktake itself is a blind count. A blind stocktake makes every link blind, whatever the box says.
What the counting page shows
The scan box stays at the top of the page, and the item you just scanned appears directly under it - its picture, name, SKU and bin, the running count with - and + buttons, and, unless the link is blind, a line like Shopify says 5 - 2 short with a Set to 5 button. Scanning a hundred items never pushes the result off the screen.
📸 SCREENSHOT: the counting page on a phone right after a scan - sticky scan box, the just-scanned card with - / + and the "Shopify says" line, and the Counted tab below
Add 1 counts the code in the box. Remove 1 takes one away from the code in the box, or from the item you just scanned if the box is empty - the quick fix for a double scan. A count never goes below zero, and Remove 1 on an item nobody has counted yet is refused rather than recorded as zero.
Set exact count opens a number box for the code you scanned or typed, or for the item just scanned when the box is empty.
Counted lists everything counted so far, newest first, each row with its own - and +, a you tag on the rows you counted, and Set to N on a sighted link. Still to count lists what is left in bin order, with Add 1 and Confirm N on each row and a strip showing progress per bin (A-1: 3 of 10). Both lists come from the stocktake itself, so a reload or a second phone sees the same thing.
Find by name or SKU narrows the list, and when nothing in the count matches it searches the catalog - so an item with a missing or unreadable label can still be counted by name.
If the signal drops, the page keeps your counts and sends them as soon as it is back - the page says how many are waiting.
Good to know
Counting needs no POS Pro subscription - a counting link works from any phone, tablet or laptop.
Every count is saved the instant it lands, so a dropped signal or a closed tab loses nothing.
Review and apply stay in the app: one person finishes the count for everybody.
Links created before Blind link existed stay blind; tick or untick the box on a new link to change what a counter sees.
For the count itself, see Count your inventory with stocktakes.