# What is on-shelf availability? Meaning and how to measure it

Availability is whether a product can be ordered at a given place and time. On quick-commerce apps measure it per dark store or pin code: the availability rate is the share of product and pin code pairs that read in stock, out of those where stock was known, on a stated day.

The short definition, also called in-stock rate, on-shelf availability: Whether a product can be bought right now at a given place. On quick-commerce apps it is a property of a product at a dark store, not of the product overall.

Part of the topic: [Guide: listed but unavailable](https://rewalto.com/guides/listed-but-unavailable)

## What availability means

Availability, also called on-shelf availability or in-stock rate, is the shopper's view of supply. It asks one question: if a shopper at this pin code tried to order this product now, could they? A product can be listed, priced well and ranked high and still not be available.

It is the mirror of out of stock. Measured over the same pairs on the same day, availability and the out-of-stock rate add up to 100%.

## How to calculate availability

Read a fixed set of products at a fixed set of pin codes. Leave out the pairs where the app does not serve the pin code or where stock could not be read, and say how many you left out. Availability is the pairs in stock divided by the pairs counted.

A worked example, with invented numbers. A dairy brand reads 8 products at 25 pin codes, 200 pairs. Two pin codes are not served, which removes 16 pairs, so 184 count. Of those, 161 read in stock, an availability rate of 161 divided by 184, or 87.5%.

## How it shows up on Indian quick-commerce apps

Each dark store refills on its own schedule, so availability differs by store and by hour. Fast sellers run short in the evening and on weekends. Apps rarely remove an empty product; they grey out the add button, which is why a check of the page alone overstates availability.

## What a brand should check

An ad that sends shoppers to a product they cannot order spends money without a sale, so read availability at the pin codes an ad reaches before it runs.

- Availability of your top sellers at the pin codes that bring most of your orders.
- The same reading before and during a promotion.
- How many pairs were left out, and why.
- The trend by week, since a single day can mislead.

## Common mistakes

- Quoting an availability rate without the number of products, the pin codes and the day.
- Counting unserved pin codes as out of stock.
- Mixing readings taken in the morning with readings taken in the evening.

## Do not confuse with

- [Fill rate](https://rewalto.com/glossary/quick-commerce/fill-rate): Availability is what a shopper can order at a pin code. Fill rate is how much of a retailer's order the brand delivered, which a shopper never sees.

## What Rewalto's own readings show

From 19 October to 25 October 2026, grocery staples on Blinkit and Zepto read in stock in 98.75% (Delhi) to 99.86% (Mumbai) of readings where stock was known, across the 10 cities Rewalto read. Kolkata, with the most readings (10,598), read 99.35%.

As of 25 October 2026. Source: [Grocery staples by city, Rewalto's shelf readings](https://rewalto.com/10-minute-shelf/reports/shelf-score/grocery-staples).

Published 28 October 2026.

## Questions people ask

### What is on-shelf availability?

Whether a shopper at a given pin code could order the product now. Over many product and pin code pairs, it is the share that read in stock.

### How do you calculate an availability rate?

Divide the pairs in stock by the pairs counted, after leaving out the pairs where the app does not serve the pin code or stock could not be read.

### Why check availability before running ads?

An ad that sends shoppers to a product they cannot order spends money without a sale, so read availability at the pin codes an ad reaches before it runs.

## Related

- [The quick commerce glossary](https://rewalto.com/glossary/quick-commerce)
- [Guide: listed but unavailable](https://rewalto.com/guides/listed-but-unavailable)
- [What is out of stock?](https://rewalto.com/glossary/quick-commerce/out-of-stock)
- [What is fill rate?](https://rewalto.com/glossary/quick-commerce/fill-rate)
- [What is serviceability?](https://rewalto.com/glossary/quick-commerce/serviceability)
- [What is share of shelf?](https://rewalto.com/glossary/quick-commerce/share-of-shelf)
- [Guide: availability before retail media](https://rewalto.com/guides/availability-before-retail-media)
- [Guide: what the shelf shows at each pin code](https://rewalto.com/guides/pincode-shelf-truth)
- [Stock state data](https://rewalto.com/data/commerce/stock-state)

---

Canonical page: https://rewalto.com/glossary/quick-commerce/availability
Last content change: 2026-10-28