How do I set up back-in-stock alerts on Shopify?
A shopper lands on your product, it’s the right thing at the right price, and then they see it: sold out. They leave, and here’s the painful part, they almost never come back on their own, even after you restock. That’s a sale you’d already won, lost to timing. The fix is simple and it’s been standard on big stores for years: put a “notify me” button on sold-out products, collect the interested shopper’s email, and automatically email them the moment the item is back. On Shopify you do this with an app, and this guide walks how it works and how to set it up, using a brand-new option called Griffin as the example, plus the proven alternatives if you’d rather have a long track record behind you.
We build Shopify apps ourselves (variant images and combined listings), so we’ll be straight with you about what’s new versus what’s battle-tested here, and where a new app is a smart low-risk try versus where you want the incumbent. Let’s start with why this is worth doing at all.
In this guide
- Why do out-of-stock products cost you sales?
- How does a back-in-stock alert actually work?
- What is Griffin, and how do you set it up?
- How much does Griffin cost?
- Is it worth using an app this new?
- What are the proven alternatives?
- FAQ
Why do out-of-stock products cost you sales?
Because demand and supply almost never line up on the day. A shopper is ready to buy now, but the stock arrives next week, and the human brain does not hold a reminder for a week. Without a way to capture that shopper, three things happen and all of them cost you: they buy from a competitor who has it in stock, or they forget about it entirely, or, best case, they come back later purely by luck. A back-in-stock alert removes the luck. It turns “sold out, goodbye” into “sold out, but leave your email and we’ll tell you the second it’s back.” You keep the demand instead of donating it to a competitor, and as a bonus you learn which sold-out products people actually want, which is gold when you’re deciding what to reorder and how much.
How does a back-in-stock alert actually work?
The mechanic is three steps. First, when a product (or a specific variant, like one size or colour) is out of stock, the app swaps the greyed-out add-to-cart for a “notify me when available” button. Second, a shopper clicks it and leaves their email; a good app uses double opt-in, so they confirm the address, which keeps your list clean and your sender reputation healthy. Third, the moment you restock that exact variant, the app automatically emails everyone waiting on it, with a link straight back to the product. No manual list, no remembering who wanted what. The better tools also give you a demand dashboard: a ranked list of which sold-out items have the most people waiting, so your reorder decisions are driven by real signups rather than gut feel.
What is Griffin, and how do you set it up?
Griffin (listed as “G: Back in Stock Notifications”) is a focused, email-only back-in-stock app by GriffinCodes, a Netherlands-based developer. It does exactly the three-step loop above and not much else, which is the appeal: a variant-aware notify-me widget, double opt-in verification, automatic branded restock emails, and a per-product demand dashboard. Setup is genuinely a few minutes: install the app, and it drops the notify-me widget onto sold-out product pages automatically. From the theme editor you restyle the widget’s colours and text to match your store, customise the restock email’s branding, and you’re live. There’s nothing to code. Because it hooks into your normal Shopify inventory, the restock email fires on its own when stock goes back above zero, so once it’s set up, you leave it alone.
How much does Griffin cost?
Three plans, billed by how many restock emails you send per month (signups are unlimited on every tier, which is the right way round):
| Plan | Price | Email notifications/mo |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 100 (unlimited signups, demand insights, double opt-in) |
| Basic | $9/mo | 1,000 (adds delivery tracking, per-restock cap) |
| Pro | $29/mo | 10,000 (built for high-volume restocks) |
Here’s the one genuinely competitive thing about Griffin’s pricing, and it’s real: its free plan includes 100 restock emails a month. That’s more send volume than the free tiers of the big incumbents, STOQ’s free plan allows around 30 emails a month and Notify Me!’s free plan around 10 restock notifications. So for a small store with the occasional restock, Griffin’s free tier can genuinely cover you where the others would push you to pay. Past that, $9 for 1,000 emails is priced right in line with the category. Since a recovered sale is close to pure upside, work out what those alerts are worth to you with our profit margin calculator, and remember the customers you win back this way are exactly the repeat buyers our customer lifetime value guide is about.
Is it worth using an app this new?
Let’s be completely honest, because this is the part that matters. Griffin launched in July 2026, it has zero reviews so far, it doesn’t carry Shopify’s Built for Shopify badge, and it comes from a first-time developer with no other apps to point to as a track record. If you install it today, you are an early adopter, plain and simple. There’s no “well, their other app has 2,000 five-star reviews” safety net here, because there is no other app. We’re not going to pretend otherwise.
So who should try it anyway? The honest case for Griffin is that back-in-stock is a simple, well-understood mechanic, the app does that one job cleanly, and the risk of trying it is genuinely low: it’s free to start, it only touches your products and store data (not customer records), and if it doesn’t suit you, you uninstall and you’ve lost nothing but a few minutes. For a small or new store that wants to stop leaking out-of-stock sales without paying for a heavyweight platform, a lean free tool is a reasonable bet. But if you run real volume, if a missed or mis-sent restock email would actually hurt, then the maturity of an established app is worth more than a slightly more generous free tier. Match the choice to your risk tolerance, not to the newest name.
What are the proven alternatives?
If a track record is what reassures you, the back-in-stock category has two clear heavyweights, both far more established than Griffin, and both do more than email. STOQ by Artos Software sits at 5.0 stars across more than 3,400 reviews, from $10/mo with a free plan, and bundles preorders and waitlists alongside restock alerts. Notify Me! is its co-leader (4.9 stars across more than 3,400 reviews, from around $9.90/mo) and adds push alerts on its free tier, with SMS on the paid plans. REZ (5.0 across 1,300+ reviews, from $4.99/mo) is the budget-friendly proven option. Any of these is a safe, battle-tested pick, and each does things Griffin doesn’t (SMS, push, preorder, multi-location). If you want the full ranked comparison, we lay them out in our guide to the best back-in-stock and preorder apps. The honest summary: Griffin is the lean, email-only newcomer with a generous free tier; STOQ and Notify Me! are the proven, fuller-featured incumbents. Pick by whether you value simplicity and a free ride, or maturity and more channels.
Griffin is built by GriffinCodes; you can read more at griffincodes.com or on its Shopify developer page.
Frequently asked questions
Does Shopify have back-in-stock notifications built in?
No. Shopify has no native “notify me when available” feature, so you add one with an app like Griffin, STOQ, or Notify Me!. The app puts a signup button on sold-out product pages, collects interested shoppers’ emails, and automatically messages them when you restock. Setup is no-code and takes a few minutes.
Can I send back-in-stock alerts for free?
Yes, within limits. Most back-in-stock apps have a free plan capped by how many restock emails you send per month. Griffin’s free plan covers 100 emails a month with unlimited signups, which is more generous on send volume than STOQ’s (around 30) or Notify Me!’s (around 10) free tiers. Beyond those caps you move to a paid plan, typically starting around $9 to $10/mo.
Do back-in-stock emails go out per variant?
The good apps are variant-aware, so a shopper waiting on a medium in blue is emailed only when that exact medium-blue is restocked, not when any version of the product returns. Griffin’s widget is variant-aware. This matters a lot for apparel and anything sold in sizes or colours, because a generic “it’s back” email that turns out to be the wrong variant just annoys the customer.
Is it safe to use a brand-new Shopify app?
It’s a judgement call. A brand-new app like Griffin (launched July 2026, no reviews yet, first-time developer) means you’re an early adopter with no track record to lean on, so the safer play for a high-volume store is an established app. That said, the risk is lower for a simple, free-to-start tool that only accesses your product data: you can trial it, and uninstall if it doesn’t fit. For mission-critical volume, prefer a proven option like STOQ or Notify Me!.
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Umid
Co-Founder at Craftshift
