What are Amazon FBA restock limits?
Restock limits cap how many units you can send to FBA per storage type (standard, oversize, apparel, footwear). Amazon sets them based on IPI, sell-through, and available warehouse capacity. Limits refresh weekly. Selling faster and keeping IPI above 400 is the only reliable way to raise them.
How Amazon sets the limit
The formula combines your IPI score, your historical sell-through per storage type, and Amazon's fulfilment centre capacity. Two accounts with identical IPI can get different limits if one sells oversize and the other sells standard.
How to raise it
Raise IPI above 400. Ship in only what will sell in 60 days. Keep top movers in stock so sell-through per storage type stays high. Do not send speculative inventory; unsold units drag the sell-through denominator down.
Common misconceptions
Restock limits are not the same as storage limits. Storage limits cap what you already have in FBA; restock limits cap what you can send in. Both hurt when triggered together.
Frequently asked questions
How often do restock limits update?
Weekly, in line with IPI.
Can I split shipments to bypass a limit?
No. The limit is on total units allowed at Amazon per storage type, not per shipment.
What if I hit the limit mid-week?
You cannot send more units in that storage type until the next weekly refresh, unless sell-through releases room sooner.
Does Nova alert on restock limits?
Nova tracks days of cover and sell-through per SKU, so you can plan restocks before hitting the ceiling.
See this in Nova
Nova surfaces this metric per SKU in near real time so you can act before your next monthly close catches it.
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How is the Amazon IPI score calculated?
Amazon's Inventory Performance Index (IPI) is a rolling score from 0 to 1000 built from four inputs: excess inventory percentage, sell-through rate, stranded inventory percentage, and in-stock rate on FBA. Scores above 400 keep storage limits open; scores below 400 trigger restock limits and higher storage costs.
How do I avoid FBA storage limits?
FBA storage limits are set by IPI score. Keep IPI above 400 by clearing stranded inventory weekly, running removals or liquidations on units aged 180+ days, and keeping your top 20 SKUs consistently in stock. Restock-limited accounts often gain 30% to 60% more capacity within 30 days after a targeted cleanup.
What is days of cover and how do I calculate it?
Days of cover = current on-hand inventory / average daily units sold. If you have 600 units on hand and sell 20/day, you have 30 days of cover. Most sellers target 45 to 75 days of cover for FBA SKUs: enough to survive a demand spike or a shipping delay, not so much that IPI or storage fees suffer.
What is a good sell-through rate on Amazon?
Amazon's sell-through rate is units shipped in the last 90 days divided by average inventory over the same period. Above 3.0 is strong (inventory turns 12x/year). 2.0 to 3.0 is healthy. Below 1.0 usually means overordered units and forecasts long-term storage fees within a quarter.
How do I forecast Amazon demand accurately?
The most accurate simple forecast weights the last 30 days at 60% and the prior 60 days at 40%, then adjusts for seasonality and known promotions. For most private-label SKUs this beats gut-feel and matches what statistical models produce within a 10% margin. Rebuild the forecast every 2 to 4 weeks.