Shopify Adds includeInactive Argument to Inventory Level Queries

What Changed

Shopify has added an includeInactive argument to the inventoryLevels and inventoryLevel fields in API version 2026-04. Developers can now pass includeInactive: true when querying these fields on InventoryItem and Location objects to retrieve inactive inventory levels in the response. Without this argument, the API returns only active inventory levels by default.

Why This Matters for Developers

This update addresses a previous API limitation where inactive inventory levels were inaccessible through GraphQL queries. Apps that manage inventory across multiple locations or track historical inventory data can now access complete inventory records, including locations that have been deactivated or inventory items that are no longer actively stocked.

The change provides developers with explicit control over whether to include inactive records in their queries, rather than requiring separate API calls or workarounds to access this data.

Practical Implications

Developers building inventory management apps, reporting tools, or multi-location systems should review their existing queries to determine if inactive inventory levels are relevant to their use cases. Apps that perform inventory audits, historical analysis, or location management may benefit from implementing this argument.

The argument is available starting with API version 2026-04. Developers using earlier API versions will need to update their version to access this functionality. The default behavior remains unchanged, ensuring backward compatibility for existing implementations that only require active inventory levels.

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