Managing filament stock: how much to keep and how to track it
Work out how fast you use each color, when to reorder, and how to store and track spools so you don't run out halfway through an order.
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Updated 2026-11-05
Count grams, not spools
The slicer tells you how many grams each product uses. Write it down per product and per color. With that number, stock becomes simple arithmetic: a product that uses 35 grams and sells ten times a week takes 350 grams a week, about a third of a 1 kg spool.
Add the waste: purge material for multi-color prints, brims, test prints and failed prints. A simple way is to add 10 to 20% on top of the slicer numbers until you know your own waste.
When to reorder
Reorder when what is left would run out before the new spools arrive. If delivery takes a week and you use a spool a week of white, reorder white when you open your last spool, not when it is empty. For colors you use rarely, keep one spool and reorder when you open it.
Before busy periods such as the weeks before Christmas, look at what sold last year and order early. Shops run out of popular colors, and delivery times get longer.
Track what is on the shelf
Swatch cards made with the filament swatch generator double as a stock list: one card per spool, with the name on it, in a box next to the printer.
- Give every spool a number and note the material, color, brand and date opened.
- Weigh a spool to know what is left: subtract the weight of an empty spool of that brand.
- Keep a list or spreadsheet with what is open, what is sealed and what is on order.
- Keep the spool label or a swatch with each spool, so you can reorder exactly the same color.
Store it well
Moisture is the main enemy. Keep opened spools in airtight boxes with desiccant, and dry them before use when they have been open a long time. A multi-material unit that can dry filament, such as the Bambu Lab AMS 2 ProPartner link, keeps the spools in use dry as well. Keep the loose end clipped to the spool, for example with a filament clip, so it can't slip under the windings and tangle.
Store spools out of direct sunlight and away from heaters. Sealed spools keep well, but use the oldest ones first.
Don't let stock eat your money
Every spool on the shelf is money you have already spent. Ten spools of colors that never sell are a loss, however cheap they were. Review your stock every few months: keep the colors that sell, and use up or sell off the rest in a special product or a sale.
Products mentioned
- Bambu Lab AMS 2 ProPartner link Four-spool unit for any Bambu Lab printer that can also dry filament.
