---
title: inventoryActivate now preserves available quantity - Shopify developer changelog
description: Shopify’s developer changelog documents all changes to Shopify’s platform. Find the latest news and learn about new platform opportunities.
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[Back to Developer changelog](https://shopify.dev/changelog)

January 17, 2026

Tags:

* Admin GraphQL API
* Admin REST API
* 2026-04

# `inventoryActivate` now preserves `available` quantity

As of API version 2026-04, activating an inventory item with [`inventoryActivate`](https://shopify.dev/docs/api/admin-graphql/latest/mutations/inventoryactivate#top) without providing an `available` or `onHand` argument will no longer default to zero in all cases. For an item that was previously active at that location, any existing `active` and `onHand` quantities for the inactive [`InventoryLevel`](https://shopify.dev/docs/api/admin-graphql/latest/objects/InventoryLevel) are preserved.

### Why we made this change

`inventoryActivate` currently sets any existing inventory quantities to zero preventing merchants from tracking inventory independently of activation status. The current behaviour prevents merchants from tracking physical inventory since quantity history disappears upon activation. This change will allow merchants to track inventory and handle activation seprately keeping their quantity history intact.

### Impact on your app

* **GraphQL**: In the `unstable` or `2026-04` and later releases, if you use the `inventoryActivate` mutation without providing an `available` or `onHand` argument, whichever quantity existed prior to activation will be persisted.
* **REST**: In the `unstable` or `2026-04` and later releases, `POST` requests to [`inventory_levels/connect.json`](https://shopify.dev/docs/api/admin-rest/latest/resources/inventorylevel#post-inventory-levels-connect) will maintain whichever quantity existed prior to activation.

### What you need to do

* Review any business logic that assumes `inventoryActivate` resets inventory quantities to zero for the specified inventory item and location.