Guide
Numerical vs weighted distribution
Updated 13 October 2026
Numerical distribution is the percentage of stores that carry your product. Weighted distribution is the percentage of sales, usually category sales, that those stores account for. If your product is in 40 of 100 stores, numerical distribution is 40%; if those 40 stores do 70% of the category's sales, weighted distribution is 70%.
Numerical distribution
Numerical distribution counts stores. Every store counts the same, whether it is a large hypermarket or a small convenience store. It answers a simple question: in how many of the stores you could be in, are you actually there?
Weighted distribution
Weighted distribution counts the importance of the stores. Each store is weighted by its sales, usually its sales in your category. Being in a busy store counts for more than being in a quiet one. It answers a better commercial question: what share of the selling opportunity can your product reach?
Numerical distribution
- Stores carrying the product ÷ all stores
- 40 of 100 stores = 40%
- Every store counts the same
Weighted distribution
- Category sales in stores carrying it ÷ all category sales
- Those 40 stores do 70% of category sales = 70%
- Busy stores count for more
Reading the two together
- Weighted higher than numerical: you are in the big, busy stores and missing the small ones. Usually a good position.
- Numerical higher than weighted: you are in many small stores but missing the big ones. The gap is where growth is.
- Both low: a listing or ranging problem worth raising with the buyer.
- Both high but sales weak: distribution is not the issue; look at price, visibility and out-of-stocks.
Ranged, stocked and selling
With retailer sell-out data, distribution can be measured more precisely than with a sample. Three different numbers matter: the stores where a product is ranged (meant to be stocked), the stores that actually have stock, and the stores where it actually sold. The gaps between them are the problems: ranged but never stocked is a ranging failure; stocked but not selling can be phantom stock or poor placement.
How suppliers use distribution
- Track a new product's roll-out: how fast it reaches the stores it was listed for.
- Find ranging gaps: stores that should carry a line and do not.
- Make the case to a buyer: the stores where adding a line is worth the most.
- Separate a distribution problem from a rate-of-sale problem, so the fix fits the cause.
How OuterJoin helps
Our monthly numerical distribution report shows, per retailer channel, how many stores are selling each product against how many have it ranged, with the change on last month and the gaps by region and store. The same measures sit in the dashboards for any period you choose.
Common questions
- What is ACV distribution?
- ACV (all commodity volume) distribution is a form of weighted distribution that weights each store by its total sales across all categories, rather than by sales in your category.
- Can weighted distribution be higher than numerical distribution?
- Yes, and it usually is for established brands: they are in the big stores first. Weighted distribution lower than numerical means the product is mostly in smaller stores.
- Should distribution count stores that stock the product, or stores that sold it?
- Market research usually counts stores that stock it. With retailer sell-out data you can measure both, and the difference between them is often the most useful number.