# Categories, brands and units

> How categories, sub categories, brands and units group and count your products, and how to set each up.

*Section: Products and stock · Updated: 2026-10-19*

Categories and brands group your products. Units say how you count them. By the end of this guide you will know what each is for and how to set them up.

## Categories and sub categories

A category is a group of products, such as Drinks. Every product needs at least one.

1. **Open [Products › Category](/app/products/Categories) and click Create.**
2. **Enter a Category Code and a Category Name.** Both are required. The code is any short label of your own, such as DRK.
3. **Pick an Icon if you like.** It is optional.
4. **Leave Visible in online store on** to show the category in your online store, or turn it off. It is on unless you change it.
5. **Click Submit.**

![The Create window for a category: Category Code DEMO-DRK, Category Name Drinks, Icon set to None, the Visible in online store setting, and Submit.](https://armpos.online/storage/help/f49136709b-categories-brands-and-units-1-category.webp)
*Code and name are required; the icon is optional.*

![Products › Category: Drinks, Kitchen Accessories and Groceries, each with its code and Yes under Visible in online store.](https://armpos.online/storage/help/51c610fcfd-categories-brands-and-units-5-category-list.webp)
*The list's last column says whether the online store shows each category.*

[Products › Sub Category](/app/products/SubCategories) splits a category further, such as Soft drinks under Drinks. Click **Create**, choose its **Category**, enter a **Sub Category Name** (both required), add a **Description** if you like, and set its **Status**.

![The Create window for a sub category: Category Drinks, Sub Category Name Soft drinks, Description, Status Active, and Submit.](https://armpos.online/storage/help/8e1d05a9c0-categories-brands-and-units-2-subcategory.webp)
*A sub category always sits under one category.*

A product can sit in several categories. The first one you pick is its main one, which older reports use.

## Brands

A brand is optional. Use it if you sell several makers' goods and want to sort or report by maker. In [Products › Brand](/app/products/Brands), click **Create** and enter a **Brand Name** of 3 to 20 characters. **Brand Description** (up to 30 characters) and a **Brand Image** of up to 200 KB are optional.

![The Create window for a brand: Brand Name Lakeside, Brand Description, Brand Image, and Submit.](https://armpos.online/storage/help/bedac3ee2e-categories-brands-and-units-4-brand.webp)
*Keep the description short: 30 characters at most.*

## Units

A unit is how you count a product: by the piece, the kilo or the box. In [Products › Unit](/app/products/Units), each unit has a **Name** and a **Short Name**, up to 15 characters each.

A unit with no **Base Unit** is one you count in, such as Piece. A product's **Product Unit** must be one of these. A unit built on another is a pack or a part of it, such as a box of 12 pieces.

1. **Open Products › Unit and click Create.** The form opens.
2. **Name it.** For example, Box as the **Name** and box as the **Short Name**.
3. **Choose its Base Unit.** Pick Piece. **Operator** and **Operation Value** appear.
4. **Set the conversion.** Choose **Multiply (\*)** and enter 12. One box is now 12 pieces.
5. **Click Submit.**

![The Create window for a unit: Name Box, Short Name box, Base Unit Piece, Operator Multiply (\*), Operation Value 12.](https://armpos.online/storage/help/d735bcbc38-categories-brands-and-units-3-unit.webp)
*One Box is 12 Piece. The list then shows it as Piece \* 12.*

Use **Divide (/)** for a unit smaller than its base, such as Gram under Kilogram with 1000.

On a product, **Sale Unit** and **Purchase Unit** can be the base unit or one built on it. You can buy by the box and sell by the piece. Stock is kept in the product's own unit, so selling one box of 12 takes 12 pieces off.

> **Tip:** Spreadsheet imports find a product's unit by its Short Name or Name. Make your units before you import.

Every list has **Search this table**, and each row has **Edit** and **Delete**.

## What's next

[Products with variants](/app/help/products-with-variants).