Forecast Quantity
Forecast Quantity is the unit-count value rolled up to the Collaborative Forecasts grid, parallel to Forecast Amount but counting units instead of revenue.
Definition
Forecast Quantity is the unit-count value rolled up to the Collaborative Forecasts grid, parallel to Forecast Amount but counting units instead of revenue. When forecasting on Opportunity Product (line item) quantity, the platform sums the Quantity field on each line of every opportunity in the forecast period and posts the total to the rep's row in the forecast grid. The metric powers any sales organization that ships physical goods, software licenses, or subscription seats where the unit count matters more than the dollar amount.
Forecast Quantity is configured per forecast type under Setup, Forecast Settings. Each forecast type chooses a source (Opportunity, Opportunity Product, or Opportunity Split) and a measure (Amount or Quantity). A single org can run several forecast types in parallel, including an Amount-based and a Quantity-based forecast on the same opportunity data. Reps then see two separate grids in the Forecasts tab and adjust them independently.
Why Quantity-based forecasting exists alongside Amount
Where the number comes from
Forecast Quantity rolls up from the Quantity field on Opportunity Product (also called Opportunity Line Item). Each line has a Quantity and a Total Price; the forecast grid sums Quantity across every line on every opportunity in the period and posts that sum to the owning rep's row. If an opportunity has no line items but has a Quantity field on Opportunity directly (legacy), the platform skips the rollup and uses zero.
Configuring a Quantity forecast type
Setup, Forecast Settings lets admins create up to four forecast types. Each type is a tuple of source object, measure, and roll-up basis. Choose Opportunity Product as the source and Quantity as the measure to create a unit-count forecast. The grid label and currency formatting flip automatically; quantities show as integers (or decimals if the field allows) instead of formatted currency.
Custom number fields as the measure
Beyond the standard Quantity field, admins can choose any custom number field on Opportunity or Opportunity Product as the forecast measure. Common variants include Forecast Seats, Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) in months, and Implementation Hours. The field must be a Number or Currency type with the right precision; rollup is direct from that field to the grid.
Forecast categories still apply
Whether the measure is Amount or Quantity, every opportunity rolls up into one of the Forecast Categories (Pipeline, Best Case, Most Likely, Commit, Closed). The category drives which row of the grid the number lands on. A rep who commits 50 units sees 50 in the Commit row and the running total of Best Case-or-better in the row above. The category gating is identical between Amount and Quantity forecasts.
Adjustments and manager overrides
Sales managers adjust forecast quantities the same way they adjust amounts: click the cell, type a new value, save. The grid stores the adjustment as a delta, not a replacement. Reports on adjustments versus rolled-up totals show how much manager judgment is moving the forecast. Adjustments can also be reset back to the rolled-up value with one click.
Quotas in quantity-based forecasting
Forecast quotas can be set in units when the forecast is quantity-based. The quota value lives on the ForecastingQuota standard object and is loaded via Data Loader, the Quotas page in Setup, or the Forecasting API. Quota attainment percentages on the rep dashboard reflect the quantity-versus-quantity ratio, not currency.
Reporting on forecast quantities
The Forecast standard reports include a Forecasting Quantity Summary that pivots units by period and forecast category. Add custom dashboards using the Forecasting Item, Forecasting Quantity, and Forecasting Adjustment standard objects. Standard report types are forecast-type-specific, so each forecast type needs its own configured report and dashboard.
Set up a Quantity-based forecast type
Quantity forecasts live alongside Amount forecasts in Setup, Forecast Settings. Plan to add a new forecast type, configure it, then surface the new grid to managers.
- Open Forecast Settings
Setup, Quick Find, type Forecast, click Forecasts Settings. Confirm Collaborative Forecasts is enabled; the page is otherwise empty.
- Add a new forecast type
Click Add Forecast Type. Pick the source object (usually Opportunity Product for line-level quantity), the measure (Quantity), and the date field that defines the forecast period (typically Close Date or Schedule Date).
- Configure roll-up basis
Choose whether forecasts roll up by Forecast Category, Probability, or a custom Forecast Category mapping. Set the columns shown on the grid (Closed, Commit, Best Case, Most Likely, Pipeline).
- Enable for users and roles
Assign the new forecast type to roles or queues that need it. Without role assignment, the grid stays empty for affected users.
- Load quotas in units
Upload quotas as quantity values to the ForecastingQuota object via the Quotas page or Data Loader. Quota attainment math is automatic once the quotas are in place.
- Verify with a test opportunity
Create an opportunity with line items and verify the quantity rolls up to the new grid in the expected forecast category row.
- Opportunities without line items roll up as zero in a Quantity forecast. Either require line items or set the source to Opportunity and pick a custom Quantity field on the Opportunity itself.
- Each user can see only the forecast types assigned to their role. Adding a new type without role assignment leaves managers wondering why the new grid is missing.
- Quotas in quantity forecasts are unitless integers in the ForecastingQuota table. The same row supports both Amount and Quantity quotas via separate columns; do not load currency values into the quantity column.
- Multi-currency orgs do not affect Quantity forecasts directly because units are not currency. But if you forecast a custom Currency field as the measure, the platform applies the corporate-currency conversion to the displayed value.
Trust & references
Cross-checked against the following references.
- Set Up Collaborative ForecastsSalesforce Help
- Configure Forecast TypesSalesforce Help
Straight from the source - Salesforce's reference material on Forecast Quantity.
- ForecastingQuota ObjectSalesforce Developers
- ForecastingItem ObjectSalesforce Developers
About the Author
Dipojjal Chakrabarti is a B2C Solution Architect with 29 Salesforce certifications and over 13 years in the Salesforce ecosystem. He runs salesforcedictionary.com to help admins, developers, architects, and cert/interview candidates sharpen their fundamentals. More about Dipojjal.
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Q1. What does Forecast Quantity represent?
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Q3. Should you forecast quantity instead of revenue or alongside?
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