The Difference Between Composite Items and Instant Bundle Types for Bundle Products

A bundle product is a single item made up of specific quantities of other items, such as “1 kg of spiced coffee” made up of 950 g of coffee and 50 g of cardamom. the system gives you two types of bundles: Pre-assembled and Instant. The difference between them is when the components are deducted from stock: when the product is assembled before the sale, or at the moment of sale. This guide explains the difference between the two types, how to enable bundles and create a bundle product, and how the system handles stock and cost for each type.

The Difference at a Glance

Comparison	Pre-assembled	Instant
When components are deducted	When a quantity is added to the bundle product (assembly) through a stock addition requisition, before the sale.	Automatically at the moment the bundle product is sold.
Bundle product balance	Has its own balance that increases with assembly and decreases with sale.	No balance needs to be added for it; it is sold directly from its components.
At sale	Deducted from the bundle product’s balance only.	The system adds the sold quantity and automatically deducts its components.
Suits	Products that are prepared and packaged in advance in the warehouse: baskets, gifts, and ready-made packs.	Products prepared on order: meals, drinks, and combo offers.
How to increase what can be sold	By assembling a new quantity of the bundle product.	By increasing the components’ quantity.

Before You Start

• Enable the bundles system: from Inventory & Products Settings → Products Settings → Product Configuration, set Use of the bundles and composite units system to Allowed.
• Choose the default bundle type: Pre-assembled or Instant. This is the type suggested when creating a new bundle product, and you can change it for each product.
• Components must be products with the “Quantity only” tracking type; a product tracked by serial number, lot number, or expiry date cannot be used as a component.

Steps to Create a Bundle Product

1. From Inventory, open Products, then click Add and choose New Bundle Product.
2. Enter the product name, selling price, and the rest of the data as with any product.
3. In the Bundle Products section, choose the bundle type, and choose the warehouse the components are deducted from (or leave it on the default warehouse so they’re deducted from the same warehouse as the movement).
4. Add the components, and enter the quantity required of each component for one unit of the bundle product.
5. Click Save.

If you leave the purchase price blank, the system calculates it as the sum of (each component’s average cost × its quantity).

How a Pre-assembled Bundle Works

• You assemble the product by adding a quantity to it: from its page click Add Stock Operation, choose Addition, and enable Issue Components from Stock (enabled by default); or create a stock addition requisition for it.
• The system deducts from each component: the added quantity × the component’s quantity per unit, at its average cost.
• The quantity is added to the bundle product’s balance at a cost equal to the cost of the components issued.
• At sale, it is deducted from the bundle product’s balance only, and the components are not touched.

Example: a “gift basket” bundle product made up of 2 boxes of chocolate and 1 bottle of juice. You assembled 10 baskets: 20 boxes of chocolate and 10 bottles of juice are deducted, and the baskets’ balance becomes 10. When 3 baskets are sold, their balance becomes 7, and the chocolate and juice balances don’t change.

How an Instant Bundle Works

• You sell the bundle product in an invoice, point of sale, or sales order.
• If the bundle product’s balance in the warehouse is sufficient (for example, you added a balance to it manually), it is sold from its balance.
• If it isn’t sufficient, the system automatically creates an addition movement for the bundle product with the sold quantity (External Bundle Product), and deducts its components from stock at their average cost, then the bundle product is deducted by the sale; so its balance stays at zero.

Example: a “meal” bundle product made up of 1 sandwich and 1 drink. Selling 5 meals automatically deducts 5 sandwiches and 5 drinks.

Cost and Accounting Entries

• The bundle product’s cost = the sum of (the component’s average cost × its quantity), and it appears on the product page as Average Cost Price.
• When components are issued, a “Raw Materials Issued” entry is recorded: credit the components’ warehouse account at their cost.
• You can see the components issued for each movement from the Bundle Product Transaction Details link in the stock movement.
• When the sales invoice or the assembly movement is deleted, the component movements linked to it are deleted and their entry is deleted, so the components return to stock.

Validation Rules

• If negative stock is not allowed and the components are insufficient, the message “Component quantities are insufficient” appears when assembling, or a message that the quantity of the component is insufficient when selling.
• The setting Allow Negative Stock for Bundled Products (in Product Tracking) allows assembling the pre-assembled product even if the components are insufficient. This setting isn’t available if the default type is Instant.
• The bundle type cannot be changed for a product that has stock movements.
• A bundle product cannot be added as a component inside itself, nor can a product that contains it be added (circular reference).
• A package-type service cannot be chosen as a component.
• If you save a bundle product without components, the system asks for confirmation by clicking Save again.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Which bundle type should I choose? If you prepare the product and store it before selling it, choose Pre-assembled. If it is prepared on order, choose Instant.
• I sold a pre-assembled bundle product and its components didn’t decrease. Why? Because the components are deducted at assembly, not at sale.
• The Issue Components from Stock option doesn’t appear. Why? Because it appears for the pre-assembled bundle only; an instant bundle’s components are deducted at sale.
• Can I change the bundle type? Yes, as long as there are no stock movements on the product.
• How do I know how many units I can sell of an instant product? From the Available Balances for Bundle Products report.