What you will accomplish

You will use a zone on the Parking Spots map to see how many cars are inside a flexible area, add a vehicle to the zone, or move a car out—without picking an exact numbered spot.

When to use a zone (and when to use a numbered spot)

• Use a numbered spot (such as A1 or B4) when staff need an exact location for retrieval, customer communication, or billing tied to a specific space.
• Use a zone (such as Outdoor Lot or Indoor Bay) when cars can park anywhere inside a larger area and an exact box number is not required.
• Use both on the same map — numbered spots inside a zone show exact spaces; the zone background shows the flexible overflow area around them.

Before you start

• Your facility map should already include at least one zone. If not, an admin can add zones in Set up parking spots and zones.
• The car should exist in Cars before you add it to a zone.
• Know whether the car needs an exact spot or only a general area.

Open a zone from the map

1. Open Parking Spots

   Go to Parking Spots from the left sidebar.

   Expected result: You see the facility map (Map view). Colored background areas are zones. Labeled boxes on top are numbered spots and lifts.

2. Click the colored zone area

   Click inside a colored zone (for example the green Outdoor Lot area). Do not click a numbered spot box unless you want that exact space.

   Expected result: A window opens with the zone name at the top (for example Outdoor Lot).

3. Read the capacity summary

   Near the top of the window, look for how many cars are in the zone and how many spaces remain.

   Why this matters: Before you promise overflow parking, you can see whether the zone still has room.

Add a car to a zone

Use this when a vehicle is physically in the zone but does not need a numbered spot.

1. Open the zone window

   Click the zone on the Parking Spots map as described above.

2. Search for the car

   Use the car search field in the zone window. Type the customer name, license plate, VIN, make, or model.

   Expected result: Matching vehicles appear in the list.

3. Select the correct vehicle

   If the customer owns more than one car, read the year, make, model, and plate carefully before you continue.

4. Save the assignment

   Click the button to add the car to the zone (the exact label may say Add to zone or similar).

   Expected result: The car appears in the zone’s car list. The car record shows Zone: and the zone name near the top of Cars.

Move or remove a car from a zone

1. Open the zone that holds the car

   Click the zone on the map, or search for the car and follow the map to its zone.

2. Find the car in the zone list

   Scroll through the cars listed in the zone window. Each row shows the vehicle and owner.

3. Move the car to a numbered spot or another zone

   Use Move (or Move Vehicle) to send the car to a numbered spot or a different zone. Pick the destination from the search list.

   Why this matters: Moving the record when the physical car moves keeps the map trustworthy for the next teammate.

4. Remove the car if it left your facility

   If the vehicle is no longer on your property, remove it from the zone or update the car record so it no longer shows a parking location.

Zone capacity in plain English

How zones look in Table view

Zones also appear on the Parking Spots table:

• The Location column may show a zone name for spots that sit inside a zone.
• Cars assigned only to a zone (no numbered spot) may not appear on a single spot row—they appear when you open the zone on the map or on the car record.

For help reading Currently Parked vs Status in the table, see Find parking spots and available spaces.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Do not click a numbered spot when you mean to use the whole zone—the spot dialog is for exact spaces only.
• Do not assign a car to a zone when your process requires an exact spot number for retrieval.
• Do not forget to update the zone when the car physically moves to a numbered spot inside the same lot.

Troubleshooting

What to do next

• Need an exact space? Use Assign a parking spot.
• Need to hold a spot before arrival? Use Reserve a parking spot.
• Setting up zones for the first time? See Set up parking spots and zones.