The quick answer
Go to Transactions > Inventory > Enter Inventory Count, choose the subsidiary and location, and add every item you want to count on the Items subtab with Count Quantity left empty. Save, then click Start Count. NetSuite records each line's snapshot at that moment and stops taking new items. Click Edit, enter the quantity you counted on each line and save. Click Complete Count. The count moves to Completed/Pending Approval, and the Adjusted Quantity on each line is the count minus the snapshot. A negative number is a shortage, zero is a match and a positive number is an overage. Nothing posts until someone approves the count.
The screenshots show sample data. Person and operating-company names are fictional. Use your own records and values when following the steps.
Before you start
You need the Inventory Count feature, Multi-Location Inventory, and a role that can enter and complete counts. Approving a count is a separate job, and many accounts give it to a different role, so check who can approve in yours. Menu paths and form fields can differ by account and role. The items have to be countable inventory items that are stocked at the location. This example uses items without bins, lots, serial numbers or inventory statuses. Those add bin and Count Detail entry to every line, and the detail quantities have to add up to the line's Count Quantity.
Try to finish pending receipts, shipments and transfers for the items before you start. The form carries a banner that says so, and the reason matters. Start Count records the snapshot but does not freeze inventory, so anything that moves stock between Start Count and approval makes the item's current quantity differ from the snapshot, and you have to account for it when you count.
In this example, Eastgate Retail Store holds 9 TR-210 Trekking Pole Sets, 3 BT-330 Insulated Water Bottles and 2 HL-150 LED Headlamps according to NetSuite. The front wall actually holds 5, 3 and 3. One count covers all three items, and any difference goes to the 5210 Inventory Count Variance account.
01. Enter the count header
Go to Transactions > Inventory > Enter Inventory Count. The banner at the top asks you to complete pending transactions that affect the items first. Choose the Subsidiary and the Location. Each count covers one location. Check the Date, select 5210 Inventory Count Variance in Account, and enter "Front wall shelf count" in Memo. The account is the other side of the inventory adjustment that approval creates.
02. Add the items and save
On the Items subtab, select TR-210 Trekking Pole Set. Units and Rate fill in. Rate values the variance on the count. The inventory adjustment's GL Impact is the authoritative amount. Leave Count Quantity empty and click Add. Do the same for BT-330 Insulated Water Bottle and HL-150 LED Headlamp.
Click Save. The count is Open and shows a Start Count button. Saving does not take the snapshot. You can still add items to an Open count, so add anything you forgot now.
03. Start the count
Click Start Count. The status becomes Started, NetSuite records the snapshot for all three lines, and Complete Count replaces Start Count. From here you can no longer add items to the count, only change quantities.
04. Enter the counted quantities
Count the shelf. The front wall holds 5 trekking pole sets, 3 water bottles and 3 headlamps. Click Edit, click each line, enter its Count Quantity and click OK. Then click Save. Enter 0 when you counted the item and found none. A blank is not a zero.
05. Complete the count and read each line
Click Complete Count. The status becomes Completed/Pending Approval, and Approve and Reject appear. The lines now show Snapshot Quantity, Count Quantity and Adjusted Quantity. Adjusted Quantity is the count minus the snapshot.
TR-210 has a snapshot of 9 and a count of 5, so its Adjusted Quantity is -4, a shortage. BT-330 has 3 and 3, so it is 0 and needs no adjustment. HL-150 has 2 and 3, so it is 1, an overage. When the count is approved, the shortage takes stock out of Eastgate, the match leaves it alone and the overage adds stock. Leave the count unapproved unless approving is your job.
06. Check that nothing has posted
Open TR-210 Trekking Pole Set and go to the Locations list on the Purchasing/Inventory subtab. Eastgate Retail Store still shows Quantity On Hand 9. The shortage reaches the item only when the count is approved. The Locations list shows the current quantity, not the snapshot, so it can also differ from the snapshot when other transactions touched the item.
Check the result
- The count is Completed/Pending Approval, not Approved.
- Every line shows Snapshot Quantity, Count Quantity and Adjusted Quantity, and each Adjusted Quantity equals the count minus the snapshot.
- The item's Locations list still shows its old quantity at the location.
Approval creates one or more inventory adjustments for the lines with a nonzero variance, and shortages and overages can post as separate adjustments. After you approve, check that the status is Approved and open the adjustments on the History subtab to see their GL Impact. Approval can fail if an adjustment would take an item below zero where negative inventory is not allowed, if the period is closed, or if a required field is missing. Use Reject to send the count back to Started for a recount. Whether the snapshot is recalculated then depends on the account's settings.
Common questions
How do I count several items in one inventory count in NetSuite?
Go to Transactions > Inventory > Enter Inventory Count, choose the subsidiary and location, and add each item on the Items subtab with Count Quantity empty. Save, click Start Count, edit the count to enter the quantities, save, and click Complete Count. Every item on the count shares one location, date, memo and variance account.
Can I add items to an inventory count after I start it?
Not after Start Count. You can add items while the count is Open. Once it is Started, the count takes no new items, so add everything you need before you start.
What do Snapshot Quantity, Count Quantity and Adjusted Quantity mean?
Snapshot Quantity is the quantity NetSuite recorded for the line when you clicked Start Count. Count Quantity is what you counted. Adjusted Quantity is the count minus the snapshot, in the line's unit, so a negative number is a shortage, zero is a match and a positive number is an overage.
What does a negative, zero or positive Adjusted Quantity do when the count is approved?
Approval creates one or more inventory adjustments for the lines with a nonzero variance, and shortages and overages can post as separate adjustments. A negative line takes stock out and a positive line adds stock. A line with an Adjusted Quantity of 0 normally needs no adjustment. The adjustments appear on the count's History subtab, and their GL Impact shows the amounts.
Should I leave Count Quantity blank or enter 0?
Enter 0 when you counted the item and found none. A blank means the line wasn't counted, which is different from zero, so don't rely on it being treated as zero. Leave a line blank only when you meant not to count it.
Why didn't my item's quantity change after I completed the inventory count?
Completed/Pending Approval does not post anything. The inventory adjustment is created when the count is approved. Until then the item's Locations list shows its current quantity, which also may not equal the snapshot if other transactions touched the item.
Who can approve an inventory count?
The person who completes the count does not have to be the person who approves it. Roles vary, so check who can approve in your account. Approval needs the inventory count and adjustment permissions and access to the subsidiary and location, and it can be blocked by a closed period, an inactive item, a required field or a negative-inventory restriction.