The quick answer
Open Transactions > Inventory > Create Inventory Count. Select the subsidiary if required and the location, enter Count Start Date and Count End Date, then review the eligible items. Check Select for the rows you want, confirm the variance account, and click Submit. NetSuite creates an Open, non-posting count. Start Count is a separate action that captures the snapshot.
This walkthrough prepares North Warehouse’s count for October 5–11, 2026. Three items are due; only Rotor Assembly and Drive Belt go into the saved count. Person and operating-company names in the screenshots are fictional example data.
Before you start
- Enable Inventory Count under Setup > Company > Enable Features > Items & Inventory.
- Use a role with access to Create Inventory Count, the relevant subsidiary, location, items and variance account. The available menu path depends on your role and account configuration.
- Configure Next Count Date and Count Interval for the inventory or assembly items you intend to include. With Multi-Location Inventory, check the schedule for the selected location. Inventory classification is optional.
- For items using bins, check prior transaction history. Oracle documents that a bin-managed item with no prior transaction history does not appear in the calculated list.
The example uses ordinary inventory items. Lot-numbered and serialized items require Advanced Bin/Numbered Inventory Management and additional inventory-detail setup. This guide covers standard calculated count creation. WMS cycle-count planning and Smart Count task generation are outside its scope.
01 · Check the location’s count schedule
Choose North Warehouse and the October 5–11 window. On the item record, open Purchasing/Inventory > Locations and choose the Inventory Count view where available.
Rotor Assembly has Next Inventory Count Date 10/06/2026 and Inventory Count Interval 28. Its next date falls inside the week. Other forms may label these fields Next Count Date and Count Interval. This example reads the existing schedule; it does not change it.
02 · Set the location and date window
Open Transactions > Inventory > Create Inventory Count, where available to your role. Select Northstar Holdings and North Warehouse. Enter Count Start Date 10/05/2026 and Count End Date 10/11/2026. Both boundaries are inclusive.
The example leaves Classification blank and both bin options unchecked. Check those criteria when your returned list differs from the count you planned.
03 · Review and select the due items
The list contains Rotor Assembly, Drive Belt and Seal Kit. Their next count dates are October 6, October 8 and October 7. All three fall inside the window, but appearing in the list does not select an item.
Confirm the Account field contains your inventory-count variance account. This example uses Inventory Variance. Check Select for KIT-1001 Rotor Assembly and BEL-1002 Drive Belt. Leave SEAL-1003 Seal Kit unchecked, then click Submit.
04 · Verify the saved Open count
Confirm the save message and Open status on IC0051. Check North Warehouse, Inventory Variance, and the two expected item lines. Count Quantity and Count Detail are blank in this example.
Leave Start Count untouched. Count creation is complete; the snapshot and any adjustment belong to later stages. Before starting later, complete pending transactions that affect the listed inventory. If inventory changes during the count, account for those changes when entering and reviewing the quantities.
Common questions
Are the start and end dates inclusive?
Yes. October 5–11 includes items due on October 5 and October 11, as well as the dates between them. The dates filter when an item is due for counting.
Why is an expected item missing?
Check the selected location and subsidiary, the item’s next count date and interval, and any Classification filter. With Bin Management, an item that uses bins but has no prior transaction history does not appear. If you need eligible zero-quantity bin rows, check Count Bin Rows With Zero Quantity.
Is Classification required?
No. Leave it blank to review eligible items across classifications. Selecting a classification narrows the list. Inventory classification is separate from the transaction Class field.
Does NetSuite include every displayed item?
Only the rows checked in the Select column are included. In this example, Seal Kit is due and appears in the list, but it stays out of the count because its checkbox is unchecked.
What do the bin options change?
Count Bin Rows With Zero Quantity includes applicable zero-on-hand bin rows. Sort Rows By Bin changes the display order. Neither option replaces the need to select the rows you intend to count.
Does Submit start the count or post an adjustment?
No. Submit creates an Open, non-posting count. Start Count captures the inventory snapshot. Physical counting, completion, variance review and approval follow separately; approval can create adjustments for applicable nonzero variances.
Can I use the same weekly window for another location?
Yes. Create the count for that location and review its eligible items. Item count schedules can differ by location, so the same date window can produce a different list.
Supporting sources
Oracle documents item count schedules, calculated count creation, feature and account setup, and the later count lifecycle.