The quick answer
Create the bin under Lists > Supply Chain > Bins > New and give it a Location. Edit the item, check Use Bins, and add the bin on the Bin Numbers subtab with Preferred (Per Location) checked. The stock the item already had doesn't move into the bin by itself, so go to Transactions > Inventory > Bin Putaway Worksheet, pick the location, and assign that quantity to the bin in Inventory Detail. From then on, receipts of the item carry a bin in Inventory Detail. With Use Preferred Bin On Item Receipts turned on, the preferred bin fills in for you.
The example is a marine parts company that wants shelf locations at its Norfolk Warehouse. The first item is the KM-118 Bilge Pump Impeller. It already has 14 units on the shelf, and purchase order 4078 for 6 more is waiting to be received. The plan is to create bin A-01-02, put the 14 into it, and receive the 6 straight into the same bin. The screenshots use sample data, and the person and company names are fictional.
If your items already use bins and you only need to move stock between them, that's a bin transfer. See how to transfer lot-numbered stock between bins.
Before you start
You need an administrator, or a role that can enable features and edit accounting preferences, for the first step. After that you need permission to create bins, edit items, enter bin putaway worksheets and receive purchase orders.
The item has to be an inventory item. This example assumes Advanced Bin / Numbered Inventory Management with Multi-Location Inventory. Basic Bin Management is enough for an item like this one that isn't lot or serial numbered, but with basic bins they apply to every location or none. In the advanced setup each location decides, so Use Bins is already checked on the Norfolk Warehouse location record. Inventory statuses are off here. If your account uses them, or lots, serials or units of measure, Inventory Detail asks for those values too. If you receive and put away with the WMS mobile app, the flow is different. See receiving a purchase order and completing bin putaway.
01. Check the bin features and the receipt preference
Go to Setup > Company > Enable Features and open the Items & Inventory subtab. Under Inventory, Bin Management and Advanced Bin / Numbered Inventory Management are both checked. Lot Tracking and Serialized Inventory are separate features. You don't need them for bins.
Then go to Setup > Accounting > Accounting Preferences and open Items/Transactions. Under Inventory, Use Preferred Bin On Item Receipts is checked. That preference is what makes a receipt suggest the item's preferred bin later. Marking a bin preferred on the item isn't enough without it.
02. Create the bin
Go to Lists > Supply Chain > Bins > New (menus vary a little by role). Enter Bin Number A-01-02 and select Location Norfolk Warehouse. A bin belongs to one location. This account has warehouse management installed, so the form also shows WMS fields. You can leave them blank for basic bin use.
Click Save. The Bins list shows A-01-02 at Norfolk Warehouse, next to the existing bin A-01-01.
03. Turn on Use Bins for the item
Go to Lists > Accounting > Items, open KM-118 and click Edit. On the Purchasing/Inventory subtab, under Inventory Management, check Use Bins.
A Bin Numbers subtab appears beside Locations. Select Location Norfolk Warehouse and Bin Number A-01-02, check Preferred (Per Location), and click Add. With basic bin management the item can only use bins listed here. With advanced bin management the list is optional, but you still need it to mark a preferred bin.
Click Save. On the saved item, the Locations list still shows 14 on hand at Norfolk Warehouse.
Open Bin Numbers. A-01-02 is the preferred bin, but its On Hand is empty. The 14 units were in stock before the item used bins, so NetSuite doesn't know which bin they're in.
04. Put the existing stock into the bin
Go to Transactions > Inventory > Bin Putaway Worksheet. Keep Date 10/22/2026 and select Location Norfolk Warehouse. The Items list loads KM-118 with Quantity 14. That's the unassigned quantity: on hand at the location minus what's already in bins. Here it's all 14, because none of it is in a bin yet. Check the quantity before you go on. If you only want to put part of it away now, change it.
Click the line's Inventory Detail icon. Here the window opens with Bin A-01-02, the item's preferred bin at this location. Don't count on the default on every form. Check the bin or pick another one, enter Quantity 14, click Add, then OK. The detail quantity has to match the line quantity.
Click Save. The Bin Put-Away Worksheet saves as number 21 with one line, KM-118 and Quantity 14. Your worksheet number will differ. A put-away changes which bin holds the stock. It doesn't change the item's total on hand or its value, and it doesn't normally post to the general ledger.
05. Receive the purchase order into the bin
Open purchase order 4078 from Solent Pump Supply. It's Pending Receipt with two lines: 6 KM-118 at 18.40 and 2 KM-430 Hose Clamp Kit at 7.25, both for Norfolk Warehouse. Click Receive.
On the item receipt, both lines are checked in Receive. Only the KM-118 line has an Inventory Detail button. KM-430 doesn't use bins, so it never asks for one, even on the same receipt.
Click it. Bin already shows A-01-02 because of the preference from step 1. The default isn't locked in. If the goods are going somewhere else, change it, or split the quantity across bins. If the receiving preferences don't require a bin, quantity you leave unassigned waits for the next put-away. Enter Quantity 6, click Add, then OK.
06. Save the receipt
Click Save. The receipt saves as IR7731 from Solent Pump Supply, Created From purchase order 4078. Your account's numbering will look different.
The lines show KM-118 for 6 and KM-430 for 2, both to Norfolk Warehouse. On this form the On Hand column shows KM-118 at 20 for the location. The bin total is on the item.
07. Check the bin's on-hand quantity
Click KM-118 on the receipt line to open the item, then go to Purchasing/Inventory > Bin Numbers.
Check the result
- A-01-02 shows On Hand 20: the 14 put away plus the 6 received.
- The location total and the bin total match, so nothing at Norfolk Warehouse is left without a bin.
- If other transactions moved the item in between, your numbers will differ. Go by the screen, not the arithmetic.
Bin Numbers is a quick check. To reconcile a location in detail, use the item's Inventory Detail subtab. Quantity that hasn't been put away still counts in the location total but doesn't appear in any bin.
Common questions
What's the difference between basic and advanced bin management?
With basic Bin Management, an item can only use bins you've listed on its Bin Numbers subtab, and bins apply to every location or none. Advanced Bin / Numbered Inventory Management lets each location decide whether it uses bins, works with lot and serial items, and lets a transaction use a bin at the location even if it isn't listed on the item.
Why doesn't the existing stock go into the bin when I check Use Bins?
Checking Use Bins doesn't place the quantity you already have anywhere. Anything on hand at the location beyond what's assigned to bins stays unassigned until a Bin Putaway Worksheet puts it away. Here that was all 14 impellers.
Does a bin putaway post to the general ledger?
No. The worksheet changes which bin holds the stock. The item's total quantity and value stay the same, so there's nothing to post. The receipts and adjustments that brought the stock in are what hit the books.
What's the difference between a preferred bin and a required bin?
A preferred bin is a default. With Use Preferred Bin On Item Receipts on, it fills in on the receipt and you can change it. Whether a bin is required depends on your account's bin preferences, such as Require Bins on All Transactions Except Item Receipts.
Can I receive a bin item without picking a bin?
With advanced bin management, often yes, unless your preferences require one. The quantity stays unassigned and shows up on the next Bin Putaway Worksheet. Items that don't use bins, like the hose clamp kit here, never ask.
Can one item sit in several bins at the same location?
Yes. Add more lines on Bin Numbers, keep one as the preferred bin, and split quantities across bins in Inventory Detail when one bin can't take or supply the whole line.
Does turning on Use Bins change past transactions?
No. Earlier receipts and fulfillments stay as they were. The stock they left behind just shows up as unassigned until you put it away.
Do item fulfillments ask for a bin too?
Yes, once the item uses bins, a fulfillment's Inventory Detail names the bin the stock comes from. NetSuite may fill it in for you, and you can split the quantity across bins. This walkthrough stops at the receipt and doesn't show a fulfillment.
How does this work for lot- or serial-numbered items?
You need Advanced Bin / Numbered Inventory Management. Inventory Detail then asks for the lot or serial number along with the bin and quantity. A serial item needs one serial number per unit.
How do I see what's still unassigned?
Open a Bin Putaway Worksheet for the location. It lists each bin item whose on hand is more than what's in its bins. The item's Inventory Detail subtab shows the bin-level balances.