Stock and costing
Adjust an item's quantity after a stock count
Set the counted quantity of an item, or of one variant, in a warehouse. The system records the difference and posts its value to the books.
3 min readLast updated
In this article
After a stock count, the shelf and the system rarely agree. A quantity adjustment sets the system to what you counted. You enter the new total, not the difference, and the system works out and posts the rest.
Before you start
Count the item in one warehouse and note the total in its base unit.
Check the item's cost price on its profile. The difference is valued at that cost.
Your branch needs a stock variance account. Your administrator sets the Stock variance account on the branch.
Steps
Open Inventory › Items › Modify Item Quantity. The Quantity adjustment screen opens.
Choose the Item.
Choose the Warehouse where you counted it.
If the item has variants, choose the Option group and then the Option value. The screen shows the current quantity of that value, for example Current on-hand for this option value: 8.
Enter the counted total in New on-hand quantity. Enter 0 if nothing is left.
Select Post adjustment. The message Quantity adjustment posted confirms it and the form clears for the next item.
What happens when you post
The warehouse balance becomes the figure you entered.
The difference is written to the item's movement log as a quantity adjustment, and a record of the old and new quantity is kept for audit.
The system posts a journal entry for the difference times the cost price:
More than before: the warehouse stock account is debited and the branch stock variance account is credited.
Less than before: the stock variance account is debited and the warehouse stock account is credited.
The cost price itself does not change.
Before | You enter | Difference | Entry at cost 10 |
|---|---|---|---|
50 | 47 | -3 | 30 to stock variance |
20 | 26 | +6 | 60 to stock |
Tips
Adjust each warehouse separately, even for the same item.
For many items at once, use Update quantities and prices in bulk.
Review past adjustments in the Stock Count Report. See Audit manual quantity changes.
Common questions
Can I enter a negative quantity? No. The lowest figure you can set is 0.
Can I undo an adjustment? Post another adjustment with the correct figure. The movement log keeps both.
Why did the value posted look wrong? The difference is valued at the item's current cost price. If the cost is wrong, correct it with a revaluation before you adjust large quantities.