Inventory Management in QuickBooks Online #

Inventory items in QuickBooks Online represent the physical products you sell and track. When using register, inventory is managed in QuickBooks Online and synced automatically to your POS checkout.

Setting Up Inventory Items #

1. Navigate to Products and Services
   In QuickBooks Online, go to Sales > Products and Services.
   
2. Add New Inventory Item
   Click New, select Inventory, and fill in:
   
   • Name: Product name (this appears in register).
     
   • SKU (optional but useful).
     
   • Category (for organization and reporting).
     
   • Initial Quantity on Hand and As of Date.
     
   • Reorder Point to help manage stock levels.
     
   • Inventory Asset Account (usually defaulted).
     
   • Sales Price: Price charged to customers.
     
   • Income Account: Revenue account (e.g., Sales of Product Income).
     
   • Cost: Your cost for the item.
     
   • Expense Account: Cost of Goods Sold (COGS).
     
3. Save and Close
   

Tip: Avoid using duplicate item names. Consistency helps keep reports and sales records clean in both QuickBooks Online and register.

Managing Sales Prices #

You can update sales prices directly in QuickBooks Online, and register will reflect these changes in near real-time.

To Edit an Existing Item’s Sales Price in QuickBooks Online: #

1. Go to Sales > Products and Services.
   
2. Locate the item and click Edit.
   
3. In the Sales Price/Rate field, enter the new price.
   
4. Click Save and Close.
   

Note: Pricing updates in QuickBooks Online will automatically sync to register. 

register does not support price levels or custom pricing rules. 

Sync Behavior Between QuickBooks Online & register #

• Inventory items are created and managed in QuickBooks Online.
  
• register reads inventory details (name, price, quantity) from QuickBooks Online.
  
• Sales transactions processed in register are posted back to QuickBooks Online as Sales Receipts or Invoices.
  
• Stock levels are adjusted in QuickBooks Online automatically when sales occur in register.
  

What Should Not Be Done in register #

• Do not add new inventory items in register.
  Always create or update items in QuickBooks Online. register pulls this data; it does not push new items to QuickBooks Online.
  
• Do not edit inventory quantities or pricing in register.
  Make changes in QuickBooks Online to maintain consistency and ensure accurate reporting.

Best Practices #

• Review your product list in QuickBooks Online regularly to clean up inactive items.
  
• Use categories and SKUs to help organize large inventories.
  
• Ensure accurate asset, income and COGS accounts for each item to support financial reporting.
  
• Periodically review sales prices to align with costs and market rates.

Need Help? #

If you need assistance with understanding where to add items or syncing issues between QuickBooks Online and register, contact our support team at support@abilitybusiness.com or visit Ability Wiki — register help center.

QuickBooks Online Resources #

Check out our resource page with QuickBooks Online related articles.