Free bar inventory tool: counts, receipts and stock reconciliation
By Jack Hawkins · Updated
Run a bar stock reconciliation in a free browser tool instead of downloading a spreadsheet. Enter opening quantities, receipts, closing counts, recipe-derived expected usage and logged explained depletion per product. The tool calculates actual depletion, total variance, unexplained variance and its value, with a fixed or weighted costing option.
Count in a unit the product deserves
Each row has a product name and count unit. Litres can suit spirits; bottles, cases or other measured units can suit different products. Keep every quantity and price in the row on the same basis. A cost per 70cl bottle cannot directly multiply a litre difference: divide the bottle price by 0.7 first.
Partial containers should be measured to a useful resolution rather than rounded automatically to quarters. A quarter of a 700ml bottle is 175ml, or seven 25ml serves; that rounding can hide a meaningful discrepancy. Enter a measured decimal quantity and preserve the method in the venue's count records.
The count and receipt inputs
Use last cycle's closing quantity as this cycle's opening, then enter stock physically received and transfers in during the same window. Current closing stock includes all counted storage and service locations. Keep the count cutoff aligned with receipts and sales so a delivery is not included on one side but excluded on the other.
Expected usage comes from recipe quantities multiplied by recorded serves, including the appropriate modifiers and recipe versions. Logged waste, transfers out and authorised comps not already in expected usage enter explained depletion. Do not subtract the same movement twice. Sales units alone do not establish how much of each spirit a cocktail used.
Choose a costing policy explicitly
Fixed mode uses the entered unit cost for every quantity in the row. Weighted mode combines the opening stock cost and receipt cost across the quantity available: opening quantity times opening unit cost, plus receipt quantity times receipt unit cost, divided by opening plus receipts.
If several receipt prices apply, enter their weighted average receipt price. For example, ten units received at £20 and ten at £24 give a £22 receipt price for twenty units. This is an operational calculation; confirm the financial stock-valuation policy with the business's accounting approach rather than switching methods to obtain a preferred margin.
The reconciliation results
| Output | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Actual depletion | Opening + receipts − closing |
| Expected usage | Recipe-derived usage from recorded sales |
| Total variance | Actual depletion − expected usage |
| Explained depletion | Entered waste and other logged movements |
| Unexplained variance | Total variance − explained depletion |
| Unexplained pounds | Unexplained quantity × selected unit cost |
| Cost-weighted percentage | Total unexplained pounds ÷ total expected usage cost |
The result is sorted by absolute unexplained pounds, keeping large negative discrepancies visible too. Units remain per product; litres and cases are not added into a meaningless physical total. The money summary combines their costed results on a consistent basis.
A worked cycle to check the tool
Twenty-one 70cl bottles opening, thirty-four received and nineteen closing give thirty-six bottles depleted, or 25.2 litres. If recipe sales imply 21.9 litres, the total difference is 3.3 litres. At £22 per bottle, the equivalent cost per litre is £31.4286, giving approximately £103.71 total variance before any explained depletion.
Logging a verified litre of waste reduces the unexplained difference to 2.3 litres but does not make the wasted stock free. It remains part of actual depletion and its cost. This distinction makes the review useful: the team can see both the operating cost and the portion requiring a further records check.
Measure partial bottles and kegs appropriately
For bottle weighing, record tare and use a product-specific density or a calibrated full-to-empty range. Glass weights can differ; treating every liquid as water can create a false precision. Keep the method repeatable for the next count and check any unusual result by recounting.
Do not open or dip a pressurised keg to obtain a measurement. Use an appropriate manufacturer-approved method such as calibrated weighing or dispense reconciliation. A connected/full/empty state or days-connected estimate is not a precise remaining volume, and cask handling should not be confused with sealed-keg handling.
Read the sign before escalating
A missing receipt reduces recorded depletion, potentially concealing a positive loss or creating negative variance. An uncounted closing shelf lowers closing stock and increases apparent depletion. An overstated closing count reduces it. The sign is a prompt to investigate the records, not a judgement about staff.
If expected usage is zero, the product percentage is undefined; the tool still reports quantity and value. If closing stock exceeds opening plus recorded receipts, check missing stock movements or units. Use the stock variance guide and shrinkage guide to structure a fair operational investigation.
Keep the review manageable
Focus first on the largest unexplained pound differences, but keep slow and perishable stock in a sensible rotation and expiry routine. Opened vermouth, juice and dairy need attention even when their value is lower than the main spirits rail. A complete periodic count checks what a focused weekly list may miss.
Calculate to see the costed reconciliation immediately below the editable table. Review the largest unexplained values first, then correct any count or receipt errors and calculate again. Keep your original count records as the audit evidence. The weekly review tool takes the costed summary into the venue’s wider revenue, labour and contribution review.
FAQ
Do I need to download a stock spreadsheet? No. The editable table and costing controls are on this page. Add your products, replace the example quantities and calculate to see the reconciliation underneath. Keep the page open while checking figures; refreshing restores the illustrative starting example.
Can I use weighted prices? Yes. Select weighted mode and supply opening and receipt unit costs. For several receipt prices, aggregate them to the quantity-weighted receipt price first.
Does a variance prove theft? No. Counts, invoices, recipes, transfers, waste and recording errors can all produce a gap. Check those before considering any people-related conclusion.
Does the tool connect to my POS? This browser tool uses the figures you enter directly in its editable fields and rows. It does not claim an automatic POS connection; the venue pilot’s access scope is agreed separately.
Method and assumptions
All worked quantities are illustrative. Keep physical units, period cutoffs and costing policy consistent. A percentage target is an investigation policy, not a measured national stock-loss standard. Inputs are not automatically saved or uploaded by the tool.
Last reviewed 19 October 2026.