Warehouse & logistics
Inventory Accuracy (Record Accuracy)
By the Supply Chain Manager team · Updated October 16, 2026
Inventory accuracy is how often the stock quantity in your system matches what is physically on the shelf, measured from counts.
It is usually measured as the share of counted SKU-locations whose system quantity matches the physical count, sometimes within a small tolerance. Value-based measures can hide errors, because overs and unders cancel out.
A tolerance can be sensible for small, cheap items counted in large quantities, such as screws sold by weight. For high-value or serialized items, the standard should be an exact match. Tracking accuracy separately by zone or category shows where the process is breaking, which is more useful than one overall figure.
How to calculate inventory accuracy
Inventory Accuracy % = Counted SKU-locations that match ÷ SKU-locations counted × 100
Inventory accuracy example
Illustrative numbers: 400 locations counted, 372 match exactly. Accuracy = 93%. The other 28 are where the next stockout or false reorder will come from.
Why inventory accuracy matters for distributors
No forecast or reorder rule can work on wrong stock figures. Poor accuracy causes both phantom stock (system says yes, shelf says no) and unnecessary reorders.
Common inventory accuracy mistakes
- Measuring only total value, where errors cancel out.
- Allowing manual stock adjustments without a reason code.
Examples on this page use made-up round numbers to show the calculation. They are not benchmarks or results from real businesses.