Case Price vs Unit Price: Check Your Supplier Invoice Costs

Identify the price basis before doing the maths

A supplier line needs more than a product name and a price. Check whether the quantity represents cases, individual containers, kilograms or litres, and whether the quoted price uses the same basis. A line total is not automatically the price of one bottle.

Keep three separate facts: the number ordered, the number of containers in each case, and the capacity of one container. They answer different questions. A case of six 700ml bottles contains six stock items and 4.2 litres of liquid; neither number alone describes the cost basis.

Worked example: divide a case cost once

Suppose one case of six 700ml bottles costs £108 on the tax basis used for your cost calculations. Each bottle costs £18 and each litre costs about £25.71. A 25ml recipe measure costs about £0.64 before any separate yield or waste adjustment.

If the product record already holds £18 per bottle, dividing it by six again would produce an incorrect £3 bottle cost. Recipes and stock valuations would then look cheaper than they are. Check the source and basis rather than applying a case-size division everywhere.

Compare different bottle sizes on a common basis

An £18 bottle containing 700ml is about £25.71 per litre. A £24 bottle containing one litre is £24 per litre. The second bottle has the higher ticket price but the lower liquid cost in this example. Use a common unit before judging the quote.

That calculation alone does not decide which supplier or pack is best. Check product specification, usable yield, availability, minimum quantities and delivery terms. A larger pack that creates more unusable stock may not be the better operational choice.

Check extraction before approving the invoice

StockLens invoice capture proposes product matches, quantities, pack sizes and prices for review. Check those fields against the original, particularly when the supplier changes a pack or uses a short product description. Recognition of the brand does not establish the correct size or cost.

• Confirm that the invoice line matches the intended product and container size.
• Check whether the source quantity is cases or individual containers.
• Confirm whether the recorded cost is per case, per item, per kilogram or per litre.
• Resolve discounts or other adjustments using the actual invoice details rather than guessing a unit cost.
• Use sales and purchase costs on a consistent tax basis before comparing gross profit.

Keep billing and receipt quantities separate

A correctly priced invoice can still bill more than the good stock you received. Link the delivery note and physical receipt before attributing a difference to service or counting. If a supplier bills six bottles and only five good bottles arrive, changing the bottle price to make the total fit hides the quantity discrepancy.

Keep the product cost correct, record the actual accepted quantity and query the billed difference with the supplier. A disputed amount remains a query until the supplier agrees a resolution.

What StockLens does with the reviewed basis

StockLens uses an explicit cost basis and product unit conversions for recipe costing and stock valuation. An unresolved cost or conversion is unknown, not free. If a figure looks implausibly cheap, return to the source invoice, pack size and basis before changing a selling price or trusting the reported margin.