Glossary · Supply chain & plants
GRN (goods received note) meaning
GRN means goods received note: the record that goods arrived and were accepted against a purchase order. See what a GRN contains and how three-way match works.
What is the full form of GRN?
GRN stands for goods received note, also called a goods receipt note. Some ERPs call the same transaction a material receipt note (MRN) or goods receipt (GR). Whatever the name, it is the buyer's own record that goods physically arrived and how much was accepted.
What does a GRN contain?
- GRN number and date, and the purchase order it relates to.
- Supplier name, delivery challan or invoice number, and vehicle number.
- For each item: quantity ordered, quantity received, quantity accepted and quantity rejected with a reason.
- The store location where the goods were placed, and the name of the person who received them.
How is the GRN used in three-way matching?
Accounts payable compares three documents before paying a supplier: the purchase order (what was agreed), the GRN (what arrived and was accepted) and the supplier's invoice (what is being charged). The bill is approved only for quantities that appear on all three at the agreed rate.
Worked example: a short and damaged delivery
Illustrative numbers only.
| Document | Cartons | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase order | 500 | At the agreed rate per carton |
| Supplier invoice | 500 | Billed in full |
| Counted at receiving | 480 | 20 short |
| GRN accepted quantity | 472 | 8 rejected as damaged |
Payment is approved for 472 cartons. The supplier is asked for a credit note covering 28 cartons, or replacement stock. If the GRN had simply copied 500 from the invoice, the business would have paid for goods it never received.
Common mistakes and confusions
- GRN vs POD. The POD is signed for the transporter at unloading. The GRN is the buyer's internal acceptance, sometimes posted days later after inspection. Transporters often have to wait for both before the freight bill is cleared.
- GRN vs delivery challan. The challan comes from the supplier with the goods; the GRN is created by the receiver.
- Copying the invoice quantity. A GRN must reflect a count, not the paperwork.
- Late GRNs. Goods sitting un-GRN'd are invisible to planning and cause duplicate orders.
In a warehouse management system for small orders such as Warehouse OS, receiving at the gate logs the vehicle number, gate and challan, and checks received quantities against the purchase list before stock is put away. For getting that purchase list into rows without retyping, see purchase list PDF to rows, and for where the GRN step sits between systems, WMS vs ERP for a small-order warehouse.
Related terms
Read next
Where this shows up in our work. Warehouse OS: Procurement read from PDF, putaway in a 3D twin, orders weighed into bags and scanned to boxes. Book a 30-minute working session with an engineer.
Questions
What is the full form of GRN?
GRN stands for goods received note, sometimes called goods receipt note. It is the buyer's record of goods received and accepted against a purchase order, created by the store or warehouse.
Who prepares the GRN?
The receiving store or warehouse prepares the GRN after counting and, where needed, inspecting the goods. Accounts then uses it with the purchase order and invoice to approve the supplier's payment.
What is the difference between GRN and invoice?
The invoice is the supplier's bill for what they say they sent. The GRN is the buyer's record of what actually arrived and was accepted. Payment should follow the GRN quantity, not the invoice.