Goods Received Note Template (GRN) — Free Excel and Word
Free goods received note template in Excel and Word for UK construction. What a GRN records, how the three-way match works, and how to stop paying for materials that never arrived.
Key Takeaways
- A GRN records what arrived; the delivery note records what the supplier says it sent.
- There is no statutory requirement to raise a GRN — it is a commercial control, and a valuable one.
- Match to the purchase order line, not the order number.
- Note damage and shortages at the gate, on both documents, with photographs.
- Get the GRN to whoever pays invoices the same day, or the control does nothing.
Deliveries recorded against the order line, from the gate
Site Samurai records goods received against the specific purchase order line from a phone on site, with photographs and the accepted quantity, so a part delivery cannot quietly be paid in full. When the supplier invoice arrives it is checked against the order and the receipt on the same record, and the accepted value is what reaches the project cost report.
What a goods received note is
A GRN is your record of a delivery. The supplier’s delivery note is theirs — it lists what they say they sent. The GRN records what you counted, what condition it was in, and what you accepted. The difference between the two documents is where delivery disputes are settled.
- It is written by the receiving party, at the point of delivery.
- It records quantity received, not quantity ordered.
- It records condition, damage and rejections at the time.
- It names the person who checked, so the record has an author.
Is a GRN legally required?
No. There is no statutory requirement to raise a goods received note in the UK. HMRC’s list of the VAT records a business must keep names orders, delivery notes, purchase invoices and credit notes — goods received notes do not appear in it. So you must retain the delivery notes you hold, but nothing obliges you to raise a GRN. It is a commercial control, kept because it is the only independent evidence of what arrived.
- HMRC requires you to retain delivery notes as part of your VAT records.
- Nothing requires you to raise a goods received note.
- The control value is entirely commercial — it stops you paying for what did not arrive.
Download Templates
The three-way match
Three-way matching checks a supplier invoice against the purchase order and the receiving record before it is paid. Each document answers a different question, and an invoice that fails any of the three should not reach the payment run.
| Document | Written by | Question it answers |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase order | You, before delivery | Did we agree to buy this, at this quantity and this price? |
| Goods received note | You, at delivery | Did it arrive, in this quantity and this condition? |
| Supplier invoice | The supplier, after delivery | Is this what we are being asked to pay? |
- Match to the purchase order line, not just the order number — part deliveries against a call-off order are where over-payment happens.
- A price variance is a match failure just as much as a quantity variance.
- An invoice with no GRN behind it is an invoice nobody has verified.
How to run it on site
The whole control depends on the two minutes before the driver leaves.
- Count what has arrived against the purchase order line before signing anything.
- Inspect for damage and photograph anything you are rejecting.
- Write shortages, damage and rejections on the supplier’s delivery note as well as on your GRN.
- Sign the delivery note only for what you actually accepted.
- Record the GRN number, the delivery note number and the purchase order line on one document.
- Send the GRN to whoever processes invoices the same day, not at the end of the week.
- Raise a discrepancy the same day, while the supplier can still verify it with its own driver.
Worked example
A purchase order calls off 240 concrete blocks at £1.94 each against line 3 of order PO-1183. On 16/09/2026 the delivery arrives; the site team counts 216 and finds eleven of those cracked. The GRN records 216 received, 205 accepted, eleven rejected, with photographs, and the shortage is written on the supplier’s delivery note before it is signed. The supplier invoices for 240 at £1.94, which is £465.60. The three-way match fails on quantity: the accepted value is £397.70. The difference of £67.90 is a credit request raised the same week, with a photographed and countersigned GRN behind it, rather than an argument in six weeks with nothing in writing.
Common mistakes
Deliveries go wrong at the gate and get expensive in the ledger.
- Copying the order quantity onto the GRN instead of counting.
- Signing the delivery note "unchecked" and hoping to reconcile later.
- Recording damage a week later, when the supplier can reasonably say it happened on site.
- Matching to the order number rather than the order line, so part deliveries are paid twice.
- Filing the GRN on site and never sending it to accounts, so the invoice is paid unmatched.
- Treating a price variance as an accounts problem rather than a match failure.
Where the GRN sits in the buying cycle
The requisition becomes a purchase order. The order becomes a delivery. The delivery becomes a GRN. The GRN and the order together let you approve or reject the invoice, and the accepted value is what reaches the cost report for the project. A GRN that never leaves site breaks that chain at the point it matters most.
- Requisition → purchase order → delivery → GRN → invoice match → payment.
- Only the accepted value should reach the project cost report.
- An open discrepancy is money you may still be about to pay by accident.
Sources
The statements about record-keeping and the three-way match were checked against the sources named below before publication. This is general information, not legal or accounting advice.
- HMRC, VAT Notice 700/21 "Keeping VAT records", section 2.3 — gov.uk/government/publications/vat-notice-70021-keeping-vat-records
- AccountingTools, "Three-way matching" — accountingtools.com/articles/what-is-three-way-matching.html
Last reviewed: 2 September 2026
Deliveries checked at the gate, matched before the invoice is paid
Site Samurai records deliveries against the purchase order line from a phone, so the invoice match is done before the invoice arrives.
Or start your free trial →Goods Received Note Template FAQ
AUTOMATE THIS WORKFLOW
Record deliveries against the order line at the gate, and check every supplier invoice against what was actually received.