QuickBooks Inventory, Products, and Job Costing

Updated 10/20/2026.

Set up and run inventory, product catalogs, assemblies and bundles, and project costing in current QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Desktop — with the differences between the two platforms made clear at every step.

Who it is for: Bookkeepers and accounting staff who set up and maintain product-based businesses and project/job-based businesses in QuickBooks.

Length: about 120 minutes, 8 modules, 50 quiz questions, certificate of completion.

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What you will learn

Map Desktop item types to their QuickBooks Online equivalents and choose the right product or service type for a given business need.
Turn on inventory tracking, set up the related asset, COGS and income accounts, and enter opening quantities with accurate starting values.
Record purchases, partial receipts, landed costs and vendor returns while keeping accounts payable and inventory counts correct.
Invoice and sell inventory, handle returns and restocking, and avoid the problems caused by negative inventory.
Adjust quantities and values after a physical count, set up cycle counting where available, and investigate the root cause of recurring discrepancies.
Explain how QuickBooks Online uses FIFO and QuickBooks Desktop uses average cost, and use valuation and stock-status reports to reconcile book and physical inventory.
Build assemblies in QuickBooks Desktop, create bundles in QuickBooks Online, and know when a third-party manufacturing app is needed.
Track job costs using Customers:Jobs in Desktop or Projects in QuickBooks Online, post labor and material costs, and read job profitability reports.

Course outline

Module	What it covers
The Product and Service Catalog	Mapping Desktop items to QBO products and services, choosing types, and importing the catalog
Turning On and Setting Up Inventory	Enabling inventory, wiring accounts, entering opening quantities, and preparing for conversion
Purchasing and Receiving Inventory	Purchase orders, partial receipts, landed costs, vendor credits, and the A/P impact
Selling Inventory	Invoices, sales receipts, returns, backorders, and pricing in QuickBooks
Adjustments and Physical Inventory Counts	Quantity adjustments, value adjustments, physical counts, and cycle counting
Inventory Valuation and Reports	FIFO, average cost, valuation reports, stock status, and reconciling physical counts
Assemblies, Bundles, and Kits	Assemblies, bundles, bills of materials, and build transactions
Job Costing and Projects	Desktop jobs, QBO projects, estimates, progress invoicing, and profitability reporting

How the course works

Each course is self-paced. Slides unlock as you read them, most carry a short check, and every module ends with a quiz you pass at 80 percent. A final assessment and a signed attestation complete the course, and you receive a certificate of completion.