In Business Central, an Item Card is the foundation for managing inventory, purchasing, production, costing, and sales. It stores all master data about an item including its name, cost, price, unit of measure, posting groups, and replenishment methods.
Let us go through the step by step process to create an Item Card correctly.
Item cards hold the master data required to buy, store, produce, account, track, sell and ship items.
Table of Contents
Prerequisites : Item Creation
Make sure you have completed the following setups before creating a new item card:
- Item units of measure are created
- Necessary posting groups are configured
- All item details (name, cost, price, vendor info, and storage details) are ready
New Item Creation Steps in Business Central
Following are the all new Item creation important steps
Step 1: Open the Item Card
In order to open Item card search on tell me “Items”
Tip: You may try Business Central Keyboard shortcuts for faster navigation.
- Go to the Items list page.
- Click New to create a new item card.
- The system will automatically assign the next number from the Item Number Series.
- In the Description field, enter the name of the item.
- Select a Base Unit of Measure (e.g., PCS, KG, LTR).
- Choose an Item Category Code to apply default posting and setup values.
- (Optional) If the item should not be used, enable the Blocked checkbox to restrict transactions.
Tip: The right hand side of the page shows inventory, supply, and demand insights for the item.
Step 2: Set Up Cost & Posting Details
- In the Costing Method field, select how the system should calculate costs:
Standard : for manufactured items
Specific : for serial numbered or batch tracked items
Other than that FIFO, LIFO and Average costing methods available in system
If using Standard Costing, enter the value in the Standard Cost field.
- In the Unit Cost field, enter the cost per unit of the item.
- Add the Unit Price (the default sales price per unit).
- Enter all required Posting Group values to ensure proper accounting.
- The system will automatically update fields like Last Direct Cost and Average Cost (LCY) as transactions occur.
Step 3: Define Replenishment Setup
Depending on how the item is supplied, you can configure it as a Purchased or Produced item.
For Purchased Items:
- In Replenishment System, select Purchase.
- Enter the default Vendor No. for the item.
- Add the Vendor Item No. if it differs from your internal code.
- Specify a Lead Time Calculation (e.g., 1W for one week).
For Produced Items:
- In Replenishment System, select Prod. Order.
- Choose the Manufacturing Policy:
- Make to Order : creates production orders only when demand exists
- Make to Stock : produces items to keep in inventory
- Select a Routing No. (certified routing must exist).
- Choose a Production BOM No. (certified production BOM required).
- In Flushing Method, select how consumption is posted:
- Manual : user posts manually
- Forward : posts at order release
- Backward : posts at order completion
- Enter a Scrap % to account for expected production loss.
- Specify a Lot Size to define the standard batch size for cost calculations.
Step 4: Configure Planning Setup
- In Reordering Policy, choose Blank if planning is handled manually.
- In the Reserve field, set how reservations are handled:
- Always : always reserve
- Optional: reserve only when required
- Never : do not allow reservation
- In Order Tracking Policy, decide how supply and demand are linked:
- Tracking Only : links supply and demand orders dynamically
- None : no order tracking
Note: These fields influence how Business Central handles automatic planning, reservations, and order tracking.
Final Check
Once all sections are filled, review your Item Card details carefully. Ensure that:
- The correct costing and posting setups are applied.
- Vendor or BOM references are valid.
- The item is not blocked unintentionally.
After verification, you can start using the item in transactions such as sales orders, purchase orders, and production orders.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
An Item Card is used to store all the master data related to an item including its cost, price, inventory level, posting setup, and production details. It helps in tracking and managing items throughout their lifecycle.
Yes. You can mark the item as Blocked on the Item Card to prevent it from being used in any transactions.
Standard Costing uses a fixed cost per item that does not change automatically.
Average Costing recalculates the cost based on incoming and outgoing transactions.
You can update the Vendor No. field in the Replenishment Tab anytime to change or assign a different default supplier.
Yes, you can. BOM and Routing are only required for production items, not for purchased or resale items.
Conclusion
Setting up an Item Card correctly is the first step toward smooth inventory and production management. Once you define all details properly, you will have a strong foundation for purchasing, selling, planning, and cost tracking ensuring accurate data and efficient business operations.
