Receiving materials through a Purchase Order in Ply helps you keep your inventory accurate and updated. Whether you receive the full order or just part of it, here’s how to properly receive and reconcile a PO.
➡️ 1. Go to Your Purchase Orders
Navigate to the Purchasing section.
Locate the PO you want to process.
Click the three dots (⋯) next to the PO you want to mark as received.
🔄 2. Change the PO Status or Drag an Drop.
Before you can reconcile, you’ll need to update the PO’s status:
Click Change Status
Select one of the following:
Received – if the entire order has been delivered
Partially Received – if only part of the order arrived
Paid – if you've already paid for the PO and are now ready to receive materials
OR, drag and drop your PO card to the Received/Partially Received/Paid column.
This will activate the Reconcile option.
➡️ 3. Reconcile the Materials
Here you can select Reconcile.
Or, open the PO, hit on the three dots and select Reconcile from there.
After that, enter the actual quantities received for each item and save your changes.
This step ensures your inventory reflects what physically arrived, not just what was ordered.
➡️ You can also unreconcile the PO now as well in case you would like to correct that status by clicking on the three dots.
💡 Tip: Quantities on POs support decimals (e.g. 2.5 ft, 0.75 lbs), so you're not forced to round when receiving materials sold by length, weight, or fractional units. See Decimal quantities on Purchase Orders.
➡️ 4. Confirm and Generate Receipt
Once the quantities have been reviewed and adjusted:
Click Confirm
The system will generate a receipt summary and update your inventory levels automatically.
After reviewing the quantities, click Confirm Receipt.
You can also download it by clicking on the three dots:
➡️ When Can You Reconcile a PO?
You’ll be able to reconcile a Purchase Order when its status is
✅ Paid
✅ Partially Received
✅ Received
If your PO is still marked as "Draft," make sure to update its status first so the Reconcile option becomes available.
✅ Received | ✅ Partially Received | ✅ Paid |
Full order has arrived — reconcile to confirm all quantities | Some items arrived — reconcile what's in hand; PO stays open for the rest | Pre-paid orders — reconcile to update stock even when payment came first |
🚫 Draft | 🚫 Sent / Confirmed |
Change status first — Reconcile is not available on Draft POs | Must first update the status to Received or Partially Received |
➡️ Want to See It in Action?
Here’s a quick video tutorial that walks you through the process:
➡️ Best practices
✅ Decide where materials are going before you start reconciling, Location, Job, or Custom per item. Getting this right the first time avoids extra transfers afterward.
✅ If you're on Housecall Pro, check your material categories before reconciling. HCP requires materials to sit in a leaf (deepest) category, not a parent category with subcategories, see Common issues & fixes below.
✅ If you use Landed Costs and Cost Layers together, know how job reconciliation affects your catalog cost.
Reconciling straight to a job (skipping the warehouse/truck) can behave differently than reconciling to a location, see below.
➡️Common issues & fixes
"I'm on Housecall Pro and got an error when receiving/reconciling a PO."
This happens when a material on the PO is assigned to a parent category instead of a leaf (deepest) category in your catalog; HCP blocks the sync until it's fixed. Go to Catalog → Materials, open the failing material, and change its category to a leaf category with no subcategories, then retry the reconciliation. Full walkthrough: Error when receiving a Purchase Order (Housecall Pro Users).
"I marked an item 'No Materials' and my PO jumped straight to Received instead of Partially Received."
This is expected. "No Materials" confirms that item is completely missing, it's not a placeholder for "pending." If you expect that shipment to still arrive, don't mark it "No Materials"; instead enter a received quantity of 0 for that line and save. That keeps the PO in Partially Received status with the Reconcile button still available for when the rest comes in.
"I got an error that materials cannot be created in a category that has subcategories."
This is essentially the reverse situation, the material needs to be assigned to a parent category, not a subcategory. Check this error walkthrough to identify which category level applies to your case and fix the material's category assignment accordingly.
"I reconciled the PO, but the Cost to the Business on my material didn't update." This usually comes down to one of two settings: a "Lock business cost from PO reconciliation" toggle that's turned on, or a combination of Landed Costs + Cost Layers where you reconciled straight to a job instead of a warehouse/truck (in that combination, job reconciliation doesn't update catalog cost by default). See Why isn't my Cost to the Business updating after reconciling a PO? for both causes and the exact toggle to check for each.
"I need to fix a mistake I made while reconciling."
Use the three-dot menu on the PO and select Unreconcile. This resets the PO back to Received so you can go through the reconciliation again with corrected quantities or locations.
➡️FAQs
Can I split materials from one PO across multiple locations?
Yes, use Custom Locations for materials during reconciliation, which lets each line item go to a different warehouse, truck, or job. See How to Partially Receive a Purchase Order (PO) in Ply.
Do I need to reconcile the full order at once?
No, mark the PO as Partially Received and reconcile just the quantities that arrived. The PO stays open, and the Reconcile button remains available for the rest when it comes in.
Can I undo a reconciliation if I made a mistake?
Yes, using Unreconcile from the three-dot menu, see Common issues & fixes above.
Still need help? Contact Support!
Questions about receiving materials or reconciling a PO? We're happy to help.