Inventory Item Purchase Price in another currency

Hi merxIT,

Thanks for reaching out about this and sharing what you'd like to see regarding your inventory purchased using the USD vendor. I'll help clarify how this works in QuickBooks Enterprise.

Like QBO, QuickBooks Enterprise records inventory using the home currency. I see how this can cause problems when you need to account for the USD cost amount from your vendor and recommend submitting feedback through the Help menu using the Send Feedback Online tool. I see you asked my colleague what kind of turnaround times can be expected for these matters, but I don't have any information I can share about that.

As a workaround, you can calculate the exchange the program and then manually enter the CAD equivalent into the Rate field when making a purchase order. The transaction will show you the exchange rate and USD total so you can verify the details as needed. The standard inventory system uses the average cost system and will work it out as needed. If you have Advanced Inventory set up, it uses the FIFO (first in, first out) method for calculations. I realize this isn't ideal, but I want to make sure you're able to accurately account for your items in the meantime if you decide to stick with us.

Let me know if you have more questions about that.

Hi Laura,

The suggested workaround is unacceptable to us, like many other wholesalers that purchase from vendors in USD and doesn't want to hand key item cost on every single line item on Purchase Orders. We are currently using an off-the-shelf legacy system that is on life support and even that product has this functionality.

I've posted the following on the other topic and was told you will provide a response, so I am hoping you can help me understand the following which will allow me and my CTO make a better decision to keep or drop QB:

1. How long (in days) is the typical review time for a product enhancement idea?
2. How are these enhancement ideas categorized and prioritized?
3. What does a typical upgrade/patch/hotfix cycle look like? Every month, quarter, year?
4. Does Dev expedite mission critical features that are missing from the platform?
5. Is there a place (i.e. portal) for customers to be informed of the status of their product enhancement ideas?

Hi again merxIT. I hear what you're saying and how having the ease of the program making the calculations for you would be great. If you have another product that can help you with this process, that's great and I encourage you to go with what's working for your business since QuickBooks Enterprise doesn't have the capability at this time. Another option is to take a look at which apps pair with QuickBooks Enterprise that can help you with this system. I've pulled up a search page of inventory apps that connect with QuickBooks Enterprise for you. What you're using may even be able to connect. Check out these options and if you find one you like, I recommend getting in touch with the app developer for more information.

As I mentioned in my last response, I don't have information about timelines for product enhancements, updates, or other product development processes. I appreciate wanting to know this information, but it's not something I can provide.

Let me know if there's anything else I can do for you.

This is something that really needs looking at sooner rather than later. I raised it almost immediately on getting QB Pro 2013 as we purchase in Euros and having to put the rate in every time makes QB very clumsy. This is made even more complex as the QB rate of exchange is rarely an accurate representation of what can be bought on the open currency market.

I dont understand why this has not been done it would appear to be extremely sensible. Buy product in a currency then QB should do the calculation to show an approximate cost in the home currency not the other way around.

I raised this issue right after adopting QuickBooks in 2017 and nothing has been done so far, so I wouldn't hold my breath... Like the OP, we came to QB from a system that was originally developed in the 1980s for the DOS platform and even that system handled POs properly. I also agree that, with the giant number of businesses importing into Canada from the US, there must be many who are facing this issue.

Sometimes I wonder if the progammers and others developing the product have ever tried to use it in a real business environment. Or ever spoken to people who have?

Our workaround is to set the exchange rate to $1Cdn = $1US in the purchase order form and remember to refresh your exchange rates (in the Company menu) as soon as the PO has been prepared.

Michael Trotz

This is the same issue we are having. Buy in USD and CAD and sell those a mixture of USD and CAD purchased products to both countries on one invoice. True GP is not calculated because of this.

OMG  - SAME issue!!! I just bought Quick Books Online and I buy my products in EURO and just realized this limitation on my first purchase order.  How lame!! Not much of a accounting/inventory system.

You may need a 3rd party inventory management app to track the cost in the original currency  

same problem here, need to enter cost of goods in USD, this would be a useful feature if it could be implemented please.

Hi Demux Dave. I'll definitely pass your feedback along to my team, and I'd encourage you to submit your thoughts as well! If you're using QuickBooks Online, click the Gear icon > Feedback. For Desktop users, click Help > Send Feedback Online. 

Hi AddieC I have sent the feedback now but I'm not confident things will change as this seems to have been an issue for other users for a long time.

I hear what you're saying. New features are implemented based on customer demand, so I'm glad you've made sure your voice has been heard.

Hi there, 

We are considering purchasing the software but we would need to this capability too. 

We buy products in GBP and USD, and we sell everything in KYD, therefore we need to account the real cost of products ... 

Do you have any idea when the update would be done? 

Hello 9208a,

I'm excited to hear that you're considering joining the QuickBooks family! Whether you choose to go with Self-Employed, Online, or Desktop I know you'll appreciate the features and tools that you'll have at your disposal. Let me provide you with some more information on our multicurrency feature you so you have all the information you need to decide if one of our programs is right for you.

If you're considering QuickBooks Online:

• About Multicurrency
• How Multicurrency works
• Turn on and use multicurrency

If you think Desktop might be the right fit for you:

• Set up and use Multicurrency

I know you're particularly interested in knowing whether there has been an update allowing inventory items to be stored in a currency other than your home currency. There is no estimated time for when the multicurrency feature will be updated or improved to suit this request, but I'll pass the message along to my team. 

Drop us a line if there are any other questions I can answer to help make your decision to use QuickBooks a little easier!

@9208a 

Is your company located in Cayman Islands? Do you prefer using QB Desktop or QB Online? You may need an inventory management app to record the inventory at the original cost.

https://quickbooks.grsm.io/North-America

I've been asking for this for years, for an accounting software that has the ability to do multi currency this should be simple. Along with other basic functions eg. Search bar in the pricelist field so you don't have to scroll or upload pricelists rather than adjusting 1 by 1.

Quickbooks, if you want to play in the field of inventory then have these basic functions.