Warehouse Audit: How to Do It + FREE Checklist

A warehouse audit is like a safety net.

It's there to keep your business safe. Here, "you" means your profits. And "the ground" is expensive mistakes and wasted money.

Audits might seem like extra work. But they’re a must-have that costs a bit of time and money now but saves a lot of both later.

Keep reading to find out how to protect your profits with warehouse audits. You'll also get a useful checklist for creating your audits. Plus, we’ll share the one step many warehouses forget—the move to last-mile delivery.

Jump to the section that sparks your interest:

• What's a Warehouse Audit?
• When to Do Warehouse Audits
• Making the Most of Warehouse Audit Report
• Don’t Overlook Last Mile Delivery
• Use eLogii's Route Optimization and Warehouse Operations Feature
• Warehouse Audit Checklist
• Discover More About Warehouse Management

What's a Warehouse Audit?

A warehouse audit is a check-up done by managers and leaders to see how well everything is working. These audits are like a safety net for your profits, making sure safety rules are followed, inventory is counted acurrately, and operations run smoothly.

When to Do Warehouse Audits

Warehouse audits are key to making your operations run better, so they should be a regular part of your routine. Do them often instead of all at once. Auditing your warehouse doesn’t have to mess up your supply chain or delay deliveries. Break them into smaller, manageable parts instead of trying to do a big audit once or twice a year.

Check your inventory every few months or even monthly. Instead of checking every pallet at once, spot-check high-traffic areas most often to maintain quality control. Count inventory and compare it with records regularly to catch problems early before they become big issues.

Making the Most of Warehouse Audit Reports

Use audit reports to spot areas for improvement and make changes that matter, like better inventory control. A bad rating isn’t a failure; it's a chance to boost efficiency, productivity, customer happiness, and revenue. Yet, if safety rules aren’t followed or you find theft, you must take serious steps. Usually, though, audits should be a positive experience.

For example, if an employee performance audit shows new hires are struggling, you dig deeper and find that those who struggle in the first three months often leave within a year.

To cut down on employee turnover costs, you change your onboarding process. Maybe you pair new employees with a successful “onboarding buddy” to mentor them in their first few weeks and track performance metrics to see if they improve. This is one way audit info can help protect your revenue.

Don’t Overlook Last Mile Delivery

Warehouse teams often ignore on-time delivery, thinking it's the courier's job. But even if you don't have your own delivery team, you affect delivery times. Use this to protect and boost your revenue.

A survey found that 17% of shoppers switch retailers if their order is late just once. Show up late two or three times, and that number jumps to 55%. Good warehousing helps last-mile delivery teams succeed, so audit the handoff from packing to delivery.

Ensure your warehouse team communicates well with delivery drivers (and vice versa). Drivers shouldn’t wait around for packers to finish, and products shouldn’t sit on the dock waiting for a truck, especially if they can spoil.

Check your delivery history and last-mile data. See if timely departures from your warehouse lead to timely deliveries.

Use eLogii's Route Optimization and Warehouse Operations Feature

The easiest way to smoothly connect your warehouse team with last mile delivery teams is by using eLogii route optimization software and warehouse management features.

Warehouse Operations allows warehouse workers to manage their tasks using the eLogii Dashboard. You can create multiple workflows to suit different scenarios. That is especially useful if you have several warehouses with unique operations.

Each warehouse operator is set up as a new user with specific permissions and an interface tailored to their role, preventing any overlap with route planners.

To set up Warehouse Operations, start by defining your users (warehouse operators) and then proceed to create workflows tailored to your needs.

With eLogii, warehouse dispatchers know exactly where delivery trucks are and if they’re running late. This lets them schedule picking and packing to match when each vehicle arrives. The “Return to Depot” feature helps dispatchers easily create driver shifts with many loads. It ensures each vehicle is fully loaded according to its unique capacity.

Warehouse Audit Checklist

Start with this checklist for your audit and tweak it to fit your warehouse layout. This isn’t a complete checklist but a starting point for making your own audit checklist.

Warehouse Inventory

• Does the physical stock on your shelves align with the counts in your inventory management system?
• Are items stored in a safe and secure manner?
• Are hazardous materials correctly labeled and stored following federal regulations?
• Are storage areas clean and pest-free?
• Are heavy items placed on the lower shelves?

Warehouse Equipment

• Are forklifts being properly maintained and inspected, with supporting documentation available?
• Are ladders in good working condition and safely stored out of the way?
• Are storage racks in good condition, free of rust, and assembled with all necessary hardware?
• Are loading bay doors in good working order and well-maintained?
• Are all cords and electrical components safely covered and secured?
• Are conveyors in full working order, with records of regular inspections available?

Warehouse Space

• Are there sufficient cleaning stations available?
• Are walkways clean, well-marked, and wide enough for personnel, pallets, and machinery to move through?
• Are lighting fixtures fully functional?
• Are dock plates securely in place?
• Are dock edges clearly visible?

Safety Compliance Protocols

• Are all employees equipped with the correct safety gear and identification?
• Are walkways clear of any debris?
• Are eye-washing stations and cleanup stations in working order and regularly inspected?
• Are fire extinguishers properly located and maintained/inspected?
• Are spill cleanup kits accessible in areas where chemicals are stored?
• Are chemicals stored in a safe manner where forklifts and other equipment can't knock them over?
• Are chemicals clearly labeled?
• Are emergency exits and other safety features easily visible?
• Are security measures in place to limit warehouse access to authorized personnel only?
• Do dock ladders and stairs comply with OSHA specifications?

Employee Performance

• Does the employee regularly meet or surpass goals and targets?
• Do they collaborate effectively with their team members?
• Are they quick to address and resolve issues or concerns as they come up?
• Do they adhere to established safety procedures?
• Do they keep accurate records of maintenance work and inspections?
• Do they reliably clock in and out on time?

Warehouse Operations

Receiving/Product Intake

• Are the operations functioning efficiently and on schedule?
• Are products arriving in good condition and matching the purchase orders?
• Notes and areas of concern: ____________________________________________________

Put-Away

• Are the put-away operations running smoothly and on time?
• Is inventory being moved out of receiving quickly and effectively?
• Do put-away teams store stock in the correct locations within the warehouse and on racks?
• Notes and areas of concern: ____________________________________________________

Picking

• Are the picking operations running smoothly and on schedule?
• Are picklists provided in a clear and understandable format?
• Can pickers gather products quickly and efficiently?
• Are pickers able to collect products without encountering traffic on the warehouse floor?
• Notes and areas of concern: ____________________________________________________

Packing

• Are the packing operations running smoothly and on time?
• Do packers have enough space to work effectively?
• Are packing supplies organized according to courier?
• Do products transfer smoothly from pickers to packers?
• Notes and areas of concern: ____________________________________________________

Transfer to Last Mile Delivery/Vehicle Loading

• Is inventory being transferred to vehicles quickly and efficiently?
• Are warehouse teams and delivery teams working well together?
• Notes and areas of concern: ____________________________________________________

Restocking/Reverse Logistics (if applicable)

• Are restocking and reverse logistics operations running smoothly and on schedule?
• Are products inspected properly before being returned to warehouse shelves?
• Notes and areas of concern: ____________________________________________________

Operations audits can be time-consuming because you need to watch each operation closely. This means checking analytics and documents, observing how things work, and talking to the workers who handle each task. Ask them if they’ve noticed any issues, delays, or ways to improve processes.

The questions in these checklists are meant to help you catch small problems before they become big ones. You can create your own internal audits for any part of your business—like accounting, bookkeeping, or even marketing.

Depending on your warehouse’s size and needs, key stakeholders might need financial audit reports. It’s also smart to share the audit results with your team. Celebrate where they’re doing well and guide them on how to improve in areas where they need it.

Discover More About Warehouse Management

Audits are just one part of effective warehouse management.

Interested in learning more? Explore our warehouse management guide.

Our support team can also answer your questions about different plan features and what to choose for your business.

If you opt for our Office / Warehouse / Distribution Center plan and combine it with Routing and planning you can expect streamlined operations, improved efficiency, and better coordination across all aspects of your logistics and distribution processes.