Opening a shift with a float
Count the drawer, enter the float, and understand the “left in drawer at last close” line.
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A shift is the life of the drawer between one count and the next. Open it with what’s in the drawer now, and everything after is tracked against that number.
The scenario
Morning. Last night’s close left 200.00 in the drawer. You’ve added 50 in coins from the safe. There is 250.00 in the drawer.
Open it
- 1On the POS, open the Cash drawer. It says Open a shift — “Count the cash in the drawer to start” — and shows Left in drawer at last close: 200.00.
- 2Under Opening float enter what you actually counted: 250.
- 3Press Open shift. You’ll see Shift opened, with Opened by your name and the time.
If the numbers don’t match
Had you entered 240, the drawer would show Off from last close by −10.00. That isn’t an error — it’s the drawer telling you the story starts ten short, so tonight’s variance is measured from what was really there, not from what should have been.
TipOpen the shift before the first cash sale. A cash payment with no shift open still settles the check, but the drawer can’t count it as cash in — and tonight’s close will be “short” by exactly that much.
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