In this guide
Know what the drawer should hold
The cash that should be in the drawer at close is the opening float plus the cash sales, minus any cash you paid out. Card payments and transfers do not go in the drawer, so leave them out of this sum.
The important habit is to work out the expected figure first, from your records, and only then count what is actually there. If you count first, it is tempting to decide the records must be wrong.
A routine you can repeat
Do it at the same time every day and, if you have more than one till, for every till.
- Write down the opening float from the morning.
- Count the cash in the drawer, notes and coins separately, and write the total.
- Compare it with the expected figure from your sales records.
- Write down the difference, even if it is zero, and initial it.
- Take out the float for tomorrow and bank the rest.
When it does not add up
A small difference now and then is normal, usually from change given wrongly. Look for patterns instead of single days: the same till, the same person or the same time of day.
If the difference is large or repeated, check the basics first: a sale recorded as card that was cash, a payout not written down, or the float miscounted in the morning. If it still does not add up, speak to the people who used the till, calmly and with the numbers in front of you.
Keep the record
A counted till you did not write down is a habit, not a record. Keep each day's figures where you can find them, so that when someone asks about a particular Tuesday six months from now, you can answer.
The short version
Work out what the cash should be first, count second, write the difference down every day, and look for patterns rather than single days.
General information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Last reviewed 26 September 2026.