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What is an EDI 947?

The EDI 947 reports an inventory change inside the warehouse that no shipment explains: damage found, cycle-count corrections, status moves between available and held stock.

3PL warehouse → seller
Written by EDI specialists
Everything is on the page, nothing to fill in

Last reviewed October 6, 2026 by Effective Data's EDI specialists.

Where it fits

When the 947 is used, and which way it travels

How the EDI 947 travelsThe 947 Warehouse Inventory Adjustment Advice goes from 3PL warehouse to Seller. In sequence with: 846, 945, 943, 944, 947.3PL warehouseSeller947Warehouse Inventory Adjustment AdviceIn sequence846Inventory advice945Warehouse advice943Transfer shipment944Transfer receipt947Inventory…
How the EDI 947 travelsThe 947 Warehouse Inventory Adjustment Advice goes from 3PL warehouse to Seller. In sequence with: 846, 945, 943, 944, 947.3PL warehouseSeller947Warehouse Inventory Adjustment AdviceIn sequence846Inventory advice945Warehouse advice943Transfer shipment944Transfer receipt947Inventory adjustment
Which way the 947 travels, and the documents it is usually traded alongside. Partner implementation guides can add or drop documents from this set.

Warehouses send it when on-hand reality diverges from the book: a pallet damaged in racking, a cycle count that found more or fewer than the system said, stock moved to hold or quarantine. Each adjustment carries a reason code, which is what separates an explained inventory position from an argument.

It completes the warehouse set Effective Data lists for 3PL operations: shipments out (940/945), transfers in (943/944), and the 947 for every change in between.

Also called the Inventory Adjustment. Same document, same number.

Inside the document

The segments, and what each one carries

The published X12 structure, minus the segments most partners never use. Each partner's implementation guide narrows this further: which qualifiers, which identifiers, how many decimals. That guide, not the standard, is what your file is validated against.

Structure of the EDI 947An ISA/IEA interchange envelope wraps a GS/GE functional group, which wraps the 947 transaction set from ST to SE. Header: W15, N1. Detail: W19. Summary: none listed.ISAInterchange envelopeIEAGSFunctional groupGESTTransaction set 947SEHeaderW15N1Detailrepeats per line or loopW19Summaryno segments listed
Structure of the EDI 947An ISA/IEA interchange envelope wraps a GS/GE functional group, which wraps the 947 transaction set from ST to SE. Header: W15, N1. Detail: W19. Summary: none listed.ISAInterchange envelopeIEAGSFunctional groupGESTTransaction set 947SEHeaderW15N1Detailrepeats per line or loopW19Summaryno segments listed
The 947 inside its X12 envelope. ISA and GS wrap every interchange; ST and SE open and close this document; the segments between them are the ones listed below, in the part of the document they belong to.
SegmentNamePartWhat it carries
ST Transaction Set Header Header Identifies the document as a 947 and opens the control number the trailer must match.
W15 Warehouse Adjustment Identification Header The adjustment number, its date and its reason.
N1 Party Identification Header The warehouse reporting and the stock owner.
W19 Warehouse Adjustment Item Detail Detail The item, the quantity adjusted up or down, and the reason code for the change.
SE Transaction Set Trailer Summary Closes the set. Segment count and control number must match the ST.
ST Transaction Set Header Header
Identifies the document as a 947 and opens the control number the trailer must match.
W15 Warehouse Adjustment Identification Header
The adjustment number, its date and its reason.
N1 Party Identification Header
The warehouse reporting and the stock owner.
W19 Warehouse Adjustment Item Detail Detail
The item, the quantity adjusted up or down, and the reason code for the change.
SE Transaction Set Trailer Summary
Closes the set. Segment count and control number must match the ST.
The part that costs money

Why yours is being rejected

Every EDI provider publishes what an 947 is. What matters in production is why one fails, and these are the failure modes we can put a source against today:

  1. Adjustments without usable reasons. A 947 that moves quantity with a generic reason code reconciles the numbers and destroys the information; damage, count variance and status changes have different financial consequences for the stock owner, and the reason code is where that difference lives.

If one of these is happening to you right now, skip to the bottom of the page and describe it. Diagnosing rejected documents is most of what we do.

Related documents

The documents the 947 travels with

846

Inventory Inquiry/Advice

Read it →
944

Warehouse Stock Transfer Receipt Advice

Read it →
943

Warehouse Stock Transfer Shipment Advice

Read it →
945

Warehouse Shipping Advice

Read it →

Frequently asked

+ What is an EDI 947?

The Warehouse Inventory Adjustment Advice: the warehouse’s report of inventory changes that no inbound or outbound shipment accounts for, each with a reason code.

+ How does the 947 relate to the 846?

The 846 reports the inventory position; the 947 explains movements within it. A clean 3PL feed uses 947s for the deltas and periodic 846s as the position check.

+ Why does the 947 matter financially?

Because every downward adjustment is someone’s loss: damage, shrink or count error. The reason codes determine who absorbs it, which is why an owner should insist on specific codes rather than generic ones.

Is your 947 failing, or being mandated by a partner?

Describe the situation and a named EDI specialist will tell you what it takes, including when the answer is that you do not need us.

Or call 847.969.9300

Answered by a named EDI specialist on the same business day. If we are not the right answer we will say so on the first call.