Daily Over and Short Log by Drawer and Cashier
A one-page log that records the starting bank, expected cash, counted cash, and variance for every drawer close, with the cause found and initials, so patterns by drawer and cashier become visible over a week or a month.
Reviewed for 2026, updated September 8, 2026.
A single short drawer tells you almost nothing. Ten closes in a row for the same drawer, or the same cashier, tell you a great deal. The problem is that most stores write the nightly variance on whatever count slip is handy, file it, and never look at the slips side by side. This worksheet puts every close on one sheet, one row per drawer per count, so the pattern is visible without pulling a month of paper out of a folder. Each row records the date and shift, the drawer and cashier, the starting bank, the expected cash from the register, the counted cash, the variance with its direction, and the cause found along with the initials of whoever confirmed it. The example rows below show the kinds of causes a typical week turns up; replace them with your own.
Fill in a row at every close, including shift changes, even when the variance is zero, because a run of clean closes is as useful as a run of short ones when you are trying to work out where a problem started. Our article on tracking over and short by cashier explains how to read the sheet for patterns without turning it into a blame exercise, and the guide on this site covers where each number on the row comes from. When you have a few weeks of rows, take the average net shortage per close and put it into the Cash Over/Short Annual Loss Calculator in our Tools section to see what those small numbers add up to across a year.
| Date and shift | Drawer and cashier | Starting bank | Expected cash per register | Counted cash | Over or short | Cause found and initials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Your date, morning shift | Register 1, cashier name | Your bank | Your register figure | Your count | 0.00 | No variance; both signatures on the count slip, initials |
| Your date, morning shift | Register 2, cashier name | Your bank | Your register figure | Your count | Short, your amount | Mid-shift drop was made but never written on the drop log; slip found in safe, log corrected, initials |
| Your date, evening shift | Register 1, cashier name | Your bank | Your register figure | Your count | Over, your amount | Cash refund keyed as a card refund; register corrected, variance cleared, initials |
| Your date, evening shift | Register 2, cashier name | Your bank | Your register figure | Your count | Short, your amount | Starting bank set from memory; morning sheet showed a different amount, bank corrected for tomorrow, initials |
| Your date, close | Bar drawer, cashier name | Your bank | Your register figure | Your count | Over, your amount | Roll of quarters counted as loose coin; one recount fixed it, no further review, initials |
| Your date, close | Drive-thru drawer, cashier name | Your bank | Your register figure | Your count | Short, your amount | Beyond the store threshold; recount confirmed it, manager reviewed, no cause found, flagged for weekly review, initials |
| Your date, close | Register 3, cashier name | Your bank | Your register figure | Your count | Short, your amount | Tip-out taken from the drawer without a slip; slip written after the fact, process reminder given, initials |
| Your date, close | Register 1, cashier name | Your bank | Your register figure | Your count | Over, your amount | Change order added to the drawer mid-shift and not logged; change log corrected, initials |
| Your date, close | Register 2, cashier name | Your bank | Your register figure | Your count | Short, your amount | Paid-out for supplies had a receipt but was never rung as a paid-out; register corrected, initials |
| Your date, close | Your drawer, your name | Your bank | Your register figure | Your count | Your amount with direction | Your cause and initials |
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Also from TillClosr
- End-of-Day Till Close Checklist: A step-by-step checklist for the closing cashier and manager that runs from the last sale through the blind count, POS reconciliation, variance log, deposit prep, and safe drop, so every drawer closes the same way every night.
- Free calculators