Free Controlled Substance Count Sheets For US Pharmacies
Printable narcotic count sheets and logs with NDC and DEA schedule columns, and the federal rules printed on every sheet. No account, no email required.
A Controlled Substance Log Example
One drug’s perpetual log for a month: Hydromorphone HCl (Dilaudid) 2 mg tablets, NDC 42858-122-01, Schedule II.
| Date | Reference | Rec’d | Disp. | Destroyed | Ret’d to stock | Balance | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 08/01/2026 | Balance fwd | 48 | |||||
| 08/04/2026 | Inv. 88417 | 100 | 148 | ||||
| 08/06/2026 | Rx 4471902 | 20 | 128 | ||||
| 08/09/2026 | Rx 4472588 | 12 | 116 | ||||
| 08/12/2026 | Rx 4473011 | 30 | 86 | ||||
| 08/13/2026 | Rx 4473126 | 6 | 80 | ||||
| 08/15/2026 | DEA Form 41 | 2 | 78 | ||||
| 08/20/2026 | Rx 4474330 | 24 | 54 | ||||
| 08/23/2026 | Rx 4474901 | 8 | 46 | ||||
| 08/24/2026 | Rx 4473126 | 6 | 52 | ||||
| 08/27/2026 | Rx 4475602 | 20 | 32 | ||||
| 08/31/2026 | Count | 32 |
How the closing balance is checked
Expected on hand = balance brought forward + received + returned to stock − dispensed − destroyed. On this sheet: 48 + 100 + 6 − 120 − 2 = 32. The physical count on August 31 was 32, so there is no variance.
What Belongs On A Count Sheet
A narcotic count sheet and a controlled substance count sheet carry the same columns.
- Drug identity. Name, strength, dosage form, NDC and package size. The NDC matters most: a variance is often a dispense recorded under another NDC of the same drug.
- DEA schedule. CII to CV, so Schedule II can be counted exactly and kept on its own pages.
- Location. Safe, vault or cabinet. A drug stored in two places and counted as one is a variance waiting to happen.
- One row per transaction. Date, an Rx number or invoice reference, and the quantity in the right column: received, dispensed, destroyed, returned to stock.
- A running balance. Recalculated on every line, so the expected figure is always current.
- Who did it. Initials of the person making each entry, and the name and signature of the person who counted.
- Room for the story. Space to record what you found and what you did about it.
When The Paper Stops Keeping Up
A count sheet is a good record and a poor calculator. It will not carry a balance forward, or tell you that a destruction was never recorded.
NarcCount does that math for US pharmacies, Florida first. It works out what you should have on hand from your own records, by NDC, and flags every difference.
Another state? Pick it when you sign up, and we'll email you when it's ready.
Questions
What is a controlled substance count sheet?
It is the record of what came in, what went out and what is left of a controlled substance. In practice a pharmacy keeps two related things:
- A perpetual log that tracks one drug continuously with a running balance.
- A count sheet used to record a physical count at a point in time: at shift change, or at a periodic reconciliation.
- The count is then compared against the balance the log expects, and the difference is the variance.
Are these count sheets free?
Yes. Every sheet on this page is free to download, print, photocopy and use in your pharmacy, with no account and no email address required. The editable spreadsheet is a direct download too.
How often do US pharmacies have to count controlled substances?
The federal rule is an inventory, not a schedule of counts:
- An inventory of every controlled substance on hand on the day the pharmacy starts, then a new one at least every two years (21 CFR 1304.11(b) and (c)).
- Each inventory says whether it was taken at the opening or the close of business (21 CFR 1304.11(a)).
- Your state board of pharmacy may require more, so check its rules.
- Our suggestion, not a rule: count Schedule II far more often, so a difference turns up while there are fewer transactions behind it.
Does every tablet have to be counted?
Sealed containers are counted as containers. In an opened container, at inventory:
- Schedule II is an exact count.
- Schedules III to V may be an estimated count, unless the container holds more than 1,000 tablets or capsules. Then it is counted exactly (21 CFR 1304.11(e)(6)).
Does Schedule II need its own sheets?
Its own pages, yes. In a pharmacy, Schedule II inventories and records are kept separately from all other records, and Schedules III to V separately or readily retrievable (21 CFR 1304.04(h)). Printing Schedule II on its own sheets keeps it apart from the start.
How long do I have to keep a completed count sheet?
Federally, every inventory and record the DEA requires is kept at least 2 years from its date, available for DEA inspection (21 CFR 1304.04(a)). Your state may require longer, so check your state board of pharmacy's rules.
What do I do if the count does not match?
Recount the drug first, then check the records behind the expected figure. Most variances turn out to be record gaps.
- Look for an unrecorded destruction, a dispense recorded under a different NDC, a prescription returned to stock but never entered, or a transaction dated just outside the count window.
- A theft or significant loss goes to your DEA Field Division Office in writing within one business day of discovery, then on DEA Form 106 within 45 days (21 CFR 1301.76(b)).
What does the DEA ask when stock is destroyed?
On site, two employees handle or observe the stock until it is non-retrievable and personally witness the destruction (21 CFR 1317.95(d)). It is recorded on DEA Form 41 with both employees' names and signatures (21 CFR 1304.21(e)). Stock can also go to a reverse distributor or back to the supplier (21 CFR 1317.05(a)).
Are these official DEA forms?
No. DEA Form 41 records a destruction, DEA Form 106 reports a theft or loss, and DEA Form 222 orders Schedule II, and these sheets replace none of them. They are the working records around them: the log, the counts and the inventory you keep yourself.
Your state board of pharmacy may require more than these federal rules. In Florida? The Florida inventory guide has the state’s own rules, each with its source.
Sources
Show the 8 sourcesHide the sources
- 21 CFR 1304.11 — Inventory requirements (DEA) — Federal (DEA): an inventory of all stocks of controlled substances on hand on the date a registrant first dispenses, and “In the event a person commences business with no controlled substances on hand, he/she shall record this fact as the initial inventory” (b); “a new inventory of all stocks of controlled substances on hand at least every two years” (c); it “may be taken either as of opening of business or as of the close of business on the inventory date and it shall be indicated on the inventory” (a); in an opened container, a dispenser makes an exact count of Schedules I and II and an estimated count of Schedules III, IV and V, “unless the container holds more than 1,000 tablets or capsules in which case he/she must make an exact count of the contents” (e)(6).
- 21 CFR 1304.04 — Maintenance of records and inventories (DEA) — Federal (DEA): every inventory and other record required by Part 1304 is kept and available for DEA inspection and copying “for at least 2 years from the date of such inventory or record” (a). In a registered pharmacy, “Inventories and records of all controlled substances listed in Schedule I and II shall be maintained separately from all other records of the pharmacy” (h)(1); those of Schedules III, IV and V are kept separately or “in such form that the information required is readily retrievable from ordinary business records of the pharmacy” (h)(3).
- 21 CFR 1304.21 — General requirements for continuing records (DEA) — Federal (DEA): “a complete and accurate record of each substance … received, sold, delivered … or otherwise disposed of”, kept “on a current basis … except that no registrant shall be required to maintain a perpetual inventory” (a). A registrant that destroys a controlled substance on site “shall maintain a record of destruction on a DEA Form 41”, including “the name and signature of the two employees who witnessed the destruction” (e).
- 21 CFR 1317.95 — Destruction procedures (DEA) — Federal (DEA), for a destruction on site: “Two employees of the registrant shall handle or observe the handling of any controlled substance until the substance is rendered non-retrievable”, and two employees “shall personally witness the destruction of the controlled substance until it is rendered non-retrievable” (d).
- 21 CFR 1317.05(a) — Registrant disposal: practitioner inventory (DEA) — Federal (DEA): a registered practitioner disposes of a controlled substance in its inventory by destroying it on site, delivering it to a reverse distributor, delivering it for return or recall to the registered person it was obtained from or to the manufacturer, or by asking the DEA Special Agent in Charge for assistance (a)(1) to (4).
- 21 CFR 1301.76(b) — Theft or significant loss (DEA) — Federal (DEA): notify the Field Division Office “in writing, of the theft or significant loss of any controlled substances within one business day of discovery”, and “file a complete and accurate DEA Form 106 with the Administration through DEA's Diversion Control Division secure network application within 45 days after discovery”.
- 21 CFR 1305.03 — Distributions requiring a Form 222 or a digitally signed electronic order (DEA) — Federal (DEA): “Either a DEA Form 222 or its electronic equivalent … is required for each distribution of a Schedule I or II controlled substance”, except the distributions the section lists.
- DEA Diversion Control Division — Registrant Record of Controlled Substances Destroyed (DEA Form 41) — Federal (DEA): “You are not required to submit this form to DEA, unless requested to do so.” “This form must be kept as a record of destruction and be available by the registrant for at least two years.”
Primary sources for the figures on this page. Regulations change; confirm the current requirement with the source before you rely on it.
Keep Reading
These templates are provided free and as-is, as general information rather than legal or professional advice. For authoritative requirements, refer to the DEA and your state board of pharmacy.