What is in the template
This returns log is a simple RMA (return merchandise authorization) tracker: one row per returned item, with the RMA number, customer, original order, reason, condition on arrival, disposition and refund status.
Use it to make sure every returned item ends up somewhere deliberate. Items that come back and are never inspected quietly disappear from your stock figures, and returns with unclear reasons hide product or listing problems that repeat.
The sample rows are fictional and can be deleted. The file is plain comma-separated text, so it opens in Excel, Google Sheets and Numbers; add formulas for any calculated columns after you import it.
Columns explained
| RMA_Number | Unique authorization number for the return. |
| Date_Requested | Date the customer asked to return the item. |
| Customer | Customer name or account. |
| Order_Number | Original order the item came from. |
| SKU | Item code being returned. |
| Product_Name | Name of the item. |
| Quantity | Number of units in the return. |
| Reason | Customer reason, for example wrong size, defective or not as described. |
| Condition_On_Return | Inspection result such as new, opened or damaged. |
| Disposition | Decision: RESTOCK, SCRAP, REPAIR or RETURN_TO_SUPPLIER. |
| Refund_Status | Pending, issued or denied. |
| Notes | Free text for context. |
Where a spreadsheet template breaks down
The log does not put restocked items back into your inventory or remove scrapped ones: those stock changes still have to be recorded elsewhere, which is the usual place returned goods get lost.
It also has no link to the original order, the customer’s communication or your carrier claims, so the RMA number has to be kept consistent by hand across systems.
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