MB1B in SAP: Transfer Posting & Movement Types
Olivia Turner
⚡ Smart Summary
Transfer Posting of Goods in SAP moves stock between storage locations, plants, or stock types without changing total inventory. Transaction MB1B with movement type 311 handles a storage location move in one step.
What is Transfer Posting in SAP MM?
A transfer posting changes where stock sits or what category it belongs to, without altering how much of it the company owns. Nothing enters or leaves the business, which is what separates it from a goods receipt or a goods issue.
Three kinds of change fall under the term:
- Location change: Quantity moves between storage locations inside a plant, or between plants within the same company code.
- Stock type change: Quantity moves between unrestricted use, quality inspection, and blocked stock while staying physically in place.
- Material change: Quantity is rebooked from one material number to another, used when a part is reclassified.
Some transfer postings move physical goods and some are purely a change of status in the system. Both produce a material document, and a valuated move between plants also produces an accounting document because the stock account differs by plant.
Transferring a quantity from one storage location to another can be accomplished by either using MIGO transaction or MB1B.
I will demonstrate the transfer posting process using MB1B as you have already seen MIGO in action in the goods receipt tutorial.
Transfer Posting Process in SAP
Step 1)
- Execute the transaction MB1B.
- Enter movement type (311), source Plant and Storage location. Hit ENTER.
Step 2)
- Enter receiving storage location,
- material number,
- quantity,
- unit of measure.
Save the document and the transfer posting will be completed.
The material document number is assigned.
If you need to cancel this posting, you can use either MBST or MIGO transaction.
💡 Tip: Check the result in MMBE straight after saving. It shows quantity by plant, storage location, and stock type on one screen, which confirms the move landed where it was intended.
Transfer Posting Movement Types
The movement type is the single most important entry on the screen. It tells SAP what kind of move this is, which accounts to touch, and which fields to demand.
| Movement Type | Movement | Steps |
|---|---|---|
| 311 | Storage location to storage location within one plant | One step |
| 313 / 315 | Storage location to storage location, removal then placement | Two step |
| 301 | Plant to plant transfer | One step |
| 303 / 305 | Plant to plant, remove from storage then place in storage | Two step |
| 309 | Material to material transfer | One step |
| 321 | Quality inspection stock to unrestricted use | One step |
| 322 | Unrestricted use to quality inspection stock | One step |
| 343 | Blocked stock to unrestricted use | One step |
| 344 | Unrestricted use to blocked stock | One step |
One step and two step differ in what happens between the ends of the move. A one step posting takes stock out of the source and puts it into the destination in a single document. A two step posting places the quantity into stock in transfer, where it is visible but unavailable, until the receiving location confirms arrival. Two step is the honest choice when goods spend real time on a truck.
Movement type 321 is also how quality inspection stock is released after a usage decision in SAP QM.
Transfer Posting vs Stock Transport Order
Moving material between plants can be done two ways, and the choice affects planning, costing, and paperwork.
| Parameter | Transfer posting | Stock transport order |
|---|---|---|
| Document created | Material document only | Purchase order, delivery, and material documents |
| Visible to planning | No, the move is invisible until posted | Yes, the receiving plant sees it as incoming stock |
| Delivery and shipping | Not supported | Supported through outbound delivery |
| Effort | One screen | Full order to receipt cycle |
| Best for | Corrections and short internal moves | Planned inter plant supply over distance |
As a rule, use a transfer posting when the move is immediate and internal, and a stock transport order when the receiving plant needs to plan around the incoming quantity. Where the underlying problem is a wrong receipt rather than a wrong location, reverse it instead as described in cancelling a goods receipt. The wider process is covered in the SAP MM tutorial series.
