Returns Flow Sankey Diagram: Editable Template
Trace items from sale to return, the reason given and what is done with each: restocked, refurbished, sent back to the supplier or scrapped. Replace the example counts.
A returns Sankey shows how many items come back, why, and what each reason leads to. The last column is where the cost of returns lands.
8% of the 10,000 items sold are returned in the example. The question this answers is not the return rate but what the reasons lead to: wrong-size returns are usually restocked, defective ones are not.
Reasons are often free text in practice. Group them into a handful of categories before drawing, and keep Other for the rest.
How to read this diagram
- 800 of 10,000 items (8%) are returned; wrong size is the largest reason at 300.
- 520 returns (65%) go back on the shelf; 90 are scrapped.
- 120 of the 200 defective items go back to the supplier, which is where a claim could be made.
- Changed-mind returns are almost all restocked: 140 of 150.
The data behind it
Invented figures for illustration. Not data about any real business.
| From | To | Amount (items) |
|---|---|---|
| Items sold | Kept | 9200 |
| Items sold | Returned | 800 |
| Returned | Wrong size | 300 |
| Returned | Defective | 200 |
| Returned | Not as described | 150 |
| Returned | Changed mind | 150 |
| Wrong size | Restocked | 280 |
| Wrong size | Scrapped | 20 |
| Defective | Refurbished | 40 |
| Defective | Back to supplier | 120 |
| Defective | Scrapped | 40 |
| Not as described | Restocked | 100 |
| Not as described | Refurbished | 30 |
| Not as described | Scrapped | 20 |
| Changed mind | Restocked | 140 |
| Changed mind | Scrapped | 10 |
The same data as CSV
source,target,value
Items sold,Kept,9200
Items sold,Returned,800
Returned,Wrong size,300
Returned,Defective,200
Returned,Not as described,150
Returned,Changed mind,150
Wrong size,Restocked,280
Wrong size,Scrapped,20
Defective,Refurbished,40
Defective,Back to supplier,120
Defective,Scrapped,40
Not as described,Restocked,100
Not as described,Refurbished,30
Not as described,Scrapped,20
Changed mind,Restocked,140
Changed mind,Scrapped,10How it works
Export returns with their reason code
Group codes into four to six categories.
Add the disposition of each return
Restocked, refurbished, back to supplier or scrapped.
Enter the flows
Sold to kept or returned, returned to reason, reason to disposition.
Check the balance
Each reason should send on exactly the returns it received.
Frequently asked questions
Does the chart show cost?
Only if you use cost as the unit. Counting items shows volume; switching to value shows where the money goes.
Can I split by product category?
Yes, as an extra column before the reasons, if the number of categories stays small.
Edit this returns Sankey
Open the example as your own chart and enter your returns by reason and outcome.