In inventory management, a stock-keeping unit (more commonly known as a SKU) is the unit of measure in which the stocks of a material are managed. Or, to put it another way, it is a distinct type of item for sale, purchase, or tracking in inventory, such as a product or service, and all attributes associated with the item type that distinguish it from other item types (for a product, these attributes can include manufacturer, description, material, size, color, packaging, and warranty terms). When a business records its stock inventory, it counts the quantity it has of each unit or SKU.