The cost of a business's inventory goes well beyond just the wholesale cost of goods on the shelves. The business has to get those goods to the shelves in the first place -- and that means paying freight charges. In most cases, the freight charges involved in acquiring inventory can be rolled into the cost of that inventory as reported on the company's balance sheet. Freight In The Internal Revenue Service says a business may include in its inventory cost all the "ordinary and necessary" expenditures of acquiring goods and getting them ready for sale. That specifically includes freight in, or the costs of delivering goods from a supplier to the business. If the company makes products rather than buying them for resale, the freight-in costs of raw materials and parts also can be included in inventory cost. Freight Out Once a business has goods in its possession, it can't include any further freight charges in inventory cost. For example, if a compan