Jim Merritt - October 6, 2024

One of the first things I do when I begin working with a new QuickBooks® Online (QBO) client is create four custom financial reports and format them to make the information easier to read and understand.

Why do I do this? Because having the right financial reports readily available can save time, improve consistency, and make it much easier to evaluate how a business is performing.

I wanted to share this with you because chances are you'll find these same reports helpful. As an added benefit, you'll learn a little about customizing reports in QuickBooks® Online!

Whether you're a business owner, bookkeeper, or someone responsible for maintaining financial records, learning how to customize reports is a valuable skill.

The Four Custom Reports I Recommend

Here are the four reports I typically create for my clients:

1. Profit & Loss (PY) — Prior Year

2. Profit & Loss (YTD) — Year-to-Date

3. Balance Sheet (PY) — Prior Year

4. Balance Sheet (YTD) — Year-to-Date

These four reports provide quick access to two of the most important financial statements in accounting.

Profit & Loss Statement

The Profit & Loss (P&L) report summarizes a business's income, expenses, and net profit or loss over a specified period.

Balance Sheet

The Balance Sheet provides a snapshot of a company's assets, liabilities, and equity as of a specific date.

By creating both prior-year and year-to-date versions, you can quickly review historical financial information and monitor your company's current financial position and operating results.

Why Create Custom Reports in QuickBooks® Online?

There are two primary reasons I recommend creating these reports.

1. Save Time by Using Preset Reporting Periods

Rather than repeatedly opening a standard report and changing its reporting dates, I prefer having reports already configured for the periods I use most frequently.

For example, when I open my Profit & Loss (YTD) report, I want QuickBooks® Online to display year-to-date information without having to manually select the reporting period each time.

Similarly, my Profit & Loss (PY) report is configured to display the previous year's financial results.

2. Maintain Consistent Report Formatting

Another benefit of custom reports is the ability to establish preferred formatting and display settings.

For example, I generally prefer:

• Showing only rows and columns containing non-zero amounts.

• Displaying negative numbers in parentheses.

• Displaying negative amounts in red, where that option is available.

• Using consistent report titles.

• Saving reporting-period settings for future use.

These adjustments can make financial statements cleaner, easier to read, and more consistent.

One important distinction: A negative number does not always indicate a financial problem. Its meaning depends on the account and the circumstances.

How to Create Custom Reports in QuickBooks® Online

Let's walk through the process using the Profit & Loss report as an example.

Step 1: Open Reports

In QuickBooks® Online, select Reports from the navigation menu.

Find and open Standard reports.

Step 2: Select the Profit and Loss Report

Locate the standard Profit and Loss report and open it.

This will serve as the starting point for your customized report.

Step 3: Choose Your Reporting Period

Find the reporting-period selection and choose the appropriate time frame.

For our purposes:

• Select This Year-to-date for the YTD report.

• Select Last Year for the PY report.

I recommend using relative reporting periods rather than fixed dates whenever possible. This can help your saved reports remain useful as time progresses.

Step 4: Customize the Report Display

Select Customize or the corresponding customization option in your reporting interface.

Depending on the report view and QuickBooks® subscription, you may be able to modify which rows and columns appear.

Where available, I prefer setting both rows and columns to Non-zero.

This reduces unnecessary information and helps focus attention on accounts with financial activity or balances.

Step 5: Format Negative Numbers

Locate the number-formatting options.

My preference is to display negative amounts in parentheses, such as:

(1,250.00) instead of -1,250.00

Where supported, I also prefer negative amounts displayed in red.

Again, displaying a negative number in red is simply a formatting preference. It does not necessarily indicate an error or an unfavorable result.

Step 6: Customize the Report Title

Here's another little preference of mine.

I like to change the report title from Profit and Loss to Profit & Loss.

Why? Because I'm particular about how my reports look!

Depending on your reporting view, you may find this option under Header/Footer or another report customization setting.

Step 7: Apply Your Changes

Review your selections and apply the changes.

In the Classic reporting experience, you may see Run report.

In the newer reporting experience, changes may appear automatically or require you to select an option such as Apply changes.

Step 8: Save Your Custom Report

Once you're satisfied with the report, select Save customization or Save As, depending on your reporting interface.

Give the report a descriptive name.

For example:

• Profit & Loss (PY)

• Profit & Loss (YTD)

Repeat the process for your Balance Sheet reports:

• Balance Sheet (PY)

• Balance Sheet (YTD)

When you're finished, you'll have four custom reports available for future use.

Step 9: Share Your Reports When Appropriate

QuickBooks® Online also allows you to share custom reports with other authorized users, depending on your subscription and available permissions.

If you want other team members to access these reports, review the sharing options when saving them.

Be sure to consider who should have access to your company's financial information before enabling report sharing.

For additional instructions, refer to Intuit's official guide: How to Customize Reports in QuickBooks® Online.

Note: QuickBooks® Online's reporting interface has changed since this article was originally published in October 2024. Menu names, formatting options, and the steps for saving customized reports may vary depending on your subscription and whether you're using the Classic or Modern reporting experience.

Custom Reports Are Just the Beginning

The four reports I've outlined above are only a starting point.

QuickBooks® Online provides many additional reporting and customization options that can help you better understand your business's financial performance.

For example, you may want reports that help you:

• Compare financial results across different periods.

• Identify unusual income or expense activity.

• Monitor outstanding customer balances.

• Review unpaid vendor bills.

• Analyze account balances and transaction activity.

• Track important financial trends.

The more familiar you become with QuickBooks® Online reporting, the more useful your accounting data can become.

What If Your Financial Reports Don't Look Right?

Creating customized reports is helpful, but there's another important consideration.

Your reports are only as reliable as the accounting information used to produce them.

If transactions have been incorrectly categorized, accounts haven't been reconciled, or balances contain errors, even a beautifully formatted report can present misleading financial information.

If you're unsure whether your Profit & Loss or Balance Sheet is accurate, QuickTrainer offers Data Review Services for QuickBooks® Users.

A Data Review can help identify unusual balances, improperly categorized transactions, reconciliation discrepancies, and other issues affecting your accounting data.

If the review identifies problems requiring correction, our Cleanup Services for QuickBooks® Users may be the appropriate next step.

You may also find our article, 7 Common QuickBooks® Online Mistakes and How to Fix Them, helpful for understanding common accounting mistakes that can affect your financial reports.

Want to Learn More About QuickBooks® Online Reports?

One of the most valuable things you can learn in QuickBooks® Online is how to obtain, customize, and interpret financial reports.

At QuickTrainer, Inc., we provide personalized One-on-One Training for QuickBooks Users.

We can show you how to:

• Create and save customized financial reports.

• Understand your Profit & Loss and Balance Sheet.

• Interpret financial account balances.

• Navigate QuickBooks® Online's reporting features.

• Identify transactions contributing to unusual balances.

• Use financial reports to better understand your business.

Our training is designed around your business, your accounting needs, and your experience level.

Whether you're just getting started with QuickBooks® Online or have been using it for years, personalized instruction can help you become more confident and efficient.

Need Help With QuickBooks® Online?

The reporting suggestions in this article are simple changes that can make a meaningful difference in how you use QuickBooks® Online.

I sincerely hope you'll give them a try!

If you have questions about customizing reports, understanding your financial statements, or improving how you're using QuickBooks® Online, QuickTrainer is here to help.

QuickTrainer is located in Wilmington, NC and works remotely with businesses throughout the United States.

📞 Call QuickTrainer at 910-338-0488

📧 Email: [email protected]

🌐 Website: www.qti-wilmington.com

Let QuickTrainer give you back your time.

QuickTrainer, Inc. is an independent QuickBooks® consulting and training company and is not affiliated with or employed by Intuit Inc. Intuit and QuickBooks® are trademarks and/or service marks of Intuit Inc.