How to Create a Profit and Loss Report in QuickBooks Online

A Profit and Loss report in QuickBooks Online shows your income, expenses, and net profit for a chosen period. To get the right answer, open the report, set the date range, and check the filters before you trust the bottom line.

Open the Profit and Loss report

In QuickBooks Online, go to Reports and select Profit and Loss. That is the standard report for income, expenses, and net profit over a set period.

If you need results for a specific month, quarter, or year, start with this report first. A Profit and Loss report only answers the question you set up with the date range and filters you choose.

Choose the right date range

The date range controls what the report includes. If you pick This month, you get only the transactions posted in the current month. If you pick This year, you get the full year to date. Those are different answers, so do not treat them as the same report.

Say you want April results, but the report is still set to year to date. You will see April plus every earlier month in the year. If the numbers look too high or too low, check the date range before you check anything else.

If QuickBooks Online shows comparison or custom period options in your report view, use the one that matches the period you need. The exact layout varies by version, so check the dates on the screen before you move on.

Run the report and read the bottom line

Set the period you want, then select Run report. QuickBooks Online refreshes the report using the dates and filters you chose.

The number most people want is Net Income at the bottom. That is income minus expenses for the selected period. If income is higher than expenses, net income is positive. If expenses are higher, the report shows a loss.

Read the bottom line first if you need a quick answer. Then scan the income and expense lines above it if you need to see what drove the result.

What to check if the report does not look right

Do not assume the report is wrong just because the number surprises you. Check the setup first.

• Make sure the accounting period is the one you meant to use.
• Look for filters that limit the report to a customer, location, class, or other subset.
• Check whether any transactions are missing, uncategorized, dated in the wrong period, or still sitting as drafts.
• Confirm that you are not comparing cash activity to accrual-based reporting by mistake, if that setting is available in your view.

If the report is empty, the usual causes are a date range with no activity, filters that narrow the report too far, or no posted transactions in that period.

When this report is enough and when it is not

A Profit and Loss report is enough when you want to see how the business performed over a period. It tells you whether you made a profit, what drove revenue, and where expenses landed.

That answer stops at the report itself. It does not tell you whether the cash is actually in the bank, what you own and owe, or how a transaction should be treated for tax purposes.

For cash flow, use a cash flow report. For what you own and owe, use the balance sheet. If the question is how something should be treated for tax purposes, the report alone does not answer that.