Calculating revenue growth is crucial yet tricky for many QuickBooks users.
This guide will walk you through exactly how to accurately calculate revenue growth in QuickBooks Online or Desktop.
You'll learn how to pull the right historical sales reports, set up proper date comparisons, compute percentage and absolute growth rates, analyze trends, and troubleshoot issues.
Introduction to Calculating Revenue Growth in QuickBooks
Revenue growth is an important metric that provides insight into the financial health and performance of a business over time. QuickBooks offers easy ways to track and measure revenue growth.
Defining Revenue Growth
Revenue growth refers to the percentage increase in total sales or revenue from one period to another. For example, year-over-year revenue growth compares total revenue from one year to total revenue from the previous year.
Importance of Calculating Revenue Growth
There are several reasons why tracking revenue growth in QuickBooks is useful:
- Identifies trends in sales performance over weeks, months, quarters, or years
- Helps set goals and benchmarks for desired revenue growth
- Supports strategic decision making around investments, hiring, etc.
- Provides early warning signs of declines in growth
Common Methods for Calculating Growth
Two primary ways to measure revenue growth in QuickBooks:
- Percentage change: Compare total revenue numbers from one period to another and calculate the percentage difference. For example, if revenue was $100,000 in 2020 and $150,000 in 2021, the percentage change is 50% growth.
- Absolute dollar change: Subtract an earlier period's revenue from a later period to get the absolute dollar change. For example, $150,000 - $100,000 = $50,000 increased revenue from 2020 to 2021.
QuickBooks provides built-in reports, like the Profit & Loss report, to quickly track both percentage and absolute dollar changes over time. Monitoring revenue growth can provide valuable insights into a business's overall performance.
How do I find revenue report in QuickBooks?
Finding the revenue report in QuickBooks is straightforward with just a few steps:
- Open your QuickBooks Online account
- In the left menu, click on “Reports”
- Use the search bar to find the “Profit & Loss” report
- Click “Customize”
- In the “Report Period” section, select the date range you want the report to cover
The Profit & Loss report shows your gross receipts, also known as total revenue earned over a period of time. By customizing the date range, you can view revenue growth across any timeframe - daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, or annually.
To calculate the percentage growth in revenue between two periods:
- Run a Profit & Loss report for the first period
- Note the total income amount
- Run another report for the second period
- Note that period's total income
- Subtract the earlier period's revenue from the later period
- Divide the difference by the first period's revenue
- Multiply the result by 100 to convert to a percentage
For example, if revenue was $100,000 in January and $150,000 in February, the calculation would be:
($150,000 - $100,000) / $100,000 = 0.5 0.5 * 100 = 50% growth
So QuickBooks provides an easy way to generate revenue reports and compare performance across periods to calculate growth rates. Let me know if you have any other questions!
How do I calculate Profit in QuickBooks?
To calculate profit in QuickBooks, you need to know your revenue and cost of goods sold (COGS). Here are the steps:
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Calculate your revenue. Revenue is the number of sales multiplied by the price for each sale. For example, if you sold 100 products at $10 each, your revenue would be 100 * $10 = $1,000.
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Calculate your COGS. COGS includes the costs directly associated with creating your products or delivering your services. This includes raw materials, labor, manufacturing overhead, etc. In QuickBooks, you can find your COGS amount on your profit and loss statement.
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Subtract your COGS from your revenue to calculate gross profit. Using the example revenue above, if your COGS was $500, your gross profit would be:
Revenue: $1,000 COGS: $500 Gross Profit: $1,000 - $500 = $500
So in short, gross profit = revenue - COGS. Monitoring changes in gross profit over time is an easy way to track the overall profitability of your business in QuickBooks. Comparing gross margins between products or services can also help you determine which are the most lucrative parts of your business.
How do I record fundraising revenue in QuickBooks?
QuickBooks provides nonprofit organizations with the ability to track fundraising revenue and in-kind donations. Here are the key steps:
Change Your Account Type to Nonprofit
The first step is to change your QuickBooks account to "Nonprofit" under the Account and Settings tab. This will unlock nonprofit-specific features.
Create a Fund Donation Revenue Account
Next, create a new income account under the Chart of Accounts called "Fund Donations" or similar to track monetary contributions.
Set Up Fund Donation Items
You can create separate donation items for tracking in-kind gifts like office furniture or supplies. For example, create items called "Donated Office Supplies" or "Donated Office Furniture."
Add Donors as Customers
Even though donations are not sales, add your donors as customers in QuickBooks. This enables you to track who makes contributions and how much.
Record Donations Using Items and Customers
When you receive a financial donation, record it as a sale to that donor customer using the Fund Donations income account. For in-kind gifts, record it as a sale using the relevant donation item you created.
Following this process allows accurate tracking of all donation revenue sources in QuickBooks for nonprofits. Let me know if you have any other questions!
What is operating revenue in QuickBooks?
Operating revenue refers to income generated from a company's core business operations. In QuickBooks, operating revenue typically includes:
- Revenue from the sale of products or services
- Rental income
- Fees for services provided
For example, a retail store's operating revenue would include sales of merchandise. A real estate company's operating revenue would include rents received from tenants. A consulting firm's operating revenue would consist of fees charged to clients for advisory services.
Operating revenue excludes peripheral income like:
- Interest income
- Dividend income
- Profit from sale of assets
Tracking operating revenue accurately is critical for companies to:
- Measure growth
- Benchmark performance
- Forecast future earnings
In QuickBooks, companies can view operating revenue information in key reports like the Profit & Loss statement. Analyzing operating revenue trends over time can provide insights into the financial health and outlook of the business.
Having a solid understanding of operating revenue helps managers make better decisions about operations, investments, expenditures and strategy. It's an essential component for assessing the core profitability of a company.
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Accessing Historical Sales Data in QuickBooks
QuickBooks stores past sales data that can be used to calculate revenue growth. This section covers locating and exporting that data from transaction reports.
Running sales reports by date
Use the 'Sales by Customer Summary' and 'Sales by Item Summary' reports in QuickBooks to pull sales data for different date ranges.
- Navigate to the Reports menu and select Sales
- Choose the report you want to run
- Use the date filter to select a custom date range
- Click Excel to export the report data to Excel for analysis
This provides a summary of sales performance over time. Analyze trends by total sales, average sales, number of transactions etc.
Pulling invoice data
The 'Accounts Receivable Aging Detail' report in QuickBooks shows data for every individual invoice. This provides very granular sales data.
- Filter the report to only show paid invoices within your target date range
- Export the filtered data to Excel
- The report shows invoice dates, amounts paid, customer details etc.
With this data you can analyze revenue growth customer-by-customer or use pivot tables to summarize.
Accessing sales receipts
Sales receipts in QuickBooks provide another source of historical sales data.
The 'Sales Receipt by Customer' and 'Sales Receipt by Item' reports list every single sales receipt transaction. This allows you to analyze growth and trends at a very detailed level.
- Run each report for the desired date range
- Export to Excel
- Use pivot tables to summarize data
- Calculate period-over-period growth rates
With proper analysis in Excel, QuickBooks data can provide very granular insights into revenue growth trends over time.
Step-by-Step Guide to Calculate Revenue Growth in QuickBooks Online
Selecting the right QuickBooks Online reports
To calculate revenue growth in QuickBooks Online, you first need to select the right reports that provide the necessary data. The two key reports are:
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Profit & Loss report: Shows revenue figures over a period of time. This allows you to compare revenue between different date ranges.
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Balance Sheet report: Provides a snapshot of revenue at a point in time. Comparing balance sheets from different periods shows revenue growth.
When running these reports, be sure to use consistent date ranges for proper comparisons. For example, compare this month to the same month last year.
Setting up comparison periods
Once you have the reports, determine the periods to compare to analyze growth over time. Common examples include:
- Year-over-year: Compare this year's revenue to the same period last year
- Quarter-over-quarter: Compare Q1 to Q4 of the previous year
- Month-over-month: Compare June 2022 to May 2022 revenue
Select periods that make sense for your business goals and seasonality. Comparing a slow quarter to a peak quarter may skew results.
Calculating percentage revenue growth
To calculate percentage revenue growth, use this formula:
(Current Period Revenue - Previous Period Revenue) / Previous Period Revenue x 100
This shows revenue growth in percentage terms to easily see relative growth over time.
For example, if:
- Revenue in 2022 Q1 = $100,000
- Revenue in 2021 Q1 = $75,000
Then the percentage revenue growth is:
($100,000 - $75,000) / $75,000 x 100 = 33%
So Q1 2022 revenue grew by 33% compared to Q1 2021.
Calculating absolute revenue growth
To find the absolute revenue growth in dollar terms, simply subtract:
Current Period Revenue - Previous Period Revenue
For example:
- Revenue in June 2022 = $60,000
- Revenue in June 2021 = $50,000
The absolute growth is $60,000 - $50,000 = $10,000
This shows the actual sales growth amount, which grew by $10k in this case.
Interpreting the results
Analyze revenue growth numbers in context of business goals and external factors. Growth varies across industries and economic conditions. Compare to historical averages, budgets, and benchmarks in your sector to better interpret the meaning and impact of revenue growth.
Use the results to inform critical business decisions regarding pricing, investments, cost management, and strategies to accelerate growth. Revenue growth is a key metric to track frequently when optimizing operations and planning long-term objectives.
Analyzing Revenue Growth Trends in QuickBooks
QuickBooks provides powerful tools for analyzing revenue growth over time. Tracking trends enables businesses to spot patterns, benchmark performance, and adjust strategies accordingly.
Identifying patterns in revenue growth
Carefully examine your monthly and yearly revenue in QuickBooks to uncover trends. Look for:
- Steady growth or decline year-over-year
- Seasonal spikes or dips related to the time of year
- Sudden changes that may indicate market shifts
Analyzing the data with a keen eye helps determine what's driving revenue. Is growth tied to specific products, customer segments, or marketing campaigns? Did a new competitor enter the market? Monitoring trends arms you with vital intelligence.
Utilizing QuickBooks' graphing tools
QuickBooks graphs make growth trends easily visible. Compare revenue across products, customers, locations, etc using:
- Line and bar charts showing trends over time
- Pie charts highlighting revenue breakdowns
- Pivot tables filtering data by relevant categories
The visualization crystallizes insights. Present graphs to leadership when proposing strategy changes backed by data.
Benchmarking against industry standards
Contextualize your growth by comparing to industry averages. Is your revenue growth outpacing or lagging competitors? Tools like RMA Industry Data can provide market benchmarks.
If lagging, research what leading companies are doing differently. If outpacing, analyze why you're succeeding and how to extend the edge.
Adjusting business strategies based on growth data
The most crucial step is actually applying insights to improve. With revenue patterns in view, you can:
- Double down on your fastest growing products and markets
- Explore new customer segments with potential
- Optimize seasonal marketing and operations
- Counter competitor threats through differentiation
Continuous strategy adjustment ensures you ride positive trends and mitigate negative forces. Revenue data brings focus to business planning.
In summary, monitoring revenue growth unlocks many opportunities to strengthen market positioning over time. QuickBooks provides the tracking tools - your job is to analyze the insights and take action.
Troubleshooting Common Issues with Revenue Growth Calculation
Encountering challenges while calculating revenue growth in QuickBooks is common. This section aims to address frequently faced issues and their solutions.
Correcting data discrepancies
Accurately calculating revenue growth in QuickBooks requires having consistent and error-free data. Here are some tips for catching and fixing data issues:
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Carefully review revenue data across reporting periods to spot inconsistencies or outliers. Investigate the cause - it could be data entry errors, refunds, or other factors skewing the numbers.
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If you find data errors, trace transactions back to the source documents and make corrections directly in QuickBooks. This will update all affected reports.
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For major data problems, consider starting fresh with new QuickBooks company file to ensure clean data foundation. Migrate only vetted historical data.
Dealing with incomplete data
Gaps in revenue data can make precise year-over-year growth calculations impossible. However, you can still draw meaningful insights by:
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Using data from longest consistent date ranges available for analysis. Note inconsistencies and interpret trends appropriately.
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Supplementing QuickBooks data with other records - sales orders, invoices, point-of-sale or ecommerce system data - to fill gaps and create complete picture.
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Setting up procedures to enforce complete data capture going forward - daily closing routines, double entry bookkeeping, automated syncs from billing systems.
Understanding the impact of refunds and discounts
Refund transactions and discounts directly reduce recognized revenue in QuickBooks. To accurately assess true growth:
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Filter out refunds and discounts to analyze net revenue over time. Compare gross revenue as well in case policies changed.
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If discounts increased substantially, revenue growth may be masked. Consider tracking discount metrics separately.
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Review if policies or external factors changed to drive refunds/discounts up. Adjust calculations to normalize data.
Ensuring accurate period comparisons
When analyzing revenue growth trends, ensure you are comparing equal and relevant periods:
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Use year over year comparisons - Q1 2022 vs Q1 2021 - to control for seasonal fluctuations.
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Beware calendar quirks skewing comparisons. Adjust date ranges to equal number of weekdays/weekends.
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Consider external events - promotions, product launches, economic conditions - affecting the periods analyzed. Normalize accordingly.
Following these best practices will help you spot inconsistencies, fill data gaps, account for distortions, and make true period-over-period revenue growth comparisons in QuickBooks. Reach out for help if you have any other questions!
Conclusion and Next Steps
QuickBooks provides several useful tools for efficiently calculating and analyzing revenue growth over time. Here are some key takeaways:
Leverage built-in reporting tools
QuickBooks' built-in historical sales reports, such as the Sales by Customer Summary report, provide the raw data needed to accurately calculate revenue growth percentages. Comparing report figures over time makes it easy to determine trends.
Set up dashboards to monitor trends
Create customized analysis graphs and dashboards in QuickBooks to continually track revenue growth progress at a glance. Adding graphs that display month-over-month or year-over-year growth rates to the homepage keeps this vital metric top of mind.
Use growth data to drive decisions
Share insights from QuickBooks revenue growth reports with leadership and department heads. Identifying positive or negative trends in the data can reveal problems to address or opportunities to capitalize on. This information ultimately helps shape strategic plans and operational decisions.
