Is it possible to hide accounts with zero balances on the balance sheet report?

Hey there, rjwbailey.

Yes, you can hide the accounts with zero balances on your Balance Sheet report.

Here's how:

1. On the Balance Sheet report screen, click the Show non-zero or active only drop-down.
2. Select Non-zero for rows and columns.
3. Hit Run report.
4. All the accounts with zero balances will be hidden.

You may find this article helpful about customising QuickBooks reports: Customise your reports in QuickBooks Online.

Additionally, if you want to know some "How do I" steps in QuickBooks Online, you can always visit our Help Articles page for reference.

Note- the non zero option on reports is not available in our Simple Start package

Let me know how it goes by leaving a reply below. I'll be right here when you need additional help with QuickBooks. Have a good one.

I don't have that option on my balance sheet report?

See attached screenshot...

Hi rjwbailey

If you select the customise option in the top right hand corner and then Rows/Columns, do you have the option/drop down menu under Show non-zero or active only?

No - I only have a drop down menu under 'Columns'

Hi rjwbailey

What type of account do you have, is it a SimpleStart, Essentials, or Plus account?

Hi rjwbailey

The option to only show non-zero accounts is only available on the Essentials and Plus accounts.

I am on Simple Start, so there is no way to achieve this?

Not exactly

"Create customised reports and get the insights that are important to your business"

as you say on your website!

Hello rjwbailey,

Our online packages have different customisation options depending on the level. Currently our Simple Start subscription does not have the option to customise the balance sheet report to show non-zero activity. It is worth going to the cog in the top right of Quickbooks and adding feedback to out engineers for this to be added to all subscriptions as default.

Thanks

That's a ridiculous feature to hold back and only allow on higher-level packages. I don't need any of the features listed for essentials. It would be stupid to upgrade just to be able to do something as fundamental as hide zero-balance accounts on official reports. 

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@adibiker wrote:

That's a ridiculous feature to hold back and only allow on higher-level packages. I don't need any of the features listed for essentials. It would be stupid to upgrade just to be able to do something as fundamental as hide zero-balance accounts on official reports. 

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I agree.  We should be able to have this feature as well!  This should be available for all account types.

I agree! It is completely bizarre that i should have to present a balance sheet with lots of zero balance lines! This is so basic. 

John,

Have a look at what other simple start customers are saying on this message thread.  They make a lot of sense.  Can you send this issue to the product team for them to consider the hide zero balance feature in the simple start product?

I agree with this - my balance sheet looks very unprofessional with zero balance rows. This should be offered as standard for all QB products.

I feel like you should allow simple start users to hide the zero rows on the balance sheet.  It is silly and time consuming to have to export the balance sheet to excel only to delete the non-zero rows so that we can present a professional end product to our clients.  I really feel like this should be a standard feature in all the editions of Quickbooks Online.  Without it, the reports do not look professional at all.  A lot of clients have their first experience with Quickbooks Online with the Simple Start product and removing this filter makes it look like Quickbooks Online Simple Start really isn't a finished product.  

Hi Matt, thanks for joining the thread.

I can see how convenient it is for QuickBooks Online users to hide the zero rows on the balance sheet. I also appreciate you sharing your ideas about adding this feature to the Simple Start version.

We'd love to hear more of your insights about it, so I recommend sending feedback to our product developers. This way, they can further review which parts of the program need enhancements and consider adding them to future updates. Please refer to the steps below:

1. Go to the Gear icon and click Feedback.
2. Provide your feedback or product suggestions.
3. Click Next to submit.

For future reference, visit this article to learn how to save current customisation settings when running reports: Memorise reports in QuickBooks Online.

If you need assistance with any other balance sheet or QuickBooks-related issues, feel free to post a message. Have a great day.

The only workaround I have found for this issue is to:

1. Temporarily upgrade to a higher cost package and incur a small cost for 1 day's worth

2. Create the balance sheet report with zero rows hidden

3. Use 'save customisation' to save it as a custom report

4. Downgrade back to Simple Start

5. The report is still there as a memorised report!

It's not 100% reliable. For example, if you drill down on an entry on the balance sheet to get the transaction report, you have to come back to the balance sheet using your browser's back button, rather than using the 'back to report summary' link. But it basically works for me :)

(I am the OP btw - I seem to have 2 usernames on these boards!)

Amen.