Balance Sheet and P&L Report Comparisons

Hey there, welcome to the Community. 

Let me help you run a report that shows a current YTD column compared with a prior full year.

A balance sheet with a YTD comparison report is unavailable in QuickBooks Online (QBO). You can only run the Balance sheet comparison report. If you want to run a current YTD column, you'll need to run a Profit and Loss YTD comparison report and select the display columns by "Years". I'll show you how.

1. Go to the Reports menu.
2. From the search bar, type in Profit and Loss year-to-date comparison.
3. Select Years from the Display columns. You can also select Months if you want it to show by month.

To compare time periods from this report, 

1. From the report, select the dropdown under Compare another period.
2. Select which time period to compare (Previous period, Previous year, Year-to-date). 
3. Select how you want to compare the difference.
   • $ change: The difference as a dollar amount.
   • % change: The difference as a percentage.
4. Click on Run report.

I'm adding this article to learn how to personalize the report and focus on the details that matter most to you: Customize reports in QuickBooks Online.

Feel free to leave a reply if I missed something or if there's anything else you need assistance with. I'd be glad to help. Have a nice day!

Oh honoured Sensai, you have not understood humble pupil's question.  The answer you give is not what is very respectful requested.  Your pupil needs to show his beloved Board of Directors a report like this.

Oh honoured Sensai, please save humble pupil from banishment by his beloved Board !

Thanks for coming back and providing us with a screenshot to better isolate the issue. 

I understand how important it is for your company to have a Balance Sheet and P&L comparison report in one frame. However, this option is unavailable in QuickBooks Online (QBO). We see consumer feedback as an opportunity to improve the numerous features of our products. I'd recommend giving our engineers direct feedback. They may look into this suggestion and incorporate it into future updates. Let me demonstrate:

1. Go to the Gear icon.
2. Hit Feedback.
3. Type in your recommendation in the Share your feedback field.
4. Click Next.
5. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the process.

I've attached screenshots below for your reference:

Alternatively, you can export the two reports to Excel to come up with the report you need. Let me guide you on how:

1. Go to Business overview and select Reports.
2. Search for and select the report you want to export.
3. At the top of the report, tap the Export icon. Then click Export to Excel.
4. Save the file somewhere you can easily find, like your Downloads folder or your desktop.

 If you’re missing data when you open the report in Excel, the files in protected view. In Excel, you’ll need to click Enable Editing to view the full report. Also, to assist you in managing your account and growing your business with QBO, I recommend visiting one of our support websites: QuickBooks Help Articles. It includes topics about account management, banking, and expenses, to name a few.

Feel free to get back to me here in the Community space if you need further assistance with this matter. You can also post here again if you have any additional QuickBooks-related concerns. It'll be my pleasure to cater to them again. Stay safe, and have a nice day!

No, no Sensai.  Again you do not understand.  I do not need "a Balance Sheet and P&L comparison report in one frame".  I need to be able to produce the reports with a YTD for the current year compared to a full prior year in the separate Balance Sheet report and separate P&L report.  This is common in interim reports for management use.  The crazy thing is that Xero (one of your competitors) has full flexibility to compare any custom period with any other  period.

There is a work-around if you compare full current year with no other transactions beyond the chosen date with full previous year.  But then the column description for the current year is misleading as it shows the date to the end of the current incomplete year.  And also the report title shows the full year rather than the part year that actually is in the frame.

(Do you actually have Certified Practicing Accountants advising you in what they really do?  I am happy to help if you do not.)

All offered with the greatest respect Sensai !

I appreciate for getting back to us and sharing additional information about your concern.

Allow me to step in and add details about generating reports with YTD for the current year and contrast them to the full prior years in the Balance Sheet and P&L reports separately. I can see how beneficial it is to your business.

However, this feature is unavailable in QBO. I suggest following the steps provided by my colleague @RCV, rest assured our Product team is aware of this and is working on implementing this in the future.

For now, we can export the reports to Excel to open reports with a YTD for the current year compared to a full prior year in the separate Balance Sheet and P&L report.

Also, I recommend checking our QuickBooks blog page from time to time to stay current on the latest news about QuickBooks.

Keep me posted if you have any other concerns managing your reports or if there’s anything else I can be of help with. I’m always around ready to assist you. Have a good one stay safe!