Cost of Goods

I’ve got the information you need on why the Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) showed different amounts than your actual invoices, @gstradinginc.

COGS includes all of the costs and expenses directly related to the production of goods. And excludes indirect costs such as overhead and marketing.

Therefore, COGS is calculated by adding the beginning inventory and any further purchases made during the year and then subtracting closing inventory from the sum of opening inventory and additional purchases. This is the reason why the COGS figure is displayed differently than your actual invoices amounts.

You can read this article to learn more about COGS and how QuickBooks handle this matter for you: How to calculate and record COGS.

Additionally, here’s a reference that covers information about reports in QuickBooks Desktop: Understand reports. Also contains instructions on how to customize and memorize them.

Don’t hesitate to add a comment if you have more questions or concerns about COGS. I’ll be here to help. Take care always!

Please see attached screenshot showing an example from the QB transaction detail for Cost of Goods and the actual invoice.  Why is the number so much different and what is the way to resolve?  Thanks.

I appreciate your immediate response, @gstradinginc.

I'd like to make sure we're on the same page so I can give you the right amount of information in resolving the difference between your COGS and actual invoices.

Before we can accomplish your goal for today, I want to ensure I understand the situation better. I'm unable to see the attached screenshot. It'll help me provide the information and resolution you need. Please add it again through the Photos or Choose File button in the Reply to message page. Then, click Post. You can check out the screenshot below for your reference. 

Keep me updated in the comments. Hope to hear from you soon. Take care and stay safe,

Thank you for your prompt reply, @gstradinginc. I’ll point you in the right direction for help.

To further check your concern about the difference between your invoice amount and COGS, I suggest you reach out to our Technical Support Team. Since this requires you to pull up your account and Community is a public forum, reaching out to them is the best option.

Moreover, our phone representatives have tools that can access your account to reinvestigate the issue and can provide fixes immediately.

Here's how to reach them:

1. In QuickBooks Desktop (QBDT), go to the Help menu at the top.
2. Select QuickBooks Desktop Help.
3. Click Contact Us.
4. Give a brief description of your issue, then tick Let's talk, and then choose a way to connect.

You may also refer to this article to check our support hours: Contact QuickBooks Desktop support

If you have further concerns about your transaction, you can always post them here. Have a great day!

@gstradinginc 

Can you post a screenshot of the rest of the 'Transaction Detail By Account' report?  It would be helpful to see all of the debits and credits for that journal entry.

@gstradinginc  RE: For example, we have an invoice that is $3,088.11, but in the COGS it shows as $5,728,307.44. What is causing this and how do we fix it? 

This means that QuickBooks thinks the cost of the things you sold for $3k was over $5m. There can be two reasons for this:

1) Your data, as entered,  substantiates that number. You might have made a mistake on a bill/purchase, for example, and entered the Qty, Rate, and Amount for the item in question incorrectly.

2) The cost history for the item is corrupted and not correctly based on your current purchase/sale transactions for the item.

To check the first case, run an Inventory Valuation Detail report. (Reports | Inventory | Inventory Valuation Detail). Change the dates to All. Optionally filter the report for the item in question. Note the report includes, on a running basis, the Average Cost as calculated by QuickBooks. It will fluctuate with each new purchase of the item whenever the item price changes. You may be able to locate a data-entry error using this detailed history. If you do, edit the purchase and fix the Qty and Rate so that it's correct.

To check for the second case, Verify your data file (File | Utilities | Verify Data). If you see errors that are related inventory costing or valuation in the results, then Rebuild (repair) the company file (File | Utilities | Rebuild Data), which will re-calculate the average cost history based on the actual transactions currently in the company file.