Retained Earnings

I can think of multiple reasons why you're unable to see Retained Earnings in QuickBooks Online, @Jrobert33. Let me share it with you along with some fixes.

The Retained Earnings is a default account that is created when you first set up your QBO company. This account is a rollover of all previous fiscal years' net profit (or loss).

However, you can't select Retained Earnings from the Balance Sheet to view more information since QuickBooks automatically transfers funds from your net income or loss into the account without recording any visible transactions.

As a result, you must review your prior year's Profit and Loss report to identify what factors affect your retained earnings. Here's how:

1. Open the Reports menu.
2. Search for the Profit and Loss report.
3. Click and open the report from the result list.

You can customize the report by adding filters to it. If you want, you can also memorize it to save the customization you make.

Moreover, you're likely experiencing a browser-related issue that may cause the Retained Earnings to not show on your Chart of Accounts lists. I recommend performing some basic troubleshooting steps to isolate this.

Start by logging in to your QBO account using an incognito page. Here are some of the shortcut keys to open it:

• Google Chrome: Press CTRL + Shift + N.
• Safari: Press Command + Shift + N.
• Mozilla Firefox: Press CTRL + Shift + P.

If this works, then you'll have to clear your regular browser cache. This prevents unusual browser behavior. Otherwise, use another supported browser.

I'd be delighted to assist you further. Feel free to get in touch in case you have extra questions regarding Retained Earnings or QuickBooks. Stay safe always!

Thank you for your response.  I did try the incognito window also a completely different browser - still not showing in Chart of accounts.  I do have an Equity account called Owners Distributions that listed as Retained Earnings under Detail Type - which I believe I set up a few months ago when I was trying to get our profits after taxes to record distributions correctly to each of us (LLC - 2 members).   I may have confused the system.

I can provide some steps to check if the Retained Earnings account has been hidden or the name was changed, Jrobert33.

You may need to check if the Retained Earnings account isn't active. This won't show up on the Chart of Accounts. 

Here's how to see your inactive accounts.

1. Go to Settings ⚙, then choose Chart of accounts.
2. Next to the printer icon, select the Settings ⚙ icon.
3. Mark the Include inactive checkbox.
   

When you run reports, you’ll still see inactive accounts and their transactions. QuickBooks includes them to keep everything accurate. You can customize some reports to hide inactive accounts, but this may affect accuracy.

You may also check if the name was edited. The Retained Earnings account is one of the default accounts. That's why you're unable to delete it. It can only be modified or hidden.

Please browse this article for additional information about defaults accounts: Find out which special accounts can be deleted, edited, or merged in QuickBooks.

Drop me a message below if you have more Chart of Accounts questions. I'm always here to help you. Thank you for your time today. Have a good one.

Thank you for that info.  I believe I have renamed the account and not realized it.   In chart of accounts, under Type/Equity - I do have one account that under detail type says "Retained Earnings".  All of the other equity accounts say Owner's Equity under detail type.  I bet this is the original Retained Earnings account.  I'll investigate further.  I did also check the inactive accounts and it wasn't there.  Thanks again.