Vendor and Expenses Reports

Having access to reports that give you detailed insight into what your expenses are, who you are paying, and the amount paid to each vendor, will help you to control expenses and maintain a profitable business. There are a number of reports in QuickBooks Online (QBO) that will help you understand what you owe to vendor suppliers and other creditors.

We will dive into the information you can expect to find in each report, how to customize the report, and how to generate reports. We will also discuss ways you can use reports to help you manage your expenses and cash flow. I recommend you run these reports and review them on a weekly basis. Having access to this information will help you to manage your cash flow and stay on top of the money that goes out of your business.

In this chapter, we will focus on the following key reports:

• Generating an accounts payable (A/P) aging report
• Generating an unpaid bills report
• Generating...

Generating an accounts payable (A/P) aging report

An accounts payable aging report, also known as an A/P aging report, groups unpaid bills based on the number of days they are outstanding or due. Similar to the A/R aging report that we saw in the previous chapter, there are five main groups: current, 1-30 days, 31-60 days, 61-90 days, and 91 days and over. QuickBooks calculates the age of a bill by using the bill date. To stay on top of bills, business owners should review this report on a weekly basis, and take the necessary steps to pay bills that are nearly due. For bills coming due, you should go ahead and process the payment online with your financial institution or write a check directly from QuickBooks to ensure they arrive by the due date. In Chapter 8, Recording Expenses in QuickBooks Online, we should you how to pay bills.

Follow these steps to generate an A/P aging report:

1. Navigate to Reports from the left menu bar, as indicated in Figure 13.2:

...

Generating an unpaid bills report

An unpaid bills report is a list of all bills that have not been paid, as of the date range for the report. It is very similar to an A/P detail report, with the exception that it does not group invoices based on the number of days outstanding. The report includes details such as the vendor’s name and a list of all unpaid bills, including amount, due date, number of days past due, and open balance. You can use this report to quickly identify bills that are past due. This will allow you to follow up with vendors, to make payment arrangements for any bills that are past due or coming due.

Follow these steps to generate and customize an unpaid bills report:

1. Navigate to Reports from the left menu bar, as indicated in Figure 13.6:

Figure 13.6: Navigating to the Reports Center

2. Scroll down to the What you owe section and select Unpaid Bills, as indicated in Figure 13.7:

Figure 13.7: Running the...

Generating an expenses by vendor summary report

In order to maintain a healthy and positive bottom line, you need to be aware of what your business expenses are. An expenses by vendor summary report provides detailed information about the vendors with whom you are spending your money. This report includes a list of vendors and the total amount you have paid for a specific time period. You can use this report to gauge what your largest expenses are. Plus, you can also use the information on this report to negotiate better pricing with those suppliers from whom you purchase the most.

Follow these steps to generate an expenses by vendor summary report:

1. Navigate to Reports from the left menu bar, as indicated in Figure 13.10:

Figure 13.10: Navigating to the Report Center

2. Scroll down to the Expenses and vendors section and select the Expenses by Vendor Summary report, as indicated in Figure 13.11:

Figure 13.11: Selecting the Expenses...

Generating a bill payments report

A bill payments report includes detailed payment information about the bills you have paid. The report is broken down by the method of payment (for example, cash, credit card, or check). It includes the payment date, check number (if applicable), vendor, and amount paid. If you want to determine the payments made for a specific time period, this report will give you the information you need.

To generate a bill payments report, follow these steps:

1. Navigate to Reports from the left menu bar, as indicated in Figure 13.14:

Figure 13.14: Navigating to the Report Center

2. Scroll down to the What you owe section and select Bill Payment List, as indicated in Figure 13.15:

Figure 13.15: Running the bill payment list report

3. On the next screen, you can customize the report period and determine how the report is grouped, as indicated in Figure 13.16:

   Figure 13.16: Customizing the bill payment...

Summary

In this chapter, we have learned about four key reports that will help you to control your business expenses and stay on top of payments to your vendors. You’ve learned about the A/P aging report, the unpaid bills report, the expenses by vendor report, and the bill payments report. We have accomplished this goal by following instructions on how to customize and generate each of these reports. In addition, we have explained how these reports will help you to stay on top of unpaid bills so that you can maintain a good credit history with your vendors.

In the next chapter, we will show you how to set up and manage your employees and contractors.

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