# Why can two reports show different amounts?

Check date ranges, posting status, document balances and account selection when report figures differ.

Canonical: https://demo.qixcount.com/help/reports/why-reports-differ

Who can do this: Owners, or people with *View financial reports*; project reports need *View project profitability*

Reports can use different dates, records and calculations. A difference alone does not identify an incorrect entry.

## Check the dates first

1. Confirm both reports belong to the same business.
2. Read the applied date fields on each report.
3. Generate each report after changing dates.
4. Check that any comparison uses the period you intended.

A balance sheet or trial balance accumulates posted balances through one date. An income statement measures activity between two dates. A general ledger includes earlier amounts in its opening balance when you enter a starting date.

## Check which records are included

| Difference | Explanation |
| --- | --- |
| Income and cash movement differ | Income uses revenue and expense activity. Cash flow uses cash accounts and cash classifications or adjustments. Unpaid invoices and bills can affect income without a corresponding payment. |
| Aging and an account balance differ | Aging uses currently unpaid invoices or bills in specific statuses. Its selected date changes due-date buckets, not historical balances. Account balances use posted entries. |
| Project profit and the income statement differ | Project reports use linked, non-void invoice and bill totals, including drafts. Their project-date filters do not filter document dates. |
| Trial balance or ledger and income statement differ after closing | Trial balance and ledger include closing entries. Income statement activity excludes closing entries and their reversals. |
| Equity differs from income for your chosen range | The balance sheet includes calculated unclosed earnings as well as equity balances. Its current-year earnings need not match an arbitrary income-statement range. |

General income statement, balance sheet, cash flow, trial balance and year-end details include inactive accounts with posted activity. The Chart of Accounts summary totals still use active accounts only. Nonprofit income and financial-position calculations can include posted activity on inactive accounts, while its cash flow and general ledger list keep active-account selection. Cash flow also selects cash accounts by subtype and certain names and codes. Check the included accounts before comparing a cash total with one bank account.

In General, the income statement retains the sign of account activity. Compare its period with the balance sheet's earnings dates, and allow for closing entries when tracing ledger detail.

Summary cards on the income statement and balance sheet round to whole dollars; detailed rows show cents.

## Check the earlier period separately

Generate the earlier period separately when checking account detail. Supported PDF or Excel exports also provide prior figures for the income statement and trial balance. For aging, compare due dates and buckets; neither aging report reconstructs an earlier unpaid balance.

## What happens next

Use the [general ledger](https://demo.qixcount.com/help/reports/general-ledger) to inspect dated entries for the account you are checking. See [Pick report dates and compare periods](https://demo.qixcount.com/help/reports/pick-dates-and-compare-periods) before exporting the result.

## Good to know

You need permission to view each report you compare, or owner access.