Comparison Report
Report Guide for Users
What this report shows, the choices you make when running it, and how to read each section.
What this report is for
The Comparison Report splits a date range into repeating periods — years, months, or weeks — and shows your sales metrics side by side for each period, so you can quickly see how one period stacks up against another (for example, comparing sales month over month).
How the report works
You set a Start Date, an End Date, and how you want the range broken up (yearly, monthly, or weekly). Starting from your Start Date, the report divides your date range into consecutive periods of that length — Year #1, Year #2, and so on, or Month #1, Month #2, and so on, or Week #1, Week #2, and so on — and totals your sales activity for each one.
If your date range doesn't divide evenly into full periods, you can optionally include the leftover days as an extra "Offset" period so nothing in your date range gets left out.
The choices you make when running it
These are the settings available. Everything else is calculated automatically.
1. The time period
| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
| Start Date | The beginning of the overall date range you want to report on, and the starting point of your first comparison period. |
| End Date | The end of the overall date range you want to report on. |
| Start Hour / Minute / Second | The exact time of day each period should start. Defaults to the very start of the day (00:00:00). |
| End Hour / Minute / Second | The exact time of day each period should end. Defaults to the very end of the day (23:59:59). |
| Date Comparison Interval | Choose whether each comparison period is a Year, a Month, or a Week. |
2. What to include
| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
| Location | Choose one or more locations to include. Leave all selected to include every location. |
| Show Sessions On Deferred Basis | Choose Yes to recognize session-based sales (like memberships or packages) as revenue spread out over time as they're used, instead of all at once when purchased. |
| Include Offset Date | Choose Yes to add one extra period covering any leftover days after your last full comparison period, so every day in your date range is accounted for. |
| Interval Last Date | Auto-calculated based on your Start Date, End Date, and Date Comparison Interval — it marks the end of the last full comparison period. You generally won't need to change this yourself. |
What's shown on the report
At the top, two charts plot Transaction Count and Item Count across your comparison periods, so you can see the trend at a glance. Below the charts, a comparison table lays out the following metrics side by side for each period:
| Metric | Description |
|---|---|
| Amount | Gross sales for the period, before discounts, comps, refunds, and tax. |
| Discount | Total discounts applied during the period. |
| Item Count | The number of items sold during the period. |
| Net Sales | Sales after discounts and refunds, before tax. |
| Refunds | Total refunds issued during the period. |
| Sales Tax | Total tax collected during the period. |
| Transaction Count | The number of distinct transactions during the period. |
How to read the layout
Each comparison period is labeled with its sequence number and its exact date range (for example, "Month #1 (May 1 to May 31)"), so you always know exactly what dates each column represents. If you turned on Include Offset Date, an additional "Offset" column captures any remaining days after the last full period, labeled with the date it starts from.
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