What is the best way to show income and expense trends over time in QuickBooks Online?

The best way to show income and expense trends over time in QuickBooks Online is by running a Comparative Profit and Loss report and comparing it to previous periods. This method allows a business to visualize changes in income and expenses side-by-side for different time frames, making it easier to identify trends and patterns over time.

With the Comparative Profit and Loss report, users can easily analyze performance across multiple periods—such as months, quarters, or years—which enhances understanding of financial trends. This comparative analysis is crucial for making informed decisions, as it highlights growth, dips, and variations in financial performance.

Other options, while helpful in their own right, do not provide the same level of insight into trend analysis. Running a Profit and Loss report every month gives snapshots of individual months but lacks the comparative context needed to evaluate trends over time. Comparing with a Balance Sheet report is useful for assessing financial position, but it does not specifically focus on the flow of income and expenses over periods. Lastly, saving monthly Profit and Loss reports to a spreadsheet can help track progress, but it is less efficient and does not allow for immediate comparative analysis without additional work. Thus, using the Comparative Profit and Loss report is the most effective approach for analyzing income and expense trends over time.