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View the Finances Summary Page

Last updated: October 07 2024

Written and researched by experts at Avada Learn more about our methodology

Understanding your store’s financial health is key to making informed business decisions and achieving long-term success. Shopify recognizes this and provides a powerful tool: the Finances Summary Page, which gives you a quick and comprehensive overview of your store’s financial performance.

This article will guide you through accessing and understanding the Finances Summary page, helping you unlock insights that can drive smarter business decisions.

Step-by-Step Guide to Access the Finances Summary

Here’s how to access the Finances Summary page on Shopify and gain a clear view of your store’s financial performance:

Step 1: Start by logging into your Shopify admin panel. Navigate to Analytics in the left-hand menu, and then click on Reports.

Guide to Access the Finances Summary 1

Step 2: Once in the Reports section, click on Categories to open a list of report types.

Guide to Access the Finances Summary 2

Step 3: Choose Finances to filter the available reports, focusing solely on financial data.

Guide to Access the Finances Summary 3

Step 4: In the list of financial reports, locate and click on your desired summary report under the Name column.

Guide to Access the Finances Summary 4

Optional: If desired, you can refine your data by selecting a specific channel and date range. 

Exploring the Finances Summary Page

The Finances Summary Page in Shopify provides store owners with a quick snapshot of their financial performance. It consolidates core financial metrics, offering insights into various aspects of your store’s financial health operations. 

Exploring the Finances Summary Page 1

Let’s discover what financial parameters Shopify tracks in a store.

Sales: The Sales section displays a comprehensive view of your store’s sales performance. This includes links to various detailed reports that break down sales into individual metrics.

  • Gross Sales Report: Shows total sales before any discounts or returns.
  • Discounts Report: Details the total value of discounts applied to sales.
  • Returns Report: Summarizes any refunds or returns processed, helping to track how much revenue was returned.
  • Net Sales Report: Displays total sales after deducting discounts and returns.
  • Shipping Report: Shows shipping costs charged to customers.
  • Taxes Report: Tracks the total tax collected from sales.

Payments: The Payments section provides an overview of how customers are paying for their orders. It includes a summary of all payment methods used by customers and a granular view of each payment method (e.g., credit card, PayPal, Shopify Payments). 

This allows you to understand where your revenue is coming from and how much is being deducted in fees, enabling you to reconcile your Shopify payments with bank deposits.

Liabilities: The Liabilities section tracks outstanding financial obligations, particularly gift cards and tips, particularly useful for tracking gift card liabilities and ensuring your store’s balance sheet reflects any outstanding amounts. 

  • Gift Card Sales: Shows the face value of gift cards sold, adjusted for any discounts applied at the time of sale.
  • Outstanding Gift Card Balance: The total balance remaining on gift cards that have been issued or sold but not yet redeemed.
  • Tips: Displays the total tips received from customers.

Gross Profit: The Gross Profit section helps you calculate the profitability of your store by analyzing your net sales against the cost of goods sold (COGS), ensuring that you are pricing products correctly and generating sufficient profit margins.

  • Net Sales without Cost Recorded: Shows sales where the cost of goods wasn't entered, thus not affecting your COGS or profit.
  • Net Sales with Cost Recorded: Includes sales for which COGS was entered, providing a clearer picture of actual profits.
  • Gross Profit: This is your total net sales minus the cost of goods sold, representing your actual profit.

Each metric is displayed with a visual data table that offers clear and detailed information. Users can view detailed data in a certain timeframe and across all channels, including the online store and POS.

Exploring the Finances Summary Page 2

For in-depth examination, Shopify allows for the export of metrics to CSV files, enabling offline analysis and reporting. This multi-format approach ensures that users can not only visualize but also manipulate and review their data comprehensively.

Bottom Line

Whether you're new to Shopify or an experienced merchant, the Finances Summary is your go-to resource for understanding your store's financial performance at a glance, and the skill to view and explore is seriously important. Learn it today and control your store’s operations.

FAQs:

Can I view financial data for specific products or categories?

No, the Finances Summary provides a broad view of your overall store’s financials. To dive deeper into product-specific financial data, you need to use other analytics tools, like product reports within Shopify.

How often is the financial data updated?

The data on the Finances Summary page is updated in real-time, giving you up-to-date insights into your store’s sales, payments, taxes, etc., as they occur.

What is the difference between ‘gross sales’ and ‘net sales’?

Gross sales refer to the total sales before discounts and returns, while net sales reflect the actual amount received after refunds and discounts.

Can I customize the data shown on the Finances Summary Page?

Yes, you can filter data by channels (e.g., online store, POS) and select specific date ranges to focus on particular periods.

What happens if there is a discrepancy in my finances?

You can investigate discrepancies by reviewing detailed reports in the Finances Summary and contacting Shopify support if needed.

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Sam
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Sam Nguyen is the CEO and founder of Avada Commerce, an e-commerce solution provider headquartered in Singapore. He is an expert on the Shopify e-commerce platform for online stores and retail point-of-sale systems. Sam loves talking about e-commerce and he aims to help over a million online businesses grow and thrive.