How to Generate Basic Payroll Reports in QuickBooks Online

Generating payroll reports in QuickBooks Online is a critical part of managing employee compensation, tax obligations, and financial records. QuickBooks offers a range of built-in payroll reports that can be customized and generated according to your specific needs. 

Below we’ll walk you through the detailed step-by-step guide on how to generate basic payroll reports in QuickBooks Online. 

Step 1: Access the Payroll Reports. From the left-hand menu of your QuickBooks Online dashboard, click on Reports, and then select the Reports dropdown, as shown below. 

Navigating to Reports in QuickBooks Online

Step 2: Choose a Payroll Report. Scroll down to the “Payroll” section, where you’ll find a variety of payroll reports categorized by type. Choose the report that suits your needs. Some commonly used reports include:

• Employee Contact List: The Employee Contact List report in QuickBooks Online provides a comprehensive list of your employees and their contact information. It’s a basic report that serves as a quick reference for your employees’ details, including their names, addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses. This report is valuable for keeping employee contact information up-to-date, ensuring you can reach out to them easily when necessary. 
• Recent/Edited Time Activities: The Recent/Edited Time Activities report in QuickBooks Online Payroll helps businesses track time entries for employees. It displays a list of time entries that have been recently added or edited in the system. This report is especially useful for businesses that track employee hours for various purposes, such as payroll and job costing.
• Time Activities by Employee Detail: The Time Activities by Employee Detail report provides a detailed breakdown of employee time activities, including hours worked, tasks performed, and pay rates. This report is essential for businesses that need to analyze employee time data for payroll processing, job costing, or project management.

Running payroll reports in QuickBooks Online

Step 4: Customize the Report. After selecting a report, you can customize it to meet your specific requirements. Click the Customize button to access additional customization options.

In the customization window, you can refine the report by specifying the date range and selecting particular employees, payroll items, or other criteria, depending on the report type.

Customizing a payroll report in QuickBooks

Step 5: Generate the Report. Once you’ve customized the report to your liking, click the Run report button. The report will be generated and displayed on-screen. If you need to save or share the report, use the Export button to export it to various formats, such as PDF or Excel. You can also print the report directly if needed.

Sample payroll report in QuickBooks Online

Wrap Up

Generating and customizing payroll reports in QuickBooks Online allows businesses to maintain accurate financial records, comply with tax regulations, and make informed financial decisions tailored to their specific needs. The ability to customize reports ensures that you can obtain the relevant information required for efficient payroll management.