Custom Reports

What is this page about: Light's custom report builder lets you create Table reports — structured, formula-driven financial reports in the same format as Light's built-in statements. This page explains how to create a Table report, configure its template settings, build rows and columns, write formulas, and save, run, and duplicate reports.

# On this page

• Creating a Table report
• Template header settings
• Building the row structure
• Working with columns
• Writing formulas
• Saving and reusing templates
• Running a report
• Duplicating a report

Quick answer: In Light, a custom Table report is a row-and-column financial report built with formulas — the same format Light uses for its own built-in financial statements. Build one via Planning & Reports → Reports → Create report → Table, define rows and columns, write formulas like SUM, ACT, or TAXTAG in each cell, then save and run it with filters for entity, date range, currency, and comparison periods.

Light's custom report builder lets you create Table reports — structured row-and-column layouts driven by formulas — alongside Pivot tables and Text to chart reports. This article focuses on the Table report type, which is the same format used by all of Light's built-in financial statements.

Key facts:

• Report types: Table, Pivot table, Text to chart
• Template header fields: Template name (required), Country (optional), Period (required), Exclude year-end transactions (optional)
• Period options: Range (start + end date) or Snapshot (single date)
• Columns: up to 5 (A–E)
• Formula functions: SUM, ACP, ACPSUM, ACT, ACTSUM, ACTCUR, TAXTAG, PERCENT
• Run-time filters: Entity, Date range, Currency, Comparison, Custom properties

# Creating a Table report

1. Navigate to Planning & Reports → Reports
2. Click Create report
3. Select Table from the dropdown
4. The template editor opens with a blank form

# Template header settings

At the top of the editor, configure the template properties:

Period options:

# Building the row structure

Rows define what appears in the report. Each row has a label and formula cells for each column, giving you the same building blocks Light uses for its own built-in statements.

Adding rows:

• Click the + icon at the bottom of the table to add a new row
• Hover over any row number to reveal the row actions menu (⋮):
  • Insert 1 row above
  • Insert 1 row below
  • Insert child row — creates an indented sub-row under the current row
  • Delete row — deletes the row and any child rows. A confirmation prompt only appears if the row has children; a childless row deletes immediately

Row hierarchy:

Rows can be nested to create parent/child groupings. Child rows are indented visually by their depth level. Deleting a parent row removes all its children.

# Working with columns

New templates start with a single column (A). You can add up to 5 columns (A–E).

• Click the + icon in the last column header to add a new column
• To rename a column, edit the label directly in an inline text field in the column header — there's no separate rename menu
• Click the column letter (e.g. A.) to open the column menu:
  • Delete column — removes the column entirely and shifts the remaining columns left (requires confirmation)

# Writing formulas

Each row/column cell uses a single-line formula editor with autocomplete. Light supports the following functions:

Tips:

• Prefix an argument with - to subtract it (e.g. ACP(4, -5) adds account-code-4 and subtracts account-code-5)
• Use SUM to reference other cells in the template — for example SUM(A1, A2, A3) to total three rows
• SUM and PERCENT can only reference cells that contain an amount — they cannot reference empty cells or cells whose formula is a PERCENT
• Autocomplete activates as you type and shows context-sensitive suggestions (account types inside ACT(), cell references inside SUM(), tax tags inside TAXTAG())

# Saving and reusing templates

Click Save in the top bar to save the template. The report is immediately available in your Light reports list under Planning & Reports → Reports. Saved templates regenerate with current data every time you open them in Light — no need to reconfigure.

To rename a saved report, edit the template name field and click Save again.

# Running a report

Open any saved Table report from your Light reports list. Use the filters at the top to control the output:

• Entity — single entity, multiple entities, or Consolidated view
• Date range — determined by the template's Period setting
• Currency — Entity Crcy (local) or Group Crcy (group)
• Comparison — compare against 1, 3, 6, 9, or 12 prior months, or 1, 2, or 3 prior years
• Custom properties — filter by any custom property value (only shown on multi-entity and templated report views, not on single-entity views)

Click any cell value to drill into the underlying ledger transactions.

# Duplicating a report

To create a variation of an existing template:

1. Go to Planning & Reports → Reports
2. Click the menu (⋮) on any Table report
3. Select Duplicate

The copy appears in your reports list — it doesn't open automatically. Its name follows the format <name> (dd/MM/yy-HH:mm:ss), for example "My report (13/08/26-14:30:05)". Open it from the list to edit and save as needed.

# Frequently asked questions

# What is a Table report in Light?

It's a structured row-and-column financial report driven by formulas — the same format used by all of Light's built-in financial statements, such as the balance sheet.

# How many columns can a custom report have?

Up to 5 columns, labeled A through E. New templates start with a single column (A).

# What's the difference between Range and Snapshot periods?

Range lets you pick a start and end date when running the report. Snapshot shows balances as of a single date and only requires an end date — useful for point-in-time reports like the balance sheet.

# What formula functions are available?

SUM, ACP, ACPSUM, ACT, ACTSUM, ACTCUR, TAXTAG, and PERCENT. See Writing formulas above for syntax and examples.

# Can I filter a report by currency?

Yes — choose Entity Crcy (local currency) or Group Crcy (group currency) when running the report.

# How do I reuse a report template?

Duplicate it from Planning & Reports → Reports via the (⋮) menu → Duplicate. A copy appears in your reports list named <name> (dd/MM/yy-HH:mm:ss) — it doesn't open automatically.

# Related articles

• Reporting overview
• Tables and pivot reports
• Exporting reports